WindVE: Collaborative CPU-NPU Vector Embedding

Abstract

Retrieval-Augmented Generation is a technology that enhances large language models by integrating information retrieval. In the industry, inference services based on LLMs are highly sensitive to cost-performance ratio, prompting the need for improving hardware resource utilization in the inference service. Specifically, vector embedding and retrieval processes take up to 20% of the total latency. Therefore, optimizing the utilization of computational resources in vector embeddings is crucial for enhancing the cost-performance ratio of inference processes, which in turn boosts their product competitiveness.In this paper, we analyze the deployment costs of vector embedding technology in inference services, propose a theoretical formula, and determine through the mathematical expression that increasing the capacity to process concurrent queries is the key to reducing the deployment costs of vector embeddings. Therefore, in this paper, we focus on improving the product's capability to process concurrent queries. To optimize concurrency without sacrificing performance, we have designed a queue manager that adeptly offloads CPU peak queries. This manager utilizes a linear regression model to ascertain the optimal queue depths, a critical parameter that significantly influences the efficacy of the system. We further develop a system named WindVE that uses a CPU-NPU heterogeneous architecture to offload peak concurrent queries, which leverages the performance differences between the two processors to effectively manage traffic surges. Through experiments, we compare WindVE to the state-of-the-art vector embedding framework FlagEmbedding, and achieve a concurrency level up to 22.3% higher than the scheme without offloading.