Build RAG Chatbot with Llamaindex, Pgvector, Solar Mini, and jina-colbert-v2

Introduction to RAG

Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) is a game-changer for GenAI applications, especially in conversational AI. It combines the power of pre-trained large language models (LLMs) like OpenAI’s GPT with external knowledge sources stored in vector databases such as Milvus and Zilliz Cloud, allowing for more accurate, contextually relevant, and up-to-date response generation. A RAG pipeline usually consists of four basic components: a vector database, an embedding model, an LLM, and a framework.

Key Components We'll Use for This RAG Chatbot

This tutorial shows you how to build a simple RAG chatbot in Python using the following components:

Llamaindex: a data framework that connects large language models (LLMs) with various data sources, enabling efficient retrieval-augmented generation (RAG). It helps structure, index, and query private or external data, optimizing LLM applications for search, chatbots, and analytics.
Pgvector: an open-source extension for PostgreSQL that enables efficient storage and querying of high-dimensional vector data, essential for machine learning and AI applications. Designed to handle embeddings, it supports fast approximate nearest neighbor (ANN) searches using algorithms like HNSW and IVFFlat. Since it is just a vector search add-on to traditional search rather than a purpose-built vector database, it lacks scalability and availability and many other advanced features required by enterprise-level applications. Therefore, if you prefer a much more scalable solution or hate to manage your own infrastructure, we recommend using Zilliz Cloud, which is a fully managed vector database service built on the open-source Milvus and offers a free tier supporting up to 1 million vectors.)
Solar Mini: Solar Mini is an efficient AI model optimized for high-performance tasks with minimal computational resources. It delivers fast, context-aware responses while maintaining low latency, making it perfect for embedded systems, IoT applications, and mobile devices that need real-time language processing without compromising quality.
Jina-ColBERT-v2: A dense passage retrieval model optimized for semantic search and document ranking. It combines ColBERT's contextualized late interaction with efficient indexing, delivering high accuracy in understanding query intent and matching relevant text. Ideal for large-scale enterprise search, Q&A systems, and content discovery platforms requiring nuanced semantic understanding and rapid retrieval.

By the end of this tutorial, you’ll have a functional chatbot capable of answering questions based on a custom knowledge base.

Note: Since we may use proprietary models in our tutorials, make sure you have the required API key beforehand.

Step 1: Install and Set Up Llamaindex

pip install llama-index

Step 2: Install and Set Up Solar Mini

%pip install llama-index-llms-upstage llama-index

from llama_index.llms.upstage import Upstage

llm = Upstage(
    model="solar-mini",
    # api_key="YOUR_API_KEY"  # uses UPSTAGE_API_KEY env var by default
)

Step 3: Install and Set Up jina-colbert-v2

%pip install llama-index-embeddings-jinaai

You may also need other packages that do not come direcly with llama-index.

!pip install Pillow

from llama_index.embeddings.jinaai import JinaEmbedding

embed_model = JinaEmbedding(
    api_key=jinaai_api_key,
    model="jina-colbert-v2",
    # choose `retrieval.passage` to get passage embeddings
    task="retrieval.passage",
)

Step 4: Install and Set Up Pgvector

%pip install llama-index-vector-stores-postgres

from llama_index.core import VectorStoreIndex
from llama_index.vector_stores.postgres import PGVectorStore

vector_store = PGVectorStore.from_params(
    database=db_name,
    host=url.host,
    password=url.password,
    port=url.port,
    user=url.username,
    table_name="your_table_name",
    embed_dim=1536,  # openai embedding dimension
    hnsw_kwargs={
        "hnsw_m": 16,
        "hnsw_ef_construction": 64,
        "hnsw_ef_search": 40,
        "hnsw_dist_method": "vector_cosine_ops",
    },
)

Step 5: Build a RAG Chatbot

Now that you’ve set up all components, let’s start to build a simple chatbot. We’ll use the Milvus introduction doc as a private knowledge base. You can replace it with your own dataset to customize your RAG chatbot.

import requests

from llama_index.core import SimpleDirectoryReader

# load documents
url = 'https://raw.githubusercontent.com/milvus-io/milvus-docs/refs/heads/v2.5.x/site/en/about/overview.md'
example_file = 'example_file.md'  # You can replace it with your own file paths.
response = requests.get(url)
with open(example_file, 'wb') as f:
    f.write(response.content)
documents = SimpleDirectoryReader(
    input_files=[example_file]
).load_data()

print("Document ID:", documents[0].doc_id)

storage_context = StorageContext.from_defaults(vector_store=vector_store)
index = VectorStoreIndex.from_documents(
    documents, storage_context=storage_context, embed_model=embed_model
)

query_engine = index.as_query_engine(llm=llm)
res = query_engine.query("What is Milvus?")  # You can replace it with your own question.
print(res)

Example output

Milvus is a high-performance, highly scalable vector database designed to operate efficiently across various environments, from personal laptops to large-scale distributed systems. It is available as both open-source software and a cloud service. Milvus excels in managing unstructured data by converting it into numerical vectors through embeddings, which facilitates fast and scalable searches and analytics. The database supports a wide range of data types and offers robust data modeling capabilities, allowing users to organize their data effectively. Additionally, Milvus provides multiple deployment options, including a lightweight version for quick prototyping and a distributed version for handling massive data scales.

