Alaya

The only memory engine with neuroscience-grounded memory dynamics — Bjork dual-strength forgetting, retrieval-induced suppression, and Hebbian co-activation — in a zero-dependency embeddable Rust library.

Alaya (Sanskrit: alaya-vijnana, "storehouse consciousness") is an embeddable Rust library. One SQLite file. No external services. Your agent stores conversations, retrieves what matters, and lets the rest fade. The graph reshapes through use, like biological memory.

let alaya = Alaya::open("memory.db")?;
alaya.episodes().store(&episode)?;           // store
let results = alaya.knowledge().query(&query)?; // retrieve
alaya.lifecycle().consolidate(&provider)?;   // distill knowledge
alaya.lifecycle().transform()?;              // dedup, LTD, discover categories
alaya.lifecycle().forget()?;                 // decay what's stale
let cats = alaya.admin().categories(None)?;  // emergent ontology
alaya.admin().purge(PurgeFilter::Session("s1"))?; // cascade delete + tombstones

The Problem

Most AI agents treat memory as flat files. OpenClaw writes to MEMORY.md. Claudesidian writes to Obsidian. Hand-rolled systems write to JSON or Markdown. It works at first.

Then the files grow. Context windows fill. The agent dumps everything into the prompt and hopes the LLM finds what matters.

The cost is measurable. OpenClaw injects ~35,600 tokens of workspace files into every message, 93.5% of which is irrelevant (#9157). Heavy users report $3,600/month in token costs. Community tools like QMD and memsearch cut 70-96% of that waste by replacing full-context injection with ranked retrieval (Levine, 2026).

The structure problem compounds the cost. MEMORY.md conflates decisions, preferences, and knowledge into one unstructured blob. Users independently invent decision.md files, working-context.md snapshots, and 12-layer memory architectures to compensate. Monday you mention "Alice manages the auth team." Wednesday you ask "who handles auth permissions?" The agent retrieves both memories by text similarity but cannot connect them (Chawla, 2026).

How Alaya Solves It

Problem	File-based memory	Alaya
Token waste	Full-context injection (~35K tokens/message)	Ranked retrieval returns only top-k relevant memories
No structure	Everything in one file (users invent decision.md workarounds)	Three typed stores: episodes, knowledge, preferences
No forgetting	Files grow until you manually curate	Bjork dual-strength decay separates storage strength from retrieval strength; retrieval-induced forgetting (RIF) actively suppresses competing memories
No associations	Flat files, no links between memories	Hebbian co-retrieval strengthening (LTP/LTD): memories retrieved together strengthen connections; spreading activation finds indirect associations
Brittle preferences	Agent-authored summary, easily drifts	Implicit preferences emerge from accumulated impressions via vasana (perfuming), no LLM required; crystallize at threshold
LLM required	Can't function without one	Graceful degradation at every level. No embeddings? BM25-only. No LLM? Episodes accumulate. Each capability independently optional

Getting Started

MCP Server (recommended for agents)

The fastest way to add Alaya memory to any MCP-compatible agent (Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor, Cline, etc.):

Via npm (no Rust toolchain needed)

Add to your Claude Code config (~/.claude/claude_code_config.json):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "alaya": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "alaya-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Or for Claude Desktop / other MCP clients (with optional LLM auto-consolidation):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "alaya": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "alaya-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "ALAYA_LLM_API_KEY": "sk-...",
        "ALAYA_LLM_API_URL": "https://api.openai.com/v1/chat/completions",
        "ALAYA_LLM_MODEL": "gpt-4o-mini"
      }
    }
  }
}

From source (requires Rust 1.75+)

git clone https://github.com/SecurityRonin/alaya.git
cd alaya
cargo build --release --features "mcp llm"

Then add to your MCP config:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "alaya": {
      "command": "/path/to/alaya/target/release/alaya-mcp"
    }
  }
}

The ALAYA_LLM_* env vars are optional — without them, the server works in prompt mode (reminds the agent to call learn after 10 episodes). With an API key and the llm feature, it auto-consolidates instead.

