BrainSurgery

BrainSurgery: Declarative YAML-based tool for reproducible neural network checkpoint manipulation

BrainSurgery is a new tooling system for performing reproducible weight manipulations on neural network checkpoints via declarative YAML plans, replacing fragile ad-hoc Python scripts. It supports layer restructuring, precision casting, low-rank factorization, and LoRA extraction, with built-in assertions to catch silent errors. The paper includes case studies on model upcycling and LoRA extraction, targeting researchers who need reliable checkpoint surgery workflows at scale.