Azure AI Search, formerly known as Cognitive Search, is a cloud-based search service designed to handle structured and unstructured data for applications like knowledge bases, particularly in retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) setups. It supports various types of search, including keyword, vector and hybrid search, which we believe will become increasingly important. The service automatically ingests common unstructured data formats including PDF, DOC and PPT, streamlining the process of creating searchable content. Additionally, it integrates with other Azure services, such as Azure OpenAI, allowing users to build applications with minimal manual integration effort. From our experience, Azure AI Search performs reliably and is well-suited for projects hosted in the Azure environment. Through its custom skills, users can also define specific data processing steps. Overall, if you're working within the Azure ecosystem and need a robust search solution for a RAG application, Azure AI Search is worth considering.
