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Contextual Bandits

Technique

Contextual bandits are a class of online learning algorithms that, given an input context, select an action (arm) and observe a reward for that action, using the reward as a learning signal to maximize cumulative reward over a sequence of inputs. They are a standard approach for recommendation and ranking problems and have been adapted for specialized settings including privacy-preserving multi-party learning, robustness to adversarial action-poisoning, and, as demonstrated by ReFuzz, for selecting and mutating tests in processor hardware fuzzing.

First seen 7/4/2026
Last seen 7/4/2026
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Wiki v1

WIKI

Definition

A contextual bandit is an online learner that, on each round, receives an input (the context), selects one of several available actions (arms), and observes a reward only for the chosen arm. The reward serves as a learning signal, and the goal of the algorithm is to maximize the total reward accumulated over the sequence of inputs it observes [Privacy-Preserving Multi-Party Contextual Bandits, arXiv:1910.05299].

Common Applications

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NEIGHBORHOOD

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RELATIONSHIPS

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ReFuzz ← uses 98% 1e
ReFuzz uses contextual bandits to select and mutate effective tests.
The ReFuzz paper uses contextual bandits as the core technique.

CITATIONS

5 sources
5 citations — click to expand
[1] A contextual bandit is an online learner that, given an input, selects an arm and receives a reward for that arm, using the reward as a learning signal to maximize total reward. Privacy-Preserving Multi-Party Contextual Bandits
[2] Contextual bandits are commonly used to solve recommendation or ranking problems. Privacy-Preserving Multi-Party Contextual Bandits
[3] Privacy-preserving multi-party contextual bandits can be constructed by combining secure multi-party computation with a differentially private ε-greedy exploration mechanism. Privacy-Preserving Multi-Party Contextual Bandits
[4] LinUCB is a widely used linear contextual bandit algorithm, and action-poisoning attacks against it can force a target arm to be pulled with only logarithmic cost in both white-box and black-box settings. Efficient Action Poisoning Attacks on Linear Contextual Bandits
[5] ReFuzz uses contextual bandits to select and mutate highly effective tests from historic processor designs, improving vulnerability detection and coverage efficiency on new target processors. NDSS 2026 Hardware Security announcements (ReFuzz overview)