Optimization Tips

As you build your RAG system, optimization is key to ensuring peak performance and efficiency. While setting up the components is an essential first step, fine-tuning each one will help you create a solution that works even better and scales seamlessly. In this section, we’ll share some practical tips for optimizing all these components, giving you the edge to build smarter, faster, and more responsive RAG applications.

LlamaIndex optimization tips

To optimize LlamaIndex for a Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) setup, structure your data efficiently using hierarchical indices like tree-based or keyword-table indices for faster retrieval. Use embeddings that align with your use case to improve search relevance. Fine-tune chunk sizes to balance context length and retrieval precision. Enable caching for frequently accessed queries to enhance performance. Optimize metadata filtering to reduce unnecessary search space and improve speed. If using vector databases, ensure indexing strategies align with your query patterns. Implement async processing to handle large-scale document ingestion efficiently. Regularly monitor query performance and adjust indexing parameters as needed for optimal results.

pgvector optimization tips

To optimize pgvector in a Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) setup, consider indexing your vectors using GiST or IVFFlat to significantly speed up search queries and improve retrieval performance. Make sure to leverage parallelization for query execution, allowing multiple queries to be processed simultaneously, especially for large datasets. Optimize memory usage by tuning the vector storage size and using compressed embeddings where possible. To further enhance query speed, implement pre-filtering techniques to narrow down search space before querying. Regularly rebuild indexes to ensure they are up to date with any new data. Fine-tune vectorization models to reduce dimensionality without sacrificing accuracy, thus improving both storage efficiency and retrieval times. Finally, manage resource allocation carefully, utilizing horizontal scaling for larger datasets and offloading intensive operations to dedicated processing units to maintain responsiveness during high-traffic periods.

Solar Mini optimization tips

For optimizing Solar Mini in a RAG setup, focus on maintaining a balance between response speed and model accuracy, given its compact nature. Prioritize concise document chunking to ensure fast retrieval while keeping the context relevant. Leverage prompt tuning to ensure the model generates the most appropriate response for each query. Cache results for high-demand queries to minimize redundant calls and optimize latency. Additionally, ensure that the retrieval pipeline is fine-tuned for minimal resource consumption while maintaining high retrieval quality. Adjust system parameters for scalability, especially in resource-constrained environments like mobile apps and embedded devices.

jina-colbert-v2 optimization tips

To optimize jina-colbert-v2 in a RAG setup, ensure input text is preprocessed by truncating or chunking documents to fit its 512-token limit, preserving context. Use batch inference for dense embeddings to maximize GPU utilization. Fine-tune on domain-specific data to improve relevance. Leverage ColBERT’s late interaction by precomputing document embeddings and caching them for faster retrieval. Adjust the compression ratio for query-document token tensors to balance speed and accuracy. Filter irrelevant documents early using metadata to reduce computational overhead. Monitor retrieval latency and accuracy to iteratively refine parameters.

By implementing these tips across your components, you'll be able to enhance the performance and functionality of your RAG system, ensuring it’s optimized for both speed and accuracy. Keep testing, iterating, and refining your setup to stay ahead in the ever-evolving world of AI development.

RAG Cost Calculator: A Free Tool to Calculate Your Cost in Seconds

Estimating the cost of a Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) pipeline involves analyzing expenses across vector storage, compute resources, and API usage. Key cost drivers include vector database queries, embedding generation, and LLM inference.

RAG Cost Calculator is a free tool that quickly estimates the cost of building a RAG pipeline, including chunking, embedding, vector storage/search, and LLM generation. It also helps you identify cost-saving opportunities and achieve up to 10x cost reduction on vector databases with the serverless option.

Calculate your RAG cost now.

Calculate your RAG cost

What Have You Learned?

Congratulations on completing this tutorial! You've embarked on an exciting journey into the world of Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) systems, and now you’re equipped with the knowledge to bring your ideas to life. By integrating LlamaIndex for your framework, Pgvector as your vector database, Solar Mini as your language model, and jina-colbert-v2 for embedding, you have unlocked the powerful capabilities of these cutting-edge technologies. You learned how each component works in harmony to create a streamlined RAG pipeline, making it easier than ever to access, generate, and refine information. Remember, LlamaIndex sets the stage for effective data management, while Pgvector allows for swift and efficient storage and retrieval of vectorized data. Solar Mini and jina-colbert-v2 elevate your system's output by delivering insightful and contextually relevant responses, allowing your users to enjoy a rich interaction with generated content.

But that’s not all! We also discussed optimization tips that can enhance your RAG system's performance. With features like a free RAG cost calculator, you can easily assess the efficiency and budget of your implementations, helping you make more informed decisions as you move forward. Now is the time to put your newfound skills into action—start building, optimizing, and innovating your own RAG applications! The possibilities are endless, and your creativity is the only limit. Dive in, experiment boldly, and let your unique vision shape the future of interactive AI experiences!

Further Resources

🌟 In addition to this RAG tutorial, unleash your full potential with these incredible resources to level up your RAG skills.

How to Build a Multimodal RAG | Documentation
How to Enhance the Performance of Your RAG Pipeline
Graph RAG with Milvus | Documentation
How to Evaluate RAG Applications - Zilliz Learn
Generative AI Resource Hub | Zilliz

We'd Love to Hear What You Think!

We’d love to hear your thoughts! 🌟 Leave your questions or comments below or join our vibrant Milvus Discord community to share your experiences, ask questions, or connect with thousands of AI enthusiasts. Your journey matters to us!

If you like this tutorial, show your support by giving our Milvus GitHub repo a star ⭐—it means the world to us and inspires us to keep creating! 💖