Decoder AI & Data Terms

Vector Database

STANDARD DEFINITION · CACHED

A is a specialized data management system designed to store, index, and retrieve high-dimensional , which are numerical representations of unstructured data such as text, images, or audio generated by models. Unlike traditional that rely on exact matches in rows and columns, these systems utilize (ANN) search algorithms, such as (HNSW) or (IVF), to find data points based on or . They are critical components in the architecture of (LLMs), particularly for enabling (RAG) and long-term for . Prominent providers and technologies in this ecosystem include , , , , and specialized extensions for like .

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