Criticizing dot product retrieval, advocating for inference scaling

lateinteraction · x · 2026-08-26

The author argues that in ML, retrieval tasks still rely on inert scoring functions (like the simple dot product), forcing the use of exponentially larger embeddings for basic improvements. The author advocates for "inference scaling for retrieval," also known as Late Interaction from 2019/2020. Following this, the author hinted at taking matters into their own hands to implement these ideas due to the inertia in the field.

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