mlsanityData to 7 Oct 2026

pyribs: A Bare-Bones Python Library for Quality Diversity Optimization

arXiv 2303.00191 ↗First posted 1 Mar 2023cs.NE cs.LG cs.SEcited by 29

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Abstract (arXiv)

Recent years have seen a rise in the popularity of quality diversity (QD) optimization, a branch of optimization that seeks to find a collection of diverse, high-performing solutions to a given problem. To grow further, we believe the QD community faces two challenges: developing a framework to represent the field's growing array of algorithms, and implementing that framework in software that supports a range of researchers and practitioners. To address these challenges, we have developed pyribs, a library built on a highly modular conceptual QD framework. By replacing components in the conceptual framework, and hence in pyribs, users can compose algorithms from across the QD literature; equally important, they can identify unexplored algorithm variations. Furthermore, pyribs makes this framework simple, flexible, and accessible, with a user-friendly API supported by extensive documentation and tutorials. This paper overviews the creation of pyribs, focusing on the conceptual framework that it implements and the design principles that have guided the library's development.

Key facts. Cited by 29 papers in the map (data through 7 Oct 2026). Builds on 35 of its 69 references that are in the map. First posted on arXiv 1 Mar 2023.

Builds on

35 of 69 references.

References · 35

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23 more
  1. 2019Autonomous skill discovery with Quality-Diversity and Unsupervised Descriptorscited by 57
  2. 2020Diversity Policy Gradient for Sample Efficient Quality-Diversity Optimizationcited by 53
  3. 2020Illuminating Mario Scenes in the Latent Space of a Generative Adversarial Networkcited by 51
  4. 2018Discovering the Elite Hypervolume by Leveraging Interspecies Correlationcited by 40
  5. 2022Deep Surrogate Assisted Generation of Environmentscited by 40
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  7. 2020Scaling MAP-Elites to Deep Neuroevolutioncited by 38
  8. 2021On the Importance of Environments in Human-Robot Coordinationcited by 37
  9. 2022Approximating Gradients for Differentiable Quality Diversity in Reinforcement Learningcited by 37
  10. 2021Illuminating Diverse Neural Cellular Automata for Level Generationcited by 35
  11. 2019Mapping Hearthstone Deck Spaces through MAP-Elites with Sliding Boundariescited by 32
  12. 2021Deep Surrogate Assisted MAP-Elites for Automated Hearthstone Deckbuildingcited by 26
  13. 2022Covariance Matrix Adaptation MAP-Annealingcited by 24
  14. 2020Quality Diversity for Multi-task Optimizationcited by 23
  15. 2020A Quality Diversity Approach to Automatically Generating Human-Robot Interaction Scenarios in Shared Autonomycited by 20
  16. 2020BOP-Elites, a Bayesian Optimisation algorithm for Quality-Diversity searchcited by 15
  17. 2022Accelerated Quality-Diversity through Massive Parallelismcited by 14
  18. 2021Sparse Reward Exploration via Novelty Search and Emitterscited by 13
  19. 2022Training Diverse High-Dimensional Controllers by Scaling Covariance Matrix Adaptation MAP-Annealingcited by 10
  20. 2022Benchmarking Quality-Diversity Algorithms on Neuroevolution for Reinforcement Learningcited by 10
  21. 2022Automatic Acquisition of a Repertoire of Diverse Grasping Trajectories through Behavior Shaping and Novelty Searchcited by 9
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  23. 2022A Collection of Quality Diversity Optimization Problems Derived from Hyperparameter Optimization of Machine Learning Modelscited by 3

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Cited by year (2026 to 7 Oct)

Citing papers per year: 2023: 8; 2024: 11; 2025: 5; 2026: 5.

29 papers.

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  1. 2024GAVEL: Generating Games Via Evolution and Language Modelscited by 24
  2. 2023Proximal Policy Gradient Arborescence for Quality Diversity Reinforcement Learningcited by 20
  3. 2023Multi-Robot Coordination and Layout Design for Automated Warehousingcited by 17
  4. 2023QDax: A Library for Quality-Diversity and Population-based Algorithms with Hardware Accelerationcited by 16
  5. 2024Guidance Graph Optimization for Lifelong Multi-Agent Path Findingcited by 12
  6. 2024CaDRE: Controllable and Diverse Generation of Safety-Critical Driving Scenarios using Real-World Trajectoriescited by 11
  7. 2024The Role of Predictive Uncertainty and Diversity in Embodied AI and Robot Learningcited by 11
  8. 2023Arbitrarily Scalable Environment Generators via Neural Cellular Automatacited by 9
  9. 2023Surrogate Assisted Generation of Human-Robot Interaction Scenarioscited by 8
  10. 2023Q(D)O-ES: Population-based Quality (Diversity) Optimisation for Post Hoc Ensemble Selection in AutoMLcited by 8
  11. 2025Quality-Diversity Red-Teaming: Automated Generation of High-Quality and Diverse Attackers for Large Language Modelscited by 8
  12. 2023Quality Diversity under Sparse Reward and Sparse Interaction: Application to Grasping in Roboticscited by 6
17 more
  1. 2024Multi-Agent Diagnostics for Robustness via Illuminated Diversitycited by 4
  2. 2024Diversifying Policy Behaviors with Extrinsic Behavioral Curiositycited by 4
  3. 2024Enabling Adaptive Agent Training in Open-Ended Simulators by Targeting Diversitycited by 3
  4. 2025AutoQD: Automatic Discovery of Diverse Behaviors with Quality-Diversity Optimizationcited by 3
  5. 2025Destination-to-Chutes Task Mapping Optimization for Multi-Robot Coordination in Robotic Sorting Systemscited by 3
  6. 2023Density Descent for Diversity Optimizationcited by 2
  7. 2024Algorithmic Scenario Generation as Quality Diversity Optimizationcited by 1
  8. 2025Soft Quality-Diversity Optimizationcited by 1
  9. 2026Discount Model Search for Quality Diversity Optimization in High-Dimensional Measure Spacescited by 1
  10. 2026Optimization of Edge Directions and Weights for Mixed Guidance Graphs in Lifelong Multi-Agent Path Findingcited by 1
  11. 2024Dynamic Quality-Diversity Searchcited by 0
  12. 2024Towards Interpretable Foundation Models of Robot Behavior: A Task Specific Policy Generation Approachcited by 0
  13. 2024Online Behavior Modification for Expressive User Control of RL-Trained Robotscited by 0
  14. 2025"What are my options?": Explaining RL Agents with Diverse Near-Optimal Alternatives (Extended)cited by 0
  15. 2026Quality-Diversity Optimization as Multi-Objective Optimizationcited by 0
  16. 2026Procedural Generation of First Person Shooter Maps using Map-Elitescited by 0
  17. 2026U-Net-Accelerated Quality-Diversity Optimization for Climate-Adaptive Urban Layoutscited by 0