# Quantum-Inspired Optimization Process for Data Imputation

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2505.04841 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2505.04841/

## Key facts

- No citing papers in the map yet (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 1 of its 25 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 7 May 2025.

## Builds on (most cited first, 1 of 1)

- [On Wasserstein Two Sample Testing and Related Families of Nonparametric Tests](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1509.02237/) (2015)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Data imputation is a critical step in data pre-processing, particularly for datasets with missing or unreliable values. This study introduces a novel quantum-inspired imputation framework evaluated on the UCI Diabetes dataset, which contains biologically implausible missing values across several clinical features. The method integrates Principal Component Analysis (PCA) with quantum-assisted rotations, optimized through gradient-free classical optimizers -COBYLA, Simulated Annealing, and Differential Evolution to reconstruct missing values while preserving statistical fidelity. Reconstructed values are constrained within +/-2 standard deviations of original feature distributions, avoiding unrealistic clustering around central tendencies. This approach achieves a substantial and statistically significant improvement, including an average reduction of over 85% in Wasserstein distance and Kolmogorov-Smirnov test p-values between 0.18 and 0.22, compared to p-values > 0.99 in classical methods such as Mean, KNN, and MICE. The method also eliminates zero-value artifacts and enhances the realism and variability of imputed data. By combining quantum-inspired transformations with a scalable classical framework, this methodology provides a robust solution for imputation tasks in domains such as healthcare and AI pipelines, where data quality and integrity are crucial.