Introduction to AI and Vector Search
Learn about the foundations of AI and how Atlas Vector Search fits in.
Introduction to AI and Vector Search
Unit Overview
In this unit, you'll learn about the foundations of AI. You'll be able to define key terms such as machine learning, deep learning, and natural language processing. After that, you'll learn the basics of the transformer model which is the foundation of large language models and modern generative AI applications. Finally, we'll dive deeper into the transformer model and learn about the different components that generate the embeddings used in Atlas Vector Search.
Prerequisites
- Getting Started with MongoDB Atlas
- MongoDB Aggregation
- MongoDB Indexes
- Introduction to Atlas Search
- Analyzers in Atlas Search
Lessons in This Unit
- Lesson 1 – Introduction to AI
- Lesson 2 – A Brief History of Models
- Lesson 3 – Sequence to Sequence Models, Encoders, and Decoders

Parker Faucher | University Curriculum Engineer
Parker is a Curriculum Engineer on the Education team at MongoDB. Prior to joining MongoDB, he helped maintain a world class developer bootcamp that was offered in multiple universities. He is a self taught developer who loves being able to give back to the community that has helped him so much.

Katie Redmiles | Curriculum Designer
Katie is a Curriculum Designer at MongoDB. Before joining the Curriculum team, Katie worked on the University Enablement team developing Learning Bytes and instructional materials for the MongoDB for Academia program. Katie also worked within the Digital Learning Division at the Foreign Service Institute where she honed her skills at developing online learning for a global audience. Katie is passionate about making education accessible and engaging for everyone.

Vick Mena | Director, Curriculum
My name is Vick and I've been in the wild for over 25 years. I grew up at IBM working on the BIOS for the IBM eServer line in Austin, TX before moving to Wall St. I've worked on all phases of software development from low-level to middleware to UI but feel most comfortable in the middle. I also drank the devops kool-aid having moved a product line to AWS while at Dow Jones & Co with the help of an amazing team. I then pivoted into the secure space and worked on software/hardware reverse engineering. I always thought I'd eventually teach and this role lets me leverage all of my experience to lead this motley crew of passionate educators.

Emily Pope | Senior Curriculum Designer
Emily is a Senior Curriculum Designer at MongoDB. Prior to MongoDB, Emily worked closely with professors at MIT and Columbia to design bootcamps in full stack development and data science at Emeritus. She also worked as an instructional designer on database and computer science learning experiences at Cengage. Emily loves learning about the everchanging tech space and is passionate about making these skills accessible to a global audience.