Why is standard fuzzy search still so garbage? (the empty text box problem)

I'm building a custom ecom setup and losing my mind over user search behavior. we threw algolia at the catalog thinking it’d be plug and play, but the bounce rate on the search bar is absurd.

Users literally dont know what to type. They open the box, type 1 vague word like "jacket", get 400 random results, and immediately leave.

I read a post about using an "intent layer" that intercepts keystrokes to prompt for parameters (size, color, budget) inside the text box before hitting the backend. basically converting messy natural language into structured json on the fly.

sounds clean on paper, but wouldnt latency kill this? anyone here actually built or integrated an intent layer in an input field without making the UI feel super sluggish? or am i doomed to write 500 lines of custom debounced react filters?