---
sourceDocument: Australia ServiceNow AI Platform Administration
sourceDocumentLink: https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r/platform-administration
Release :
- australia
ft:locale :
- en-US
ft:publication_title :
- Australia ServiceNow AI Platform Administration
ft:clusterId :
- platadm
bundleId :
- platadm
workflow :
- Platform
---
# Semantic vector search
# Semantic vector search in AI Search {#ariaid-title1}
Release version: Australia
Updated July 24, 2026
 3 minutes to read
Summarize
 Summarized using AI
This content was generated using new OpenAI-powered functionality. Results are provided on an as is basis and are not guaranteed to be accurate or complete.
## Summary of Semantic vector search in AI Search
Semantic vector search in AI Search enhances the Now LLM Service by enabling search results based on the meaning and context of search terms rather than simple keyword matching.
Introduced starting with the Vancouver Patch 4 release, this search mode interprets natural language queries to improve recall and relevancy, particularly for knowledge base articles and ServiceNow Otto for Virtual Agent features.
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## Key Features
* **Meaning-Based Matching:** Finds results with similar meanings to search queries, overcoming limitations of keyword-only searches that miss context and synonyms.
* **Automatic Term Similarity:** Identifies related terms without relying on manually maintained synonym dictionaries, simplifying administration.
* **Integrated Usage:** Used by ServiceNow Otto for Virtual Agent (for Catalog Item and live agent topic retrieval), Knowledge base articles Genius Results, Actions Genius Results, and supported by all External Content Connectors for semantic vector indexing.
* **Improved Result Ordering:** Results are ranked by semantic similarity to the search query, ensuring the most relevant items appear first.
* **Automatic Enablement:** Semantic vector search is enabled by default with no configuration needed.
## Practical Benefits for ServiceNow Customers
* **Enhanced Search Recall:** Retrieves more relevant knowledge articles, catalog items, and topics by understanding user intent and context.
* **Consistent User Experience:** Provides more natural interactions by returning similar results for varied queries with the same meaning.
* **Reduced Maintenance:** Eliminates the need to build and update synonym dictionaries, saving time and effort.
* **Advanced Capabilities in Virtual Agent:** Enables more accurate and contextually relevant responses in chat interactions.
Semantic vector search enables the Now LLM Service to find results based on how similar they are in meaning to your search terms. Knowledge base articles Genius Results and ServiceNow® Otto for Virtual Agent use semantic vector search to improve recall with natural language interpretation of search queries.
By default, AI Search uses keyword search, meaning that it finds results for records that contain the best matches for the keywords (terms) in your search query. Term matching doesn't account for the context
or meaning of your search terms.
Starting with the Vancouver Patch 4 release, AI Search includes an alternate search mode called semantic vector search that's used in features which work with the Now LLM Service. Examples of such features include ServiceNow® Otto for Virtual Agent chats, Summary Genius Results, and Actions Genius Results.
Semantic vector search analyzes the meanings and context of your search terms and uses that information to find results with similar meanings. It improves search recall by interpreting natural language to more accurately reflect
the intent of your search.
As an example, suppose you index a source record including text how to prevent phishing and search for avoiding scams.
* In keyword search mode, AI Search returns no result for this record because your search query terms aren't literal matches for the terms included in the indexed content.
* In semantic vector search mode, however, AI Search might return a result for the record based on the following context-aware analysis:
* Your search term avoiding is contextually similar in meaning to prevent
* Your search term scams has meaning that overlaps with the meaning of phishing
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AI Search orders results from semantic vector search based on how similar they are to your search. In the example, suppose you had a second indexed record including text how to prevent scams. This record would be more similar to the avoiding scams search and its search result would appear before the how to prevent phishing result.
Unlike the default keyword-based search mode, semantic vector search doesn't rely on your synonym dictionaries to find term equivalences. AI Search identifies term similarities automatically when indexing source content and metadata for semantic vector search.
Semantic vector search is enabled automatically and has no configurable settings.
## Benefits of semantic vector search {#semantic-search-ais__section_rcp_ysz_3zb}
Compared to the default keyword search mode, semantic vector search provides the following benefits:
* Helps improve recall for knowledge article, Catalog Item, and topic retrieval searches by matching results based on the underlying meaning of your search rather than matching on keywords.
* Provides a more natural and consistent search experience by returning similar results for varied search queries with the same underlying meaning.
* Reduces the need to create and maintain synonym dictionaries to anticipate similarities in searches.
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## Semantic vector search output {#semantic-search-ais__section_oh5_m1y_fzb}
Semantic vector search overrides the normal AI Search term matching and relevancy ranking mechanisms. Results are ordered based on their computed similarity to your search query terms, with the most similar results appearing first.
## Availability of semantic vector search {#semantic-search-ais__section_jzv_q1y_fzb}
Semantic vector search is available in the following contexts.
* ServiceNow Otto for Virtual Agent uses semantic vector search for Catalog Item retrieval and live agent topic retrieval. For more details, see [ServiceNow Otto for Virtual Agent](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=now-assist-in-va-landing&version=australia&pubname=australia-conversational-interfaces&ft:locale=en-US).
* Knowledge base articles Genius Results use semantic vector search along with legacy keyword search when looking for knowledge articles that match your search query. They also use semantic vector search when looking for cached answers that match your query in the second-level cache. For more details, see [Knowledge base articles Genius Results](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/xDtItdWvfRh~~I2mXnNuFg "Knowledge base articles Genius Results use the LLM to generate concise, actionable answers from knowledge article results in Service Portal, Virtual Agent, Employee Center, and global searches.") and [Caching for Knowledge base articles Genius Results](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/livrluJWPEeApIv1yqfa6A#caching-now-assist-q-a-gr "AI Search provides two query-time caches to improve search performance for Knowledge base articles Genius Results. Caching enables AI Search to return previously generated answers without submitting knowledge articles to the Now LLM Service for answer generation.").
* Actions Genius Results use semantic vector search along with legacy keyword search when looking for Catalog Items that match your search query. For more details, see [Actions Genius Results](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/y75TnIsS7GkUCpTPG6VW7w "Genius Results display actionable answers showing Catalog Items and Virtual Agent topics that match your search query. AI Search matches records based on their similarity to your search's intent and meaning instead of looking for exact term matches.").
* All connectors from the External Content Connectors application support semantic vector indexing when retrieving document content from external source systems. Only features which use semantic vector search with the Now LLM Service can take advantage of this support. For more information on external content connector configuration and usage, see [External Content Connectors](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/_0abad_qGwYsW2_LRXJn8A "The External Content Connectors ServiceNow Store application enables AI Search applications to search content and metadata from supported external source systems, such as Atlassian Confluence Cloud and Microsoft SharePoint Online.").
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