$vectorize in collections
$vectorize is a reserved field in documents.
It stores a string from which a vector embedding is automatically generated through an embedding provider integration.
The resulting embedding is stored in the $vector field.
The embedding can later be used for vector search and for the vector search component of hybrid search.
A collection must have a embedding provider integration to support the $vectorize field.
For more information, see Create a collection that can automatically generate vector embeddings and Auto-generate embeddings with vectorize.
Insert or update a document’s $vectorize field
When you insert or update a document, you can use the $vectorize field to store a string.
The Data API passes this string to the collection’s integrated embedding provider to generate a vector embedding from the string.
The resulting embedding is automatically stored in the reserved $vector field, and the original string is stored in the $vectorize field.
For an example, see Insert documents and generate vector embeddings.
The $vectorize string must be compliant with the embedding provider’s requirements, such as the token count.
Alternatively, you can use the $vector field to insert or update vector embeddings directly.
However, you can’t include both the $vector and $vectorize fields in the same insert or update operation.
Use $vectorize for vector search and hybrid search
When you find, update, replace, or delete documents, you can use the $vectorize field to perform a vector search.
For an example, see Use vector search and vectorize to find documents.
Similarly, when you find and rerank documents, you can use the $vectorize field to perform a hybrid search.
For an example, see Find documents with a hybrid search.
Return the $vectorize field
By default, the Data API excludes the $vectorize field from returned documents.
If you want the Data API to return the $vectorize field, you must use a projection to explicitly include the $vectorize field in the response.