That's it. Your agent now has 13 memory tools:

Tool	What it does
remember	Store a conversation message (auto-prompts consolidation after 10 episodes)
recall	Search memory with hybrid retrieval (+ category boost)
learn	Teach extracted knowledge directly — agent extracts facts and calls this
status	Rich memory statistics: episodes, knowledge breakdown, categories, graph, embeddings
preferences	Get learned user preferences
knowledge	Get distilled semantic facts (+ category filter)
maintain	Run memory cleanup (dedup, decay)
purge	Delete memories by session, age, or all
categories	List emergent categories with stability filter
neighbors	Graph neighbors via spreading activation
node_category	Which category a node belongs to
import_claude_mem	Import observations from a claude-mem database
import_claude_code	Import conversation history from Claude Code JSONL files

See docs/mcp-quickstart.md for a full walkthrough with sample interactions and recommended system prompt.

Data is stored in ~/.alaya/memory.db (override with ALAYA_DB env var). Single SQLite file, no external services.

Example interaction — what your agent sees when using Alaya:

Agent: [calls remember(content="User prefers dark mode", role="user", session_id="s1")]
Alaya: Stored episode 1 in session 's1'

Agent: [calls recall(query="user preferences")]
Alaya: Found 1 memories:
  1. [user] (score: 0.847) User prefers dark mode

Agent: [calls status()]
Alaya: Memory Status:
  Episodes: 1 (1 this session, 1 unconsolidated)
  Knowledge: none
  Categories: 0
  Preferences: 0 crystallized, 0 impressions accumulating
  Graph: 0 links
  Embedding coverage: 0/1 nodes (0%)

Environment variables:

Variable	Default	Description
ALAYA_DB	~/.alaya/memory.db	Path to SQLite database
ALAYA_LLM_API_KEY	(none)	API key for auto-consolidation (enables ExtractionProvider). Requires llm feature.
ALAYA_LLM_API_URL	https://api.openai.com/v1/chat/completions	OpenAI-compatible chat completions endpoint
ALAYA_LLM_MODEL	gpt-4o-mini	Model name. Any small/fast model works (GPT-4o-mini, Haiku, Gemini Flash, etc.)

Python Bindings

pip install alaya-memory

See alaya-py/README.md for the full Python API.

Rust Library

For embedding Alaya directly into a Rust application:

[dependencies]
alaya = "0.2.2"

Quick Start (Rust)

use alaya::{Alaya, NewEpisode, Role, EpisodeContext, Query, NoOpProvider};

// Open a persistent database (or use open_in_memory() for tests)
let alaya = Alaya::open("memory.db")?;

// Store a conversation episode
alaya.episodes().store(&NewEpisode {
    content: "I've been learning Rust for about six months now".into(),
    role: Role::User,
    session_id: "session-1".into(),
    timestamp: 1740000000,
    context: EpisodeContext::default(),
    embedding: None, // pass Some(vec![...]) if you have embeddings
})?;

// Query with hybrid retrieval (BM25 + vector + graph + RRF)
let results = alaya.knowledge().query(&Query::simple("Rust experience"))?;
for mem in &results {
    println!("[{:.2}] {}", mem.score, mem.content);
}

// Get crystallized preferences
let prefs = alaya.admin().preferences(Some("communication_style"))?;

// Run lifecycle (NoOpProvider works without an LLM)
alaya.lifecycle().consolidate(&NoOpProvider)?;
alaya.lifecycle().transform()?;
alaya.lifecycle().forget()?;

Run the Demo

The demo walks through all eleven capabilities with annotated output and no external dependencies:

git clone https://github.com/SecurityRonin/alaya.git
cd alaya
cargo run --example demo

Architecture

Alaya is a library, not a framework. Your agent owns the conversation loop, the LLM, and the embedding model. Alaya owns memory.

