  Vector database management systems have emerged as an important component in
modern data management, driven by the growing importance for the need to
computationally describe rich data such as texts, images and video in various
domains such as recommender systems, similarity search, and chatbots. These
data descriptions are captured as numerical vectors that are computationally
inexpensive to store and compare. However, the unique characteristics of
vectorized data, including high dimensionality and sparsity, demand specialized
solutions for efficient storage, retrieval, and processing. This narrative
literature review provides an accessible introduction to the fundamental
concepts, use-cases, and current challenges associated with vector database
management systems, offering an overview for researchers and practitioners
seeking to facilitate effective vector data management.
