Extending Semantic Kernel

Plugins encapsulate AI capabilities into a single unit of functionality. Plugins are the building blocks of AI applications. We will learn about the different types of functions (native functions and semantic functions) and how to expose these functions as a plugin, so that they can be used by Semantic Kernel.

In previous chapters, we created and used very simple plugins. In this chapter, we will start by describing the pre-existing tools that you already have available just by installing Semantic Kernel. Then, we will explore the best practices for developing your own native plugins, which are collections of native functions. These functions perform tasks that AI cannot do well, such as querying a database or doing complex math. Lastly, you will learn how to create semantic plugins, which are collections of semantic functions. These functions are executed by an AI service such as OpenAI’s GPT. We will explore the different parameters and how they...