Your Agent                          Alaya
─────────                           ─────

Via MCP (stdio):                    alaya-mcp binary
  remember(content, role, session)    ──▶ episodic store + graph links
  recall(query, boost_category?)      ──▶ BM25 + vector + graph → RRF → rerank
  learn(facts, session_id?)           ──▶ agent-driven knowledge extraction
  status()                            ──▶ rich stats (episodes, knowledge, graph, embeddings)
  preferences(domain?)                ──▶ crystallized behavioral patterns
  knowledge(type?, category?)         ──▶ consolidated semantic nodes
  maintain()                          ──▶ dedup + decay
  purge(scope)                        ──▶ selective or full deletion
  categories(min_stability?)          ──▶ emergent ontology with hierarchy
  neighbors(node, depth?)             ──▶ graph spreading activation
  node_category(node_id)              ──▶ category assignment lookup
  import_claude_mem(path?)            ──▶ import from claude-mem.db
  import_claude_code(path)            ──▶ import from Claude Code JSONL

Via Rust library:                   Alaya coordinator
  alaya.episodes().store(ep)           ──▶ episodic store + graph links
  alaya.knowledge().query(q)           ──▶ BM25 + vector + graph → RRF → rerank
  alaya.admin().preferences(domain?)   ──▶ crystallized behavioral patterns
  alaya.knowledge().filter(f?)         ──▶ consolidated semantic nodes
  alaya.admin().categories(min?)       ──▶ emergent ontology with hierarchy
  alaya.admin().subcategories(id)      ──▶ children of a parent category
  alaya.graph().neighbors(node, d)     ──▶ graph spreading activation
  alaya.admin().node_category(id)      ──▶ category assignment lookup
  alaya.set_embedding_provider(p)      ──▶ auto-embed in store + query
  alaya.set_extraction_provider(p)     ──▶ enable auto-consolidation
  alaya.lifecycle().consolidate(p)     ──▶ episodes → semantic knowledge
  alaya.knowledge().learn(nodes)       ──▶ provider-less knowledge injection
  alaya.lifecycle().auto_consolidate() ──▶ extract + learn (needs ExtractionProvider)
  alaya.lifecycle().perfume(i, p)      ──▶ impressions → preferences
  alaya.lifecycle().transform()        ──▶ dedup, LTD, prune, split categories
  alaya.lifecycle().forget()           ──▶ Bjork strength decay + archival
  alaya.admin().purge(scope)           ──▶ cascade deletion + tombstones

Three Stores

Store	Analog	Purpose
Episodic	Hippocampus	Raw conversation events with full context
Semantic	Neocortex	Distilled knowledge extracted through consolidation
Implicit	Alaya-vijnana	Preferences and habits that emerge through perfuming

Retrieval Pipeline

flowchart LR
    Q[Query] --> BM25[BM25 / FTS5]
    Q --> VEC[Vector / Cosine]
    Q --> GR[Graph Neighbors]

    BM25 --> RRF[Reciprocal Rank Fusion]
    VEC --> RRF
    GR --> RRF

    RRF --> RR[Context-Weighted Reranking]
    RR --> SA[Spreading Activation + Enrichment]
    SA --> RIF[Retrieval-Induced Forgetting]
    RIF --> OUT[Top 3-5 Results<br/>Episodes + Semantic + Preferences]

Lifecycle Processes

Process	Inspiration	What it does
Consolidation	CLS theory (McClelland et al.)	Distills episodes into semantic knowledge
Perfuming	Vasana (Yogacara Buddhist psychology)	Accumulates impressions, crystallizes preferences
Transformation	Asraya-paravrtti	Deduplicates, LTD link decay, prunes, discovers categories
Forgetting	Bjork & Bjork (1992)	Decays retrieval strength, archives weak nodes
RIF	Anderson et al. (1994)	Retrieval-induced forgetting suppresses competing memories
Emergent Ontology	Vikalpa (conceptual construction)	Hierarchical categories emerge from clustering; auto-split when too broad

