# Deterministic Discrete Denoising

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2509.20896 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2509.20896/

## Key facts

- Cited by 1 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Placed in Diffusion foundations and sampling, one of 14 directions in Diffusion models.
- Builds on 34 of its 60 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 25 Sep 2025.

## Placed in

- Diffusion models / [Diffusion foundations and sampling](https://mlsanity.com/diffusion/diffusion-foundations-and-sampling/)

## Builds on (most cited first, 30 of 34)

- [Denoising Diffusion Probabilistic Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2006.11239/) (2020)
- [U-Net: Convolutional Networks for Biomedical Image Segmentation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1505.04597/) (2015)
- [Denoising Diffusion Implicit Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2010.02502/) (2020)
- [Deep Unsupervised Learning using Nonequilibrium Thermodynamics](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1503.03585/) (2015)
- [Rethinking the Inception Architecture for Computer Vision](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1512.00567/) (2015)
- [Improved Techniques for Training GANs](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1606.03498/) (2016)
- [Structured Denoising Diffusion Models in Discrete State-Spaces](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2107.03006/) (2021)
- [Large Language Diffusion Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2502.09992/) (2025)
- [Simple and Effective Masked Diffusion Language Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2406.07524/) (2024)
- [Discrete Diffusion Modeling by Estimating the Ratios of the Data Distribution](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2310.16834/) (2023)
- [Simplified and Generalized Masked Diffusion for Discrete Data](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2406.04329/) (2024)
- [Argmax Flows and Multinomial Diffusion: Learning Categorical Distributions](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2102.05379/) (2021)
- [MAUVE: Measuring the Gap Between Neural Text and Human Text using Divergence Frontiers](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2102.01454/) (2021)
- [A Continuous Time Framework for Discrete Denoising Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2205.14987/) (2022)
- [Analog Bits: Generating Discrete Data using Diffusion Models with Self-Conditioning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2208.04202/) (2022)
- [One Billion Word Benchmark for Measuring Progress in Statistical Language Modeling](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1312.3005/) (2013)
- [LLaDA 1.5: Variance-Reduced Preference Optimization for Large Language Diffusion Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2505.19223/) (2025)
- [A General Framework for Inference-time Scaling and Steering of Diffusion Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2501.06848/) (2025)
- [DIFUSCO: Graph-based Diffusion Solvers for Combinatorial Optimization](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2302.08224/) (2023)
- [Score-based Continuous-time Discrete Diffusion Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2211.16750/) (2022)
- [Generalize a Small Pre-trained Model to Arbitrarily Large TSP Instances](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2012.10658/) (2020)
- [Simple Guidance Mechanisms for Discrete Diffusion Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2412.10193/) (2024)
- [The Diffusion Duality](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2506.10892/) (2025)
- [Accelerated Sampling from Masked Diffusion Models via Entropy Bounded Unmasking](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2505.24857/) (2025)
- [Generalized Interpolating Discrete Diffusion](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2503.04482/) (2025)
- [How Discrete and Continuous Diffusion Meet: Comprehensive Analysis of Discrete Diffusion Models via a Stochastic Integral Framework](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2410.03601/) (2024)
- [Fast Solvers for Discrete Diffusion Models: Theory and Applications of High-Order Algorithms](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2502.00234/) (2025)
- [textitJump Your Steps: Optimizing Sampling Schedule of Discrete Diffusion Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2410.07761/) (2024)
- [Debiasing Guidance for Discrete Diffusion with Sequential Monte Carlo](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2502.06079/) (2025)
- [Convergence of Score-Based Discrete Diffusion Models: A Discrete-Time Analysis](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2410.02321/) (2024)

## Built on by (most cited first, 1 of 1)

- [Stratified Hazard Sampling: Minimal-Variance Event Scheduling for CTMC/DTMC Discrete Diffusion and Flow Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2601.02799/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

We propose a deterministic denoising algorithm for discrete-state diffusion models. The key idea is to derandomize the generative reverse Markov chain by introducing a variant of the herding algorithm, which induces deterministic state transitions driven by weakly chaotic dynamics. It serves as a direct replacement for the stochastic denoising process, without requiring retraining or continuous state embeddings. We demonstrate consistent improvements in both efficiency and sample quality on text and image generation tasks. In addition, the proposed algorithm yields improved solutions for diffusion-based combinatorial optimization. Thus, herding-based denoising is a simple yet promising approach for enhancing the generative process of discrete diffusion models. Furthermore, our results reveal that deterministic reverse processes, well established in continuous diffusion, can also be effective in discrete state spaces.