The document provides an overview of the A* search algorithm, a widely used best-first search technique that finds the shortest path in a search space by utilizing a heuristic function h(n) and path cost g(n). It outlines the steps involved in the algorithm, including placing the starting node on an open list, evaluating nodes, and expanding successors until the goal node is found. Additionally, an example is given to illustrate the application of the algorithm, indicating that the optimal path found has a cost of 6.