The Free-Market Algorithm: Economics-Inspired Multi-Agent Metaheuristic for Open-Ended Optimization
arXiv·low signal
A novel metaheuristic inspired by free-market economics where agents operate as economic actors — buying, selling, and trading solution components — rather than following prescribed fitness functions. Unlike genetic algorithms or particle swarm optimization which require fixed search spaces, FMA self-organizes through decentralized agent interactions, making it suited for open-ended complex systems where the optimization landscape is unknown or dynamic. Published in cs.NE/cs.AI/cs.MA.