Memory
Overview
Section titled “Overview”CrewAI provides a unified memory system — a single Memory class that replaces separate short-term, long-term, entity, and external memory types with one intelligent API. Memory uses an LLM to analyze content when saving (inferring scope, categories, and importance) and supports adaptive-depth recall with composite scoring that blends semantic similarity, recency, and importance.
You can use memory four ways: standalone (scripts, notebooks), with Crews, with Agents, or inside Flows.
Quick Start
Section titled “Quick Start”from crewai import Memory
memory = Memory()
# Store -- the LLM infers scope, categories, and importancememory.remember("We decided to use PostgreSQL for the user database.")
# Retrieve -- results ranked by composite score (semantic + recency + importance)matches = memory.recall("What database did we choose?")for m in matches: print(f"[{m.score:.2f}] {m.record.content}")
# Tune scoring for a fast-moving projectmemory = Memory(recency_weight=0.5, recency_half_life_days=7)
# Forgetmemory.forget(scope="/project/old")
# Explore the self-organized scope treeprint(memory.tree())print(memory.info("/"))Four Ways to Use Memory
Section titled “Four Ways to Use Memory”Standalone
Section titled “Standalone”Use memory in scripts, notebooks, CLI tools, or as a standalone knowledge base — no agents or crews required.
from crewai import Memory
memory = Memory()
# Build up knowledgememory.remember("The API rate limit is 1000 requests per minute.")memory.remember("Our staging environment uses port 8080.")memory.remember("The team agreed to use feature flags for all new releases.")
# Later, recall what you needmatches = memory.recall("What are our API limits?", limit=5)for m in matches: print(f"[{m.score:.2f}] {m.record.content}")
# Extract atomic facts from a longer textraw = """Meeting notes: We decided to migrate from MySQL to PostgreSQLnext quarter. The budget is $50k. Sarah will lead the migration."""
facts = memory.extract_memories(raw)# ["Migration from MySQL to PostgreSQL planned for next quarter",# "Database migration budget is $50k",# "Sarah will lead the database migration"]
for fact in facts: memory.remember(fact)With Crews
Section titled “With Crews”Pass memory=True for default settings, or pass a configured Memory instance for custom behavior.
from crewai import Crew, Agent, Task, Process, Memory
# Option 1: Default memorycrew = Crew( agents=[researcher, writer], tasks=[research_task, writing_task], process=Process.sequential, memory=True, verbose=True,)
# Option 2: Custom memory with tuned scoringmemory = Memory( recency_weight=0.4, semantic_weight=0.4, importance_weight=0.2, recency_half_life_days=14,)crew = Crew( agents=[researcher, writer], tasks=[research_task, writing_task], memory=memory,)When memory=True, the crew creates a default Memory() and passes the crew’s embedder configuration through automatically. All agents in the crew share the crew’s memory unless an agent has its own. Without a custom embedder, memory uses OpenAI text-embedding-3-large embeddings.
After each task, the crew automatically extracts discrete facts from the task output and stores them. Before each task, the agent recalls relevant context from memory and injects it into the task prompt.
With Agents
Section titled “With Agents”Agents can use the crew’s shared memory (default) or receive a scoped view for private context.
from crewai import Agent, Memory
memory = Memory()
# Researcher gets a private scope -- only sees /agent/researcherresearcher = Agent( role="Researcher", goal="Find and analyze information", backstory="Expert researcher with attention to detail", memory=memory.scope("/agent/researcher"),)
# Writer uses crew shared memory (no agent-level memory set)writer = Agent( role="Writer", goal="Produce clear, well-structured content", backstory="Experienced technical writer", # memory not set -- uses crew._memory when crew has memory enabled)This pattern gives the researcher private findings while the writer reads from the shared crew memory.
With Flows
Section titled “With Flows”Every Flow has built-in memory. Use self.remember(), self.recall(), and self.extract_memories() inside any flow method.
from crewai.flow.flow import Flow, listen, start
class ResearchFlow(Flow): @start() def gather_data(self): findings = "PostgreSQL handles 10k concurrent connections. MySQL caps at 5k." self.remember(findings, scope="/research/databases") return findings
@listen(gather_data) def write_report(self, findings): # Recall past research to provide context past = self.recall("database performance benchmarks") context = "\n".join(f"- {m.record.content}" for m in past) return f"Report:\nNew findings: {findings}\nPrevious context:\n{context}"See the Flows documentation for more on memory in Flows.
