Recipe catalog / retrieval-needed
Check whether retrieval is needed
Does request require facts beyond context?
You need to decide whether answering requires facts beyond the current context.
Explore this recipe interactively ยท Source and implementation guide
Use retrieval-needed in TypeScript
Install with npm install jev-recipes. Requires Node.js 22.9 or newer and ES modules. Set TYPESAFE_API_KEY in your server environment for live calls, which send input to TypeSafe and use API quota. See the installation guide.
import { retrievalNeeded } from 'jev-recipes/retrieval-needed';
const result = await retrievalNeeded({
"request": "Summarize this policy in one sentence.",
"context": "Customers may cancel their subscription from Account settings."
});
console.log(result);
Input contract
| Field | Type | Needed |
|---|---|---|
| request | string | Required |
| context | string | Required |
| minConfidence | number | Optional |
Full input and result schemas
{
"input": {
"$schema": "https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema",
"type": "object",
"properties": {
"request": {
"type": "string"
},
"context": {
"type": "string"
},
"minConfidence": {
"type": "number",
"minimum": 0,
"maximum": 1
}
},
"required": [
"request",
"context"
]
},
"result": {
"$schema": "https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema",
"type": "object",
"properties": {
"model": {
"type": "string"
},
"usage": {
"type": "object",
"properties": {
"input_tokens": {
"type": "integer",
"minimum": 0,
"maximum": 9007199254740991
},
"output_tokens": {
"type": "integer",
"minimum": 0,
"maximum": 9007199254740991
}
},
"required": [
"input_tokens",
"output_tokens"
],
"additionalProperties": false
},
"status": {
"type": "string",
"enum": [
"ready",
"review"
]
},
"verdict": {
"type": "string",
"enum": [
"needed",
"unnecessary",
"unclear"
]
},
"confidence": {
"type": "number",
"minimum": 0,
"maximum": 1
},
"probabilities": {
"type": "object",
"propertyNames": {
"type": "string",
"enum": [
"needed",
"unnecessary",
"unclear"
]
},
"additionalProperties": {
"type": "number",
"minimum": 0,
"maximum": 1
},
"required": [
"needed",
"unnecessary",
"unclear"
]
}
},
"required": [
"model",
"usage",
"status",
"verdict",
"confidence",
"probabilities"
],
"additionalProperties": false
}
}Saved example result
This hand-authored response demonstrates the contract. It is not a model accuracy measurement. Run it without an API key: npx jev-recipes demo retrieval-needed.
{
"model": "demo-fixture",
"usage": {
"input_tokens": 0,
"output_tokens": 0
},
"status": "ready",
"verdict": "unnecessary",
"confidence": 0.96,
"probabilities": {
"needed": 0,
"unnecessary": 1,
"unclear": 0
}
}
Evaluation evidence
No verified live accuracy measurement is available. Evaluate representative cases before using this decision in your workflow.
Use the evaluation guide to measure this decision on your own labeled cases.
Limitations
- Assesses information needs without searching. A no-retrieval decision does not establish source truth.
Related recipes
- freshness-needed: Use freshness-needed to check whether those facts must be current.