Navigating the Evolution of Generative Models and Retrieval Systems

In this episode of Neural Search Talks, we're chatting with Florin Cuconasu, the first author of the paper "The Power of Noise", presented at SIGIR 2024. We discuss the current state of the field of Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG), and how LLMs interact with retrievers to power modern Generative AI applications, with Florin delivering practical advice for those developing RAG systems, and laying out his research agenda for the near future. Timestamps: 0:00 Introduction & how RAG has taken over the IR literature 1:40 How retrievers and LLMs interact in Retrieval-Augmented Generation 2:55 What practitioners should pay attention to when developing RAG systems 5:04 What is the power of noise in the context of RAG? 7:31 Florin's long-term research agenda on RAG interactions 9:25 How advances in LLMs can impact IR research 11:26 Outro