The podcast explores the new AI app stack, covering topics such as model 'middleware', app orchestration, and emerging architectures for LLM applications. It discusses the misconception that large language models themselves are applications and explores the ecosystem of tooling and components surrounding them. The chapter also explores different categories of AI playgrounds, setting up the back end for testing products, and the components of the new generative AI stack. Key takeaways include the role of AI engineering and the elements of an AI stack infrastructure.
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Quick takeaways
The AI app stack comprises three main components: application, data and resources, and models, emphasizing the need to consider the broader ecosystem beyond just the model itself.
Effective AI engineering involves integrating various components like orchestration, middleware, caching, logging, and validation, leading to more robust and efficient AI applications.
Deep dives
Exploring the AI App Stack
The podcast episode delves into the emerging AI app stack, highlighting three main components: application, data and resources, and models. The application layer includes playgrounds where users can experiment with models, such as chatGPT or stable diffusion, often found on platforms like Hugging Face or AI Dungeon. The data and resources layer encompasses various tools and frameworks for hosting applications, such as cloud providers like AWS or third-party platforms like Versal. Finally, the model layer focuses on the orchestration, middleware, and validation surrounding the models. This includes logging, caching, and security measures to ensure reliable and secure model outputs.
The Importance of Orchestration in AI
The podcast stresses the significance of the orchestration layer in the AI app stack. It clarifies that the model is only a small part of the application, emphasizing the need for tools and frameworks to facilitate app building and integration. Orchestration includes middleware solutions like Langchain that aid in generating prompts, chains of prompts, and agents. These tools enable automation and convenience, streamlining the interaction between the user and the model, while also allowing for fine-tuning and customization through plugins and APIs. The orchestration layer plays a vital role in enabling efficient and effective use of AI models in production scenarios.
The Role of Caching, Logging and Validation
The podcast delves into the caching, logging, and validation aspects of the AI app stack. Caching plays a key role in reducing the computational load and cost of running large models by storing and reusing previously processed queries or prompts. Logging, on the other hand, focuses on capturing and analyzing model-related data like response times, GPU usage, and prompts, which can be valuable for monitoring and performance optimization. Validation involves ensuring the reliability, security, and compliance of model outputs, taking measures to prevent harmful or sensitive information from entering the model, as well as structuring and curating the output to match desired patterns and types. These components collectively contribute to the stability, scalability, and security of AI applications.
Takeaways and Implications
The podcast highlights two key takeaways from the AI app stack discussion. Firstly, it underscores that the model is only a small part of the entire stack, with the app, data, and orchestration layers playing equally important roles. This emphasizes the need to consider the broader ecosystem and not just focus on the model itself. Secondly, the podcast emphasizes the significance of AI engineering, which involves effectively integrating the various components of the stack, including the orchestration, middleware, caching, logging, validation, and more. Understanding and leveraging these components can lead to more robust and efficient AI applications.
Recently a16z released a diagram showing the “Emerging Architectures for LLM Applications.” In this episode, we expand on things covered in that diagram to a more general mental model for the new AI app stack. We cover a variety of things from model “middleware” for caching and control to app orchestration.
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