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Writer's pictureAngo Fomuso Ekellem

A Comprehensive Exploration of 20 Core AI/ML Algorithms!

Updated: Oct 6, 2023



As we continue to delve into the realm of artificial intelligence and machine learning, it's imperative that we comprehend the intuition behind the key algorithms that power these technologies. This article aims to illuminate the essence of 20 important algorithms across supervised learning, unsupervised learning, reinforcement learning, and deep learning. For each, we'll explore its real-world applications, the kind of data required, and the significant role data visualization plays.


I. Supervised Learning Algorithms

Supervised learning occurs when an algorithm learns from example data and associated target responses that can consist of numeric values or string labels, such as classes or tags, to later predict.

  1. Linear Regression: This algorithm is used to predict a continuous outcome variable (Y) based on one or more predictor variables (X). For instance, a real estate company could use this to predict house prices based on features like location, size, and number of rooms. The data needed would be continuous numerical data and categorical data. Visualization via scatter plots helps understand the relationships between predictors and outcomes. Often used in economics, real estate, and environmental science. The intuition is that one or more independent variables can be used to predict a continuous outcome.

  2. Logistic Regression: This algorithm estimates the probability of an event occurring. In a banking scenario, it could be used to predict if a customer might default based on income, credit score, etc. It requires categorical or numerical data. A ROC curve is a good visualization method to measure its performance. Frequently used in healthcare, social sciences, and marketing for binary classification tasks. It estimates the probability of an event occurring.

  3. Decision Trees: Used for both classification and regression tasks. In a healthcare setting, it could predict a patient's likelihood of having a disease based on symptoms and personal details. It requires categorical or numerical data, and the decision tree itself is a great visualization tool. Applied in healthcare, finance, and manufacturing for prediction and decision-making. They allow decisions to be made based on certain conditions.

  4. Random Forest: An ensemble of decision trees often used for classification or regression. For instance, it could be used to predict a car's price based on features like mileage, age, brand, etc. It requires both categorical and numerical data. Feature importance plot is a popular visualization method to identify which features contribute most to the predictions. Widely used in banking, stock market, and e-commerce. It improves prediction accuracy by reducing the overfitting of the model to the training data.

  5. Support Vector Machines (SVM): This algorithm is primarily used for classification problems. For example, it could be used for face detection in an image. The required data would be labeled image data, and data can be visualized in n-dimensional space (where n is the number of features). Commonly used in image recognition, bioinformatics, and text mining. The intuition is to find a hyperplane that best separates the classes.

II. Unsupervised Learning Algorithms

Unsupervised learning is the training of a machine using information that is neither classified nor labeled and allowing the algorithm to act on that information without guidance.

  1. K-Means Clustering: This is used to divide information into clusters or groups. For example, a marketing team could use it to segment customers into distinct groups based on purchasing behavior, demographics, etc. The data needed would be numerical customer data, and a scatter plot can be used to visualize the formed clusters. Used in market segmentation, computer vision, and search engines. The intuition is to divide data into distinct groups based on their characteristics.

  2. Hierarchical Clustering: This algorithm builds a hierarchy of clusters and can be used in understanding taxonomies in biological data. It requires numerical data and can be visualized using a dendrogram. Used in bioinformatics, document clustering, and image segmentation. The intuition is to build a hierarchy of clusters.

  3. PCA (Principal Component Analysis): This algorithm reduces the dimensionality of the data while preserving as much variability as possible. Used in a myriad of applications, including visualizing genetic distance and patterns of gene expression. The data required is high-dimensional numerical data. The lower-dimensional output can be visualized using scatter plots. Widely used in genetics, finance, and image compression. The idea is to reduce dimensionality while preserving variance in data.

  4. ICA (Independent Component Analysis): This algorithm separates a multivariate signal into independent non-Gaussian signals. A use case could be separating mixed voices into individual voices. It requires multivariate data and can be visualized using a simple line plot. Used in digital images, medical imaging analysis, and audio signal processing. It aims to separate a multivariate signal into independent non-Gaussian signals.

