Guide Articles

Step-by-step guides and tutorials for AI tools, frameworks, and implementations. Practical how-to content for developers and practitioners.

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Architectural diagram showing a four-layer fine-tuning specification framework from dataset preparation through model
MAX guide 12 min

How to Fine-Tune an Open-Source LLM with Hugging Face PEFT, Unsloth, and Axolotl in 2026

Fine-tune open-source LLMs with PEFT, Unsloth, and Axolotl using a specification-first framework. Dataset prep, LoRA …

Specification blueprint showing embedding pipeline layers from training data pairs through vector index to search results
MAX guide 12 min

How to Fine-Tune and Deploy Sentence Transformers for Semantic Search and Clustering in 2026

Fine-tune Sentence Transformers v5.3 for semantic search and clustering. Covers MultipleNegativesRankingLoss, Matryoshka …

Multi-vector retrieval pipeline architecture showing ColBERT late interaction between query and document token embeddings
MAX guide 12 min

How to Build a Multi-Vector Retrieval Pipeline with RAGatouille, ColBERTv2, and Qdrant in 2026

Build a production multi-vector retrieval pipeline with ColBERTv2, RAGatouille, and Qdrant. Specification-first …

Technical blueprint showing three interconnected vector index architectures with benchmark performance curves
MAX guide 12 min

How to Build and Benchmark a Vector Index with FAISS, ScaNN, and DiskANN in 2026

Build and benchmark vector indexes with FAISS, ScaNN, and DiskANN. Choose index types by dataset size, tune parameters …

Blueprint schematic of a semantic search pipeline with embedding vectors flowing through indexing and retrieval stages
MAX guide 12 min

Embedding Models: Voyage 4 vs NV-Embed-v2 vs BGE-M3 2026

Choose between Voyage 4, NV-Embed-v2, and BGE-M3. Includes Matryoshka embeddings and cost optimization strategies for …

Technical blueprint showing a decoder-only transformer pipeline from token embedding through causal masked attention to
MAX guide 13 min

How to Build a Decoder-Only Transformer and Select the Right Pretrained Model in 2026

Build a decoder-only transformer with correct causal masking in PyTorch, then pick between GPT-5, LLaMA 4, and DeepSeek …

Specification blueprint overlay on a transformer model architecture diagram with labeled attention heads and data flow arrows
MAX guide 11 min

How to Build and Fine-Tune Transformer Models with Hugging Face and PyTorch in 2026

Build and fine-tune transformer models the specification-first way. PyTorch 2.10, Hugging Face Transformers v5, and the …

Blueprint diagram showing three tokenizer library pathways converging into a unified vocabulary specification
MAX guide 12 min

How to Train and Choose a Custom Tokenizer with tiktoken, SentencePiece, and HF Tokenizers in 2026

Learn how to choose, train, and validate a custom tokenizer using tiktoken, SentencePiece, and HF Tokenizers with a …

Architectural blueprint of attention matrix computation showing QKV projection layers and optimization pathways
MAX guide 10 min

Implementing Attention from Scratch: PyTorch, FlashAttention, and Grouped-Query Optimization

Spec your attention implementation before writing code. Learn to decompose QKV projections, configure FlashAttention …

Engineer examining a vector search pipeline blueprint with index nodes and distance metric annotations on a diagnostic screen
MAX guide 11 min

Similarity Search Pipeline: FAISS, HNSWlib, ScaNN (2026)

Select between FAISS, HNSWlib, and ScaNN for production vector search. Specification-first approach covering index …

Architecture blueprints showing parallel encoder and decoder pathways with structured data flowing between them
MAX guide 11 min

When to Choose Encoder-Decoder Over Decoder-Only: T5, BART, and Whisper Use Cases in 2026

Learn when encoder-decoder models like T5, BART, and Whisper outperform decoder-only alternatives. A spec framework for …

Architectural blueprint of a transformer model with labeled attention layers and data flow arrows on a dark grid
MAX guide 12 min

How to Build a Transformer from Scratch Using PyTorch and Hugging Face

Specify a transformer from scratch in PyTorch and Hugging Face. Decompose attention, embeddings, and training loops into …

Specification blueprint overlaid with attention weight heatmaps flowing between token sequences
MAX guide 11 min

How to Implement Multi-Head Attention in PyTorch and Visualize Attention Patterns

Specify multi-head attention for AI-assisted PyTorch builds. Decompose QKV projections, constrain SDPA kernels, and …