  Neural Networks sequentially build high-level features through their
successive layers. We propose here a new neural network model where each layer
is associated with a set of candidate mappings. When an input is processed, at
each layer, one mapping among these candidates is selected according to a
sequential decision process. The resulting model is structured according to a
DAG like architecture, so that a path from the root to a leaf node defines a
sequence of transformations. Instead of considering global transformations,
like in classical multilayer networks, this model allows us for learning a set
of local transformations. It is thus able to process data with different
characteristics through specific sequences of such local transformations,
increasing the expression power of this model w.r.t a classical multilayered
network. The learning algorithm is inspired from policy gradient techniques
coming from the reinforcement learning domain and is used here instead of the
classical back-propagation based gradient descent techniques. Experiments on
different datasets show the relevance of this approach.