  5. Apriori Algorithm: This algorithm is used for mining frequent item sets and devising association rules in transaction data. It's often used by retailers to uncover associations between items. It requires transaction data and the association rules can be visualized using a network graph. Commonly used in market basket analysis in retail stores. It identifies which items are often bought together.

III. Reinforcement Learning Algorithms

Reinforcement learning is a type of machine learning where an agent learns to behave in an environment, by performing actions and seeing the results.

  1. Q-Learning: This is a values iteration algorithm used in making decisions in a Markov Decision Process. An application could be in developing game-playing AI (like Chess or Go). The data required would be the state and reward data, and the state-value pairs can be visualized using a heat map. Used in robotics, gaming, and navigation. The agent learns the best action to take in each state to maximize the total reward.

  2. SARSA (State-Action-Reward-State-Action): SARSA is another method used in a Markov Decision Process. For example, it could be used in robot navigation. It requires the state and reward data, and the policy can be visualized using a decision surface plot. Used in industrial automation, resource management, and gaming. It learns the policy of the agent by updating the Q-values based on the current state of the agent.

  3. Deep Q Network (DQN): This algorithm combines Q-Learning with deep learning and can be used in a variety of fields, such as playing video games autonomously. It requires the state and reward data, and the state-value pairs can be visualized using a heat map. Used in autonomous vehicles, gaming, and robotics. It combines the power of deep learning with reinforcement learning.

  4. Policy Gradients: Policy gradient methods are used in optimization, often used in robotics. It requires state and reward data, and the policy can be visualized using a decision surface plot. Used in robotics, gaming, and natural language processing. It improves the policy of an agent by ascending the gradient toward the maximum reward.

  5. Actor-Critic Method: Actor-Critic algorithms combine value-based and policy-based methods for reinforcement learning, useful in resource management in computer systems. It requires state and reward data, and the policy and value functions can be visualized using a decision surface plot. Used in robotics, gaming, and computer systems. It's a hybrid method that uses both value and policy optimization methods.

IV. Deep Learning Algorithms

Deep learning algorithms use artificial neural networks with multiple abstraction layers.

  1. Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN): CNNs are ideal for image processing, for example, for diagnosing diseases from medical imaging. It requires image data and the output can be visualized by examining the activation of different layers. Used in image recognition, self-driving cars, and facial recognition systems. CNNs excel in processing grid-like data.

  2. Recurrent Neural Networks (RNN): RNNs can be used in natural language processing, like generating automated captions for images. It requires sequential data and the activations over time can be visualized using a line plot. Used in speech recognition, language translation, and stock prediction. RNNs are suitable for processing sequence data.

  3. Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM): LSTMs are used in time series prediction, for example, predicting stock prices. It requires sequential data, and the predictions can be visualized using a line plot. Used in music composition, text generation, and time series forecasting. LSTM units allow past information to be reinjected at a later time.

  4. Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs): GANs can be used to generate synthetic data, like creating artwork. It requires a large amount of data for training, and the output can be visualized by examining the synthetic data generated. Used in art, 3D object generation, and image synthesis. GANs consist of two networks: one generates the data and the other evaluates it.

  5. Autoencoders (AE): AEs are used in anomaly detection, such as detecting credit card fraud. It requires labeled data for training, and the output can be visualized using a scatter plot of the low-dimensional bottleneck representation. Used in anomaly detection, denoising, and dimensionality reduction. AEs learn to encode data then decode it, reconstructing the original input.

V. Conclusion

The realm of machine learning and artificial intelligence is immensely vast and ever-evolving. The significance of these algorithms is immense, but their real power lies in their application – turning raw data into actionable insights. By understanding these algorithms, their real-world uses, and the data required, we can begin to harness this power and propel ourselves into a future driven by data and intelligence.


Each algorithm has its strengths and weaknesses, making them better suited to certain types of problems. Understanding the intuition behind these algorithms can help businesses and researchers apply them effectively to generate valuable insights and solve complex problems.

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