Semantic (Neural) Search

imagine a search engine that understands not just the words you type but the meaning behind them this is what semantic search, also known as neural search in upstart commerce search, is all about unlike traditional search engines that rely solely on keywords, semantic search dives deeper into understanding the context and intent of your queries it's like having a search engine that can understand human language more naturally how does semantic (neural) search work? the semantic (neural) search feature works behind the scenes when you use a neural query here's a simplified breakdown of what happens understanding the query let's say you're looking for "water resistant running shoes for outdoor activities " our semantic (neural) search doesn't just look for those exact words it understands that you want shoes that can handle outdoor conditions and may also consider "waterproof" options creating vector embeddings imagine each product, like those shoes you're searching for, as a point in a very complex space the semantic (neural) search feature converts these products into vectors, which are essentially numerical representations similar products end up closer to each other in this space, while dissimilar ones are farther apart finding the best matches when you hit 'search', semantic (neural) search quickly calculates the vectors for your query then, it looks for the products whose vectors are closest to your query vector this way, you get results that closely match what you're looking for, even if you used a different word than the exact words benefits of semantic (neural) search in upstart commerce search now that you understand how it works, let's talk about why semantic (neural) search is beneficial for upstart commerce search users more accurate results you get search results that match your intent, not just the words you used discover relevant products search can show you products that closely align with what you're looking for, even if you didn't use the exact terms natural language understanding search for products just like asking a friend, using everyday language efficient shopping experience spend less time sifting through irrelevant results and more time finding the perfect product