Electrical circuit design

A machine learning system for designing an electrical circuit, the machine learning system comprising at least one processor, and a computer-readable storage medium comprising computer executable instructions which, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to implement:

• a neural network having a plurality of network parameter values, the neural network being adapted to receive a state signal representing a state of an environment and to process the state signal according to the plurality of network parameter values to generate action selection data representing an action selection policy for selecting an action to be performed by the agent in response to the state signal;
• a buffer;
• an interface for receiving input data representing a plurality of circuit elements in an electrical circuit to be connected, each of the plurality of circuit elements comprising at least one terminal, the input data further comprising an indication of a plurality of connections including a first connection between a first pair of terminals and a second connection between a second pair of terminals;
• a processing engine adapted to:
• process the input data to generate a representation of the electrical circuit, the representation being adapted to generate a state signal representing a configuration of the electrical circuit in response to receiving an action selection signal representing a decision with respect to a configuration of the electrical circuit;
• and
• determine routes for the first and second connections by iteratively:
• defining two or more orders in which to determine routes for the first and second connections;
• using a Sequential Monte Carlo process to perform a look ahead search of each defined order by generating simulations in respect of routes to be determined for the connections in the two or more orders, wherein the Sequential Monte Carlo process is guided using a neural network;
• determining a posterior distribution over the orders by evaluating the simulations;
• selecting a connection from the first and second connections based upon the determined posterior distribution over the orders;
• determining a route for the selected connection;
• and
• updating the representation of the electrical circuit by providing an action selection signal representing the determined route for the selected connection.