Top 5 Tips to Ace Machine Learning Hackathons

According to Statista, the value of the worldwide AI software industry is anticipated to be over US$126 billion by 2025. The current labor market is being shaped by exponential technologies, which are also creating new jobs. Hackathons have recently played a significant role in tech companies' employment practices. And with good cause.

In a matter of months, according to TAIKAI, 40% of their hackathon participants were hired by businesses. MachineHack, Kaggle, NeurIPS, and other AI/ML hackathons are the ideal venues for networking with industry insiders, collaborating with peers, and landing job offers from major tech firms. Such hackathons are well-known and well-regarded.

Here is a list of key skills required to crack ML hackathons:

1. Strong Basics

Competitors in these events must have a solid foundation in areas like computer languages, mathematical theories, machine learning techniques, deep learning, etc. At any ML hackathon, it all boils down to having a solid grasp of the topic. Next, thoroughly explore the sklearn package to find error metrics, model algorithms, cross-validation, and other useful information. Understand data, train, and validate; this is most critical.

2. Get Hands-On Experience

Theoretical knowledge is only going to go you so far. Working on projects that allow one to put the lessons learned in a book or class into practice is more efficient than simply reading a book.

3. Hyperparameters versus Concepts

It's common to lose track of time while concentrating on fine-tuning an ML model's hyperparameters in a time-based challenge. To improve their models, the participant should invest more time in putting new concepts based on the EDA and most recent data into practice.

4. Time is the Essence

It's crucial to plan the model while considering the timeline. When concentrating on adjusting hyperparameters or performing cross-validation tests, etc., it is quite simple to lose track of time. You can accomplish your assignment on time if you stick to a rigid plan.

5. The Key is Persistence

You are less likely to win a hackathon on your first try, however, it is still conceivable. To become competitive, you must have patience, learn from competitions, gather real-world experience, and build a portfolio.