Definition

Context Engineering

Context engineering is deciding what goes into the context window, how it is structured, and where each piece sits. Prompt engineering is how you ask; context engineering is what you give the model to work with, which the book argues matters more. It covers ordering, since models attend most to the start and end of context (the "lost in the middle" problem), plus curating tools, memory, and retrieved documents.

Explained in

Chapter 8: Prompt Engineering and Context Engineering

The number one practical skill for anyone working with AI.

Related terms

This is one term. The chapter is the argument.

Intelligence at Scale: 22 chapters, 65,000 words, 80-plus diagrams. Kindle, paperback and hardcover on Amazon.

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