RAG quickstart for Python

This quickstart shows you how to use the Vertex AI SDK to perform Vertex AI RAG Engine tasks. You will set up your environment and then use a Python code sample to retrieve and generate content.

You can also follow along using this notebook Intro to Vertex AI RAG Engine.

Required roles

Grant roles to your user account. Run the following command once for each of the following IAM roles: roles/aiplatform.user 

gcloud projects add-iam-policy-binding PROJECT_ID --member="user:USER_IDENTIFIER" --role=ROLE

Replace the following:

  • PROJECT_ID: your project ID.
  • USER_IDENTIFIER: the identifier for your user account—for example, myemail@example.com.
  • ROLE: the IAM role that you grant to your user account.

Prepare your Google Cloud console

To use Vertex AI RAG Engine, do the following:

  1. Install the Vertex AI SDK for Python.

  2. Run this command in the Google Cloud console to set up your project.

    gcloud config set {project}

  3. Run this command to authorize your login.

    gcloud auth application-default login

Retrieve and generate content

Copy and paste this sample code into the Google Cloud console to run Vertex AI RAG Engine.

Python

To learn how to install or update the Vertex AI SDK for Python, see Install the Vertex AI SDK for Python. For more information, see the Python API reference documentation. 

from vertexai import rag
from vertexai.generative_models import GenerativeModel, Tool
import vertexai

# Create a RAG Corpus, Import Files, and Generate a response

# TODO(developer): Update and un-comment below lines
# PROJECT_ID = "your-project-id"
# display_name = "test_corpus"
# paths = ["https://drive.google.com/file/d/123", "gs://my_bucket/my_files_dir"]  # Supports Google Cloud Storage and Google Drive Links

# Initialize Vertex AI API once per session
vertexai.init(project=PROJECT_ID, location="us-central1")

# Create RagCorpus
# Configure embedding model, for example "text-embedding-005".
embedding_model_config = rag.RagEmbeddingModelConfig(
    vertex_prediction_endpoint=rag.VertexPredictionEndpoint(
        publisher_model="publishers/google/models/text-embedding-005"
    )
)

rag_corpus = rag.create_corpus(
    display_name=display_name,
    backend_config=rag.RagVectorDbConfig(
        rag_embedding_model_config=embedding_model_config
    ),
)

# Import Files to the RagCorpus
rag.import_files(
    rag_corpus.name,
    paths,
    # Optional
    transformation_config=rag.TransformationConfig(
        chunking_config=rag.ChunkingConfig(
            chunk_size=512,
            chunk_overlap=100,
        ),
    ),
    max_embedding_requests_per_min=1000,  # Optional
)

# Direct context retrieval
rag_retrieval_config = rag.RagRetrievalConfig(
    top_k=3,  # Optional
    filter=rag.Filter(vector_distance_threshold=0.5),  # Optional
)
response = rag.retrieval_query(
    rag_resources=[
        rag.RagResource(
            rag_corpus=rag_corpus.name,
            # Optional: supply IDs from `rag.list_files()`.
            # rag_file_ids=["rag-file-1", "rag-file-2", ...],
        )
    ],
    text="What is RAG and why it is helpful?",
    rag_retrieval_config=rag_retrieval_config,
)
print(response)

# Enhance generation
# Create a RAG retrieval tool
rag_retrieval_tool = Tool.from_retrieval(
    retrieval=rag.Retrieval(
        source=rag.VertexRagStore(
            rag_resources=[
                rag.RagResource(
                    rag_corpus=rag_corpus.name,  # Currently only 1 corpus is allowed.
                    # Optional: supply IDs from `rag.list_files()`.
                    # rag_file_ids=["rag-file-1", "rag-file-2", ...],
                )
            ],
            rag_retrieval_config=rag_retrieval_config,
        ),
    )
)

# Create a Gemini model instance
rag_model = GenerativeModel(
    model_name="gemini-2.0-flash-001", tools=[rag_retrieval_tool]
)

# Generate response
response = rag_model.generate_content("What is RAG and why it is helpful?")
print(response.text)
# Example response:
#   RAG stands for Retrieval-Augmented Generation.
#   It's a technique used in AI to enhance the quality of responses
# ...

What's next