Modern application development emphasizes a strong developer experience (DX) and a balance between quick setup and efficient production processes. The Amplify AI kit facilitates this by abstracting common AI tasks, allowing developers to work with large language models (LLMs) and content generation while reducing boilerplate code.
The project involves using a serverless Postgres database from Neon to retrieve product data, moving away from Amplify's default database model. This integration simplifies code for interacting with an LLM through retrieval-augmented generation (RAG). A chatbot is created to enhance customer interactions without hindering independent shopping, utilizing tailored product information sourced from the database.
The architecture allows the LLM to suggest tools based on user prompts, with the application determining which function to invoke. The Amplify AI kit automates this process, reducing manual effort. The project uses Amazon Bedrock with the Claude 3.5 Haiku LLM, which supports tool integration with the Neon Postgres database.
Setting up a Neon database involves creating an account and initiating a project, with branch-based projects available for organization. Users can generate a table schema using Neon’s AI feature, allowing for easy SQL table creation. A sample schema for a "Products" table is provided, which includes fields for product details.
AWS Amplify connects frontend applications to AWS-powered backends. Developers scaffold Amplify files with a command that installs dependencies and creates an amplify directory. Additional dependencies for the Amplify AI kit are installed, and the database connection string is stored as a secret in AWS Systems Manager.
Amplify introspects the database to generate CRUD operations for the frontend application. The generated schema file is managed by Amplify and should not be modified. The integration of the Neon database into the application allows for authorization rules and conversational capabilities to be established.
After deploying the AWS backend, the Amplify configuration is imported into the client-side application, enabling the use of UI components and hooks. The AIConversation component provides a chat UI, allowing for a comprehensive setup in a minimal amount of code.