Techniques to preprocess tensor operations prior to code generation to optimize compilation are disclosed. A computer readable representation of a linear algebra or tensor operation is received. A code transformation software component performs transformations include output reduction and fraction removal. The result is a set of linear equations of a single variable with integer coefficients. Such a set lends itself to more efficient code generation during compilation by a code generation software component. Use cases disclosed include targeting a machine learning hardware accelerator, receiving code in the form of an intermediate language generated by a cross-compiler with multiple front ends supporting multiple programming languages, and cloud deployment and execution scenarios.