Models & Algorithms•January 8, 2026•KR

Retrieval Planning: ReAct vs Self-Ask vs Plan-and-Solve

Sequencing: Wrong execution order
Grounding: Queries not matching documents

Now that we've diagnosed Query Planning failures, it's time to fix them. Let's compare when each of these three patterns shines.

Now that we've diagnosed Query Planning failures, it's time to fix them. Let's compare when each of these three patterns shines.

In the previous post, we examined three failure points in Query Planning:

Three main approaches solve these problems:

Pattern	Core Idea	One-liner
ReAct	Think → Act → Observe loop	"Take a step, see what happens, think again"
Self-Ask	Generate follow-up questions	"What do I need to know first to answer this?"
Plan-and-Solve	Plan everything first, then execute	"Draw the map, then start walking"