The generative paradigm has become increasingly important in machine learning and deep learning models. Among popular generative models are normalizing flows, which enable exact likelihood estimation by transforming a base distribution through diffeomorphic transformations. Extending the normalizing flow framework to handle time-indexed flows gave dynamic normalizing flows, a powerful tool to model time series, stochastic processes, and neural stochastic differential equations (SDEs). In this work, we propose a novel variant of dynamic normalizing flows, a Time Changed Normalizing Flow (TCNF), based on time deformation of a Brownian motion which constitutes a versatile and extensive family of Gaussian processes. This approach enables us to effectively model some SDEs, that cannot be modeled otherwise, including standard ones such as the well-known Ornstein-Uhlenbeck process, and generalizes prior methodologies, leading to improved results and better inference and prediction capability.

Time-changed normalizing flows for accurate SDE modeling