Integration Guide

Implementing ConsolidationProvider

The ConsolidationProvider trait connects Alaya to your LLM for knowledge extraction:

use alaya::*;

struct MyProvider { /* your LLM client */ }

impl ConsolidationProvider for MyProvider {
    fn extract_knowledge(&self, episodes: &[Episode]) -> Result<Vec<NewSemanticNode>> {
        // Ask your LLM: "What facts/relationships can you extract?"
        todo!()
    }

    fn extract_impressions(&self, interaction: &Interaction) -> Result<Vec<NewImpression>> {
        // Ask your LLM: "What behavioral signals does this contain?"
        todo!()
    }

    fn detect_contradiction(&self, a: &SemanticNode, b: &SemanticNode) -> Result<bool> {
        // Ask your LLM: "Do these two facts contradict each other?"
        todo!()
    }
}

Use NoOpProvider without an LLM. Episodes accumulate and BM25 retrieval works without consolidation.

Implementing ExtractionProvider (auto-consolidation)

The ExtractionProvider trait enables automatic knowledge extraction without manual consolidate() calls. When configured, the MCP server auto-consolidates after 10 unconsolidated episodes:

use alaya::*;

struct MyExtractor { /* your LLM client */ }

impl ExtractionProvider for MyExtractor {
    fn extract(&self, episodes: &[Episode]) -> Result<Vec<NewSemanticNode>> {
        // Ask your LLM: "Extract facts from these conversations"
        todo!()
    }
}

let mut alaya = Alaya::open("memory.db")?;
alaya.set_extraction_provider(Box::new(MyExtractor { /* ... */ }));

// Now auto_consolidate() works without a ConsolidationProvider
let report = alaya.lifecycle().auto_consolidate()?;

The llm feature flag provides a ready-to-use LlmExtractionProvider that calls any OpenAI-compatible API:

use alaya::LlmExtractionProvider;

let provider = LlmExtractionProvider::builder()
    .api_key("sk-...")
    .model("gpt-4o-mini")      // default; any small model works
    .build()?;

Lifecycle Scheduling

Method	When to call	What it does
consolidate()	After accumulating 10+ episodes	Extracts semantic knowledge from episodes
perfume()	On every user interaction	Extracts behavioral impressions, crystallizes preferences
transform()	Daily or weekly	Deduplicates, LTD link decay, prunes weak links, discovers categories
forget()	Daily or weekly	Decays retrieval strength, archives truly forgotten nodes
purge()	On user request	Cascade deletes by session/age/all with tombstone tracking

API Reference

impl Alaya {
    // Open / create
    pub fn open(path: impl AsRef<Path>) -> Result<Self>;
    pub fn open_in_memory() -> Result<Self>;

    // Providers (on coordinator)
    pub fn set_embedding_provider(&mut self, provider: Box<dyn EmbeddingProvider>);
    pub fn set_extraction_provider(&mut self, provider: Box<dyn ExtractionProvider>);

    // Sub-manager accessors
    pub fn episodes(&self) -> Episodes<'_>;
    pub fn knowledge(&self) -> Knowledge<'_>;
    pub fn lifecycle(&self) -> Lifecycle<'_>;
    pub fn graph(&self) -> Graph<'_>;
    pub fn admin(&self) -> Admin<'_>;
}

impl Episodes<'_> {
    pub fn store(&self, episode: &NewEpisode) -> Result<EpisodeId>;
    pub fn by_session(&self, session_id: &str) -> Result<Vec<Episode>>;
    pub fn unconsolidated(&self, limit: u32) -> Result<Vec<Episode>>;
}

impl Knowledge<'_> {
    pub fn query(&self, q: &Query) -> Result<Vec<ScoredMemory>>;
    pub fn learn(&self, nodes: Vec<NewSemanticNode>) -> Result<ConsolidationReport>;
    pub fn filter(&self, filter: Option<KnowledgeFilter>) -> Result<Vec<SemanticNode>>;
}

impl Lifecycle<'_> {
    pub fn consolidate(&self, provider: &dyn ConsolidationProvider) -> Result<ConsolidationReport>;
    pub fn auto_consolidate(&self) -> Result<ConsolidationReport>;
    pub fn transform(&self) -> Result<TransformationReport>;
    pub fn forget(&self) -> Result<ForgettingReport>;
    pub fn perfume(&self, interaction: &Interaction, provider: &dyn ConsolidationProvider) -> Result<PerfumingReport>;
    pub fn dream(&self, provider: &dyn ConsolidationProvider, interaction: Option<&Interaction>) -> Result<DreamReport>;
}

