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AI & Machine Learning · Advanced

Cross-Encoder

A model that scores a query and document together in one pass, giving accurate relevance at higher cost.

Definition

Unlike bi-encoders, which embed query and document separately for fast vector search, cross-encoders attend across both texts jointly. They are too slow for searching a whole corpus but ideal for reranking top candidates.

Exam tip

Bi-encoder = fast retrieval; cross-encoder = accurate reranking.

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