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[IMPROVE] Embedding model encoding time for search and file upload

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@sahilds1 is already working on this.

Since Jan 12, 2026.

  • #461 by @sahilds1 — merged

Assessment

This issue has not been assessed yet.

Description

Title: [IMPROVE] Embedding model encoding time for search and file upload

Background

Search and file uploading call TransformerModel.get_instance() directly at request time

Current State

https://github.com/CodeForPhilly/balancer-main/blob/75c1a14cb6759849c4987100236730b3355feffa/server/api/services/sentencetTransformer_model.py#L1-L22

Acceptance Criteria

  • The model is warm before the first search or upload request hits

Approach

Preload SentenceTransformer model at Django startup before traffic is routed to the application instance
Add tests for the embeddings services by pulling apart the core logic to make testing easier

References

Risks and Rollback

Fall back to lazy load using try except block if preloading embedding model at startup fails

Screenshots / Recordings

Related PR

Balancer PR https://github.com/CodeForPhilly/balancer-main/pull/461

Dominant language
TypeScript
Stars
21
Forks
19
PR merge metrics
No merged PRs in 30d

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