impl Admin<'_> {
    pub fn status(&self) -> Result<MemoryStatus>;
    pub fn purge(&self, filter: PurgeFilter) -> Result<PurgeReport>;
    pub fn preferences(&self, domain: Option<&str>) -> Result<Vec<Preference>>;
    pub fn categories(&self, min_stability: Option<f32>) -> Result<Vec<Category>>;
    pub fn subcategories(&self, parent_id: CategoryId) -> Result<Vec<Category>>;
    pub fn node_category(&self, node_id: NodeId) -> Result<Option<Category>>;
}

Design Principles

1. Memory is a process, not a database. Every retrieval changes what is remembered. The graph reshapes through use.

2. Forgetting is a feature. Bjork dual-strength decay separates storage strength from retrieval strength. Retrieval-induced forgetting (RIF) actively suppresses competing memories. Both improve retrieval quality over time.

3. Preferences emerge, they are not declared. Behavioral patterns crystallize from accumulated impressions via vasana (perfuming), no LLM required.

4. The agent owns identity. Alaya stores seeds. The agent decides which seeds matter and how to present them.

5. Graceful degradation. No embeddings? BM25-only. No LLM? Episodes accumulate. Every feature works independently.

Research Foundations

Architecture grounded in neuroscience, Buddhist psychology, and information retrieval. For detailed mappings, see docs/theoretical-foundations.md.

Neuroscience: Hebbian LTP/LTD (Hebb 1949, Bliss & Lomo 1973), Complementary Learning Systems (McClelland et al. 1995), spreading activation (Collins & Loftus 1975), encoding specificity (Tulving & Thomson 1973), dual-strength forgetting (Bjork & Bjork 1992), retrieval-induced forgetting (Anderson et al. 1994), working memory limits (Cowan 2001).

Yogacara Buddhist Psychology: Alaya-vijnana (storehouse consciousness), bija (seeds), vasana (perfuming), asraya-paravrtti (transformation), vijnaptimatrata (perspective-relative memory).

Information Retrieval: Reciprocal Rank Fusion (Cormack et al. 2009), BM25 via FTS5, cosine similarity vector search.

Comparison with Alternatives

graph LR
    AGENT["AI Agent"]

    subgraph SIMPLE["Simple"]
        FILE["File-Based<br/><i>MEMORY.md<br/>OpenClaw</i>"]
    end

    subgraph INTEGRATED["Integrated"]
        FW["Framework Memory<br/><i>LangChain · CrewAI<br/>Letta</i>"]
        CODE["Coding Agent<br/><i>Beads · Engram<br/>via MCP</i>"]
    end

    subgraph ENGINES["Memory Engines"]
        DED["Dedicated Systems<br/><i><b>Alaya</b> · Vestige<br/>mem0 · Zep</i>"]
    end

    subgraph INFRA["Infrastructure"]
        VDB["Vector DBs<br/><i>Pinecone · Chroma<br/>Weaviate</i>"]
    end

    RESEARCH["Research<br/><i>Generative Agents<br/>SYNAPSE · HippoRAG</i>"]

    AGENT <--> FILE
    AGENT <--> FW
    AGENT <--> CODE
    AGENT <--> DED
    DED -.->|storage| VDB
    FW -.->|storage| VDB
    RESEARCH -.->|ideas| DED
    RESEARCH -.->|ideas| FW

Alaya is a dedicated memory engine with neuroscience-grounded memory dynamics. What differentiates it from every other system: Bjork dual-strength forgetting (separating storage from retrieval strength), retrieval-induced forgetting (retrieving A suppresses competing B and C), Hebbian co-retrieval strengthening (LTP/LTD), and implicit preference emergence without an LLM -- all in a single embeddable Rust + SQLite library. Closest peers: Vestige (Rust, FSRS-6, spreading activation) and SYNAPSE (unified episodic-semantic graph, lateral inhibition).

