RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation)
RAG combines document retrieval with generation: the system fetches relevant passages from an index, then drafts its response using them as a foundation. It is the architecture behind today’s answer engines.
In practice
Understanding RAG clarifies AEO: generation only cites what retrieval found. Hence the two fronts — being present in source indexes (classical SEO) and supplying cuttable passages (capsules, clean structures). Brilliant content buried in a monolithic wall loses at retrieval what it deserves at reading.