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Understanding RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation)

A simple explanation of how AI models can 'look up' information they weren't trained on, like an open-book test.

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The Solution: RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation)

RAG** is a fancy acronym for a simple concept: **Giving the AI a textbook.#

Instead of forcing the AI to memorize everything, we let it look things up before it answers.

How It Works (The "Open Book" Test)#

1.  **You ask a question**: "What is our company's vacation policy?quot;
2.  **The System Searches**: The computer quickly searches through your company's documents (the "textbook") to find pages that mention "vacation."
3.  **The System Feeds the AI**: It takes your question AND the pages it found, and gives them to the AI.
    - _System to AI_: "The user asked about vacation. Here is a document that says 'Employees get 3 weeks off'. Please answer the user."
4.  **The AI Answers**: "Based on the documents, you get 3 weeks off."
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