This topic can be somewhat sensitive, so I’ll probably tread on a few toes, please
forgive me. There is no authoritative answer for this question, as it really depends
on what languages you like programming in. AI programs have been written in just
about every language ever created. The most common seem to be Lisp, Prolog,
C/C++, recently Java, and even more recently, Python.
LISP: For many years, AI was done as research in universities and laboratories,
thus fast prototyping was favored over fast execution. This is one reason why AI
has favored high-level languages such as Lisp. This tradition means that current AI
Lisp programmers can draw on many resources from the community. Features of
the language that are good for AI programming include: garbage collection,
dynamic typing, functions as data, uniform syntax, interactive environment, and
extensibility. Read Paul Graham’s essay, “Beating the Averages” for a discussion
of some serious advantages:
PROLOG: This language wins ‘cool idea’ competition. It wasn’t until the 70s that
people began to realize that a set of logical statements plus a general theorem
prover could make up a program. Prolog combines the high-level and traditional
advantages of Lisp with a built-in unifier, which is particularly useful in AI. Prolog
seems to be good for problems in which logic is intimately involved, or whose
solutions have a succinct logical characterization. Its major drawback (IMHO)