Combining keyword-style matching with semantic vector similarity so you neither miss exact identifiers nor depend on wording alone.
Hybrid search merges lexical signals (BM25-style, exact SKUs, error codes) with dense retrieval from embeddings. It is a retrieval tactic, while RAG is the broader pattern of retrieve-then-generate.
When it shines
Codebases, tickets, and logs mix precise tokens with messy prose—hybrid approaches often outperform either side alone.