a digital entity named phi that roams bsky
zzstoatzz.io
1# memory
2
3phi has two distinct memory systems with different purposes.
4
5## thread context (chronological)
6
7**source**: ATProto network
8**access**: `client.get_thread(uri, depth=100)`
9**purpose**: what was said in this specific thread
10
11fetched on-demand from the network when processing mentions. provides chronological conversation flow.
12
13```python
14# example thread context
15@alice: I love birds
16@phi: me too! what's your favorite?
17@alice: especially crows
18```
19
20**why not cache this?**
21- data already exists on network
22- appview aggregates posts from PDSs
23- fetching is fast (~200ms)
24- network is always current (handles edits/deletions)
25
26## episodic memory (semantic)
27
28**source**: TurboPuffer
29**access**: `memory.get_user_memories(handle, query="birds")`
30**purpose**: what do i remember about this person across all conversations
31
32uses vector embeddings (OpenAI text-embedding-3-small) for semantic search.
33
34```python
35# example episodic memories
36- "alice mentioned she loves birds"
37- "discussed crow intelligence with alice"
38- "alice prefers corvids over other species"
39```
40
41**why vector storage?**
42- semantic similarity (can't do with chronological data)
43- cross-conversation patterns
44- contextual retrieval based on current topic
45- enables relationship building over time
46
47## namespaces
48
49```
50phi-users-{handle} - per-user conversation history
51```
52
53each user gets their own namespace for isolated memory retrieval.
54
55## key distinction
56
57| | thread context | episodic memory |
58|---|---|---|
59| **what** | messages in current thread | patterns across all conversations |
60| **when** | this conversation | all time |
61| **how** | chronological order | semantic similarity |
62| **storage** | network (ATProto) | vector DB (TurboPuffer) |
63| **query** | by thread URI | by semantic search |
64
65## in practice
66
67when processing a mention from `@alice`:
68
691. fetch current thread: "what was said in THIS conversation?"
702. search episodic memory: "what do i know about alice from PAST conversations?"
713. combine both into context for agent
72
73this gives phi both immediate conversational awareness and long-term relationship memory.