Why Alaya over...

Alternative	What it does well	What Alaya adds
MEMORY.md	Zero setup	Ranked retrieval (not full-context injection), typed stores, Bjork dual-strength decay
mem0	Managed cloud memory with auto-extraction	Local-only (single SQLite file), no API keys, Hebbian graph dynamics, RIF suppression
Zep	Production-ready with cloud/self-hosted options	No external services, Hebbian co-retrieval graph, implicit preference emergence without LLM
Vestige	Rust, FSRS-6 spaced repetition	Bjork dual-strength (not FSRS), RIF, Hebbian LTP/LTD, vasana preference crystallization
LangChain Memory	Framework-integrated, many backends	Framework-agnostic, seven lifecycle operations, graceful degradation to BM25-only

• Full comparison: 90+ systems, grounded in the CoALA taxonomy (Sumers et al., 2024)
• Interactive landscape (D3.js force-directed graph)
• Theoretical foundations (neuroscience and Buddhist psychology)
• The MEMORY.md problem (community workarounds and how Alaya addresses each)

What's In v0.4

• Three-store architecture (episodic/semantic/implicit) + Hebbian graph overlay
• 7 lifecycle operations: consolidate, transform, forget, perfume, emergent ontology, RIF, purge
• Modular RAG retrieval: BM25 + vector + graph + RRF fusion + semantic/preference enrichment
• Bjork dual-strength forgetting with retrieval-induced suppression (RIF)
• LTD (Long-Term Depression): Hebbian link decay weakens unused associations each transform cycle
• Enriched retrieval: query results include semantic knowledge and preferences alongside episodes
• Tombstone tracking: cascade deletion records audit trail for every purged node
• Zero-dependency Rust library with SQLite WAL + FTS5
• Category hierarchy with parent_id — categories form tree structures; auto-split when too broad
• Cross-domain bridging via MemberOf links — spreading activation traverses category boundaries
• EmbeddingProvider trait — embed() + embed_batch() wired into store_episode() and query()
• ExtractionProvider trait — extract() enables auto-consolidation; LlmExtractionProvider (behind llm feature flag) calls any OpenAI-compatible API
• 13 MCP tools — remember, recall, learn, status, preferences, knowledge, maintain, purge, categories, neighbors, node_category, import_claude_mem, import_claude_code
• Auto-lifecycle — auto-maintenance every 25 episodes; auto-consolidation (or prompt) after 10 unconsolidated
• 442 tests across unit, integration, property-based (proptest), and doc tests

Benchmark Evaluation

We evaluate two canonical baselines — full-context injection and naive vector RAG — on three benchmarks: LoCoMo (1,540 questions), LongMemEval (500 questions), and MemoryAgentBench (734 questions across 4 competencies). Generator: Gemini-2.0-Flash-001; Judge: GPT-4o-mini. Full methodology and statistical analysis: docs/benchmark-evaluation.md.

Key findings:

• Retrieval crossover: Full-context dominates on shorter conversations (LoCoMo, 16–26K tokens) but naive RAG wins on longer histories (LongMemEval, ~115K tokens). Both differences statistically significant (McNemar's test, p < 0.001).
• Test-time learning gap: The largest gap across all benchmarks — 86% vs 44% (+42pp) — RAG destroys the sequential structure needed for in-context learning.
• Conflict resolution is unsolved: Both baselines score ~50% on contradiction handling, confirming that neither full-context nor retrieval provides a mechanism for resolving conflicting information.
• Neither baseline addresses what lifecycle management is designed for.

Development

# Run all library tests
cargo test

# Run MCP integration tests
cargo test --features mcp

# Run LLM extraction tests
cargo test --features llm

# Run all tests
cargo test --features "mcp llm"

# Build the MCP server
cargo build --release --features mcp

# Build with auto-consolidation support
cargo build --release --features "mcp llm"

# Run the demo (no external dependencies)
cargo run --example demo

License

MIT