---
id: wiki-2026-0508-matrix-operations-and-ai
title: Matrix Operations and AI
category: 10_Wiki/Topics
status: verified
canonical_id: self
aliases: [Matrix Ops, MatMul, GEMM, Tensor Ops]
duplicate_of: none
source_trust_level: A
confidence_score: 0.9
verification_status: applied
tags: [ai, ml, math, linear-algebra, gpu, performance]
raw_sources: []
last_reinforced: 2026-05-10
github_commit: pending
tech_stack: { language: python, framework: pytorch-numpy-jax }
---

# Matrix Operations and AI

## 매 한 줄
> **"매 모델은 결국 행렬 곱이다"**. Transformer/CNN/RNN 모두 GEMM(General Matrix Multiply) 호출의 그래프이고, 성능은 BLAS·cuBLAS·Tensor Core 활용도로 결정된다.

## 매 핵심
### 매 핵심 연산
- **MatMul (GEMM)**: `C = A @ B`. FLOPs = 2·M·N·K. 모든 dense layer의 본질.
- **Element-wise**: ReLU, add, multiply. Memory-bound.
- **Reduction**: sum/mean/max. Softmax, LayerNorm 핵심.
- **Broadcasting**: shape 자동 확장 (NumPy/PyTorch convention).
- **Einsum**: `einsum('bij,bjk->bik')` - batched matmul 표현.

### 매 응용
1. **Attention**: `softmax(QK^T / √d) V` - 4번의 matmul.
2. **Conv2d**: im2col로 matmul로 변환하거나 Winograd/FFT.
3. **Embedding lookup**: sparse matmul (one-hot @ W).
4. **LayerNorm/RMSNorm**: reduction + element-wise.
5. **Mixture of Experts**: grouped matmul (분산 라우팅).

## 💻 패턴

### Pattern 1 — Basic MatMul (PyTorch)
```python
import torch
A = torch.randn(128, 256, device='cuda')
B = torch.randn(256, 512, device='cuda')
C = A @ B  # or torch.matmul(A, B)
# Batched: (B, M, K) @ (B, K, N) -> (B, M, N)
```

### Pattern 2 — Einsum (명시적)
```python
# Attention scores: batch, heads, seq_q, seq_k
scores = torch.einsum('bhqd,bhkd->bhqk', Q, K)
# 명시적이라 transpose 실수 방지
```

### Pattern 3 — Broadcasting 주의
```python
a = torch.randn(32, 1, 128)
b = torch.randn(1, 64, 128)
c = a + b  # (32, 64, 128) — shape mismatch 시 silent bug
```

### Pattern 4 — Mixed Precision (Tensor Core)
```python
with torch.autocast('cuda', dtype=torch.bfloat16):
    out = model(x)  # GEMM은 bf16, accumulate는 fp32
# A100/H100에서 2-8배 throughput
```

### Pattern 5 — Fused Kernel (FlashAttention)
```python
from torch.nn.functional import scaled_dot_product_attention
out = scaled_dot_product_attention(Q, K, V, is_causal=True)
# Q@K^T → softmax → @V를 SRAM에서 한 번에 (HBM 왕복 제거)
```

### Pattern 6 — Memory Layout (contiguous)
```python
x = x.transpose(1, 2).contiguous()  # stride 재배치
# Non-contiguous matmul은 성능 급락
```

### Pattern 7 — torch.compile (kernel fusion)
```python
@torch.compile
def block(x): return F.gelu(x @ W1) @ W2
# Inductor가 element-wise를 GEMM 주변에 fuse
```

### Pattern 8 — JAX/XLA
```python
import jax.numpy as jnp
@jax.jit
def fwd(x, W): return jnp.einsum('bd,dk->bk', x, W)
```

## 매 결정 기준
| 상황 | Approach |
|---|---|
| 표준 dense layer | `nn.Linear` (cuBLAS GEMM) |
| 복잡한 contraction | `einsum` (가독성) |
| Attention | `scaled_dot_product_attention` (FlashAttn) |
| 작은 batch / inference | mixed precision + compile |
| Custom op | Triton 또는 CUDA kernel |
| 분산 학습 | tensor parallel (megatron-style) |

**기본값**: PyTorch 2.x + bf16 + `torch.compile` + FlashAttention.

## 🔗 Graph
- 부모: [[Linear-Algebra-Foundations|Linear-Algebra]], [[Deep Learning]]
- 응용: [[Attention Mechanism]], [[Transformer]]
- Adjacent: [[GPU|GPU-Architecture]], [[Memory-Hierarchy]], [[Flash Attention]]

## 🤖 LLM 활용
**언제**:
- Einsum 표기 작성/디버깅 (shape mismatch 검증).
- Custom matmul 변형 → Triton 코드 초안.
- Memory-bound vs compute-bound 분석 결정.

**언제 X**:
- 정확한 FLOPs/메모리 측정 (실측 도구 사용).
- 최신 cuBLAS/cutlass 튜닝 파라미터.

## ❌ 안티패턴
- Python loop로 matmul (`for i in range: C[i] = ...`) — 1000배 느림.
- Non-contiguous tensor에 matmul 반복.
- fp32만 고집 (Tensor Core 미사용).
- Broadcasting 의도하지 않은 곳에서 발생.
- 작은 matmul 다수 호출 (kernel launch overhead).

## 🧪 검증 / 중복
- Verified. PyTorch 2.5/CUDA 12.x 기준. 신뢰도 A.

## 🕓 Changelog
| 날짜 | 변경 |
|---|---|
| 2026-05-08 | Phase 1 |
| 2026-05-10 | Manual cleanup |
