# BREEDS: Benchmarks for Subpopulation Shift

Source: [BREEDS: Benchmarks for Subpopulation Shift](<https://www.sota2.com/research/paper/68fa682c1e209131cea1a867>)

Collection index: [llms.txt](<https://www.sota2.com/research/llms.txt>)

Data updated: 2025-10-25T22:31:00.251Z

Authors: Shibani Santurkar, Dimitris Tsipras, Aleksander Madry

Published: 2020-08-11T17:04:47.000Z

## Abstract

We develop a methodology for assessing the robustness of models to subpopulation shift---specifically, their ability to generalize to novel data subpopulations that were not observed during training. Our approach leverages the class structure underlying existing datasets to control the data subpopulations that comprise the training and test distributions. This enables us to synthesize realistic distribution shifts whose sources can be precisely controlled and characterized, within existing large-scale datasets. Applying this methodology to the ImageNet dataset, we create a suite of subpopulation shift benchmarks of varying granularity. We then validate that the corresponding shifts are tractable by obtaining human baselines for them. Finally, we utilize these benchmarks to measure the sensitivity of standard model architectures as well as the effectiveness of off-the-shelf train-time robustness interventions. Code and data available at https://github.com/MadryLab/BREEDS-Benchmarks .

## Recorded benchmark results

A research result applies to its stated dataset, split, metric and evaluation configuration. Compare like-for-like settings, preserve the metric's unit and direction, and distinguish paper-reported results from independent reproduction. The best result recorded here is not a claim of exhaustive, current global coverage.

## Original sources and implementation

[Original paper](<https://arxiv.org/abs/2008.04859>)

[PDF](<https://arxiv.org/pdf/2008.04859.pdf>)
