Model Training & Adaptation
Categorical feature
A piece of information describing a group or type, such as a product's color.
Example
An AI system receives a product type such as furniture or clothing.
Why people use it
It lets AI use kinds or groups, such as product type, as information.
What you'll hear
“This field means a category, not an amount.”
What this means for you
Use an encoding appropriate to the meaning of the categories.
Can you control it?
Developer-only
The people building or running the AI choose this setup. An everyday user generally needs their help to change how this part works.
Common questions
- Can categories have an order?
- Yes. Labels such as low, medium and high have an order even though they are not exact numerical amounts.
- Does a category written as a number become a measurement?
- No. A code such as '3' may simply name a category, with no numerical distance implied.
- What if a new category appears later?
- The system needs a way to handle it rather than assuming it fits an old category.