Hierarchical Scopes
Section titled “Hierarchical Scopes”What Scopes Are
Section titled “What Scopes Are”Memories are organized into a hierarchical tree of scopes, similar to a filesystem. Each scope is a path like /, /project/alpha, or /agent/researcher/findings.
/ /company /company/engineering /company/product /project /project/alpha /project/beta /agent /agent/researcher /agent/writerScopes provide context-dependent memory — when you recall within a scope, you only search that branch of the tree, which improves both precision and performance.
How Scope Inference Works
Section titled “How Scope Inference Works”When you call remember() without specifying a scope, the LLM analyzes the content and the existing scope tree, then suggests the best placement. If no existing scope fits, it creates a new one. Over time, the scope tree grows organically from the content itself — you don’t need to design a schema upfront.
memory = Memory()
# LLM infers scope from contentmemory.remember("We chose PostgreSQL for the user database.")# -> might be placed under /project/decisions or /engineering/database
# You can also specify scope explicitlymemory.remember("Sprint velocity is 42 points", scope="/team/metrics")Visualizing the Scope Tree
Section titled “Visualizing the Scope Tree”print(memory.tree())# / (15 records)# /project (8 records)# /project/alpha (5 records)# /project/beta (3 records)# /agent (7 records)# /agent/researcher (4 records)# /agent/writer (3 records)
print(memory.info("/project/alpha"))# ScopeInfo(path='/project/alpha', record_count=5,# categories=['architecture', 'database'],# oldest_record=datetime(...), newest_record=datetime(...),# child_scopes=[])MemoryScope: Subtree Views
Section titled “MemoryScope: Subtree Views”A MemoryScope restricts all operations to a branch of the tree. The agent or code using it can only see and write within that subtree.
memory = Memory()
# Create a scope for a specific agentagent_memory = memory.scope("/agent/researcher")
# Everything is relative to /agent/researcheragent_memory.remember("Found three relevant papers on LLM memory.")# -> stored under /agent/researcher
agent_memory.recall("relevant papers")# -> searches only under /agent/researcher
# Narrow further with subscopeproject_memory = agent_memory.subscope("project-alpha")# -> /agent/researcher/project-alphaBest Practices for Scope Design
Section titled “Best Practices for Scope Design”-
Start flat, let the LLM organize. Don’t over-engineer your scope hierarchy upfront. Begin with
memory.remember(content)and let the LLM’s scope inference create structure as content accumulates. -
Use
/{entity_type}/{identifier}patterns. Natural hierarchies emerge from patterns like/project/alpha,/agent/researcher,/company/engineering,/customer/acme-corp. -
Scope by concern, not by data type. Use
/project/alpha/decisionsrather than/decisions/project/alpha. This keeps related content together. -
Keep depth shallow (2-3 levels). Deeply nested scopes become too sparse.
/project/alpha/architectureis good;/project/alpha/architecture/decisions/databases/postgresqlis too deep. -
Use explicit scopes when you know, let the LLM infer when you don’t. If you’re storing a known project decision, pass
scope="/project/alpha/decisions". If you’re storing freeform agent output, omit the scope and let the LLM figure it out.
Use Case Examples
Section titled “Use Case Examples”Multi-project team:
memory = Memory()# Each project gets its own branchmemory.remember("Using microservices architecture", scope="/project/alpha/architecture")memory.remember("GraphQL API for client apps", scope="/project/beta/api")
# Recall across all projectsmemory.recall("API design decisions")
# Or within a specific projectmemory.recall("API design", scope="/project/beta")Per-agent private context with shared knowledge:
memory = Memory()
# Researcher has private findingsresearcher_memory = memory.scope("/agent/researcher")
# Writer can read from both its own scope and shared company knowledgewriter_view = memory.slice( scopes=["/agent/writer", "/company/knowledge"], read_only=True,)Customer support (per-customer context):
memory = Memory()
# Each customer gets isolated contextmemory.remember("Prefers email communication", scope="/customer/acme-corp")memory.remember("On enterprise plan, 50 seats", scope="/customer/acme-corp")
# Shared product docs are accessible to all agentsmemory.remember("Rate limit is 1000 req/min on enterprise plan", scope="/product/docs")Memory Slices
Section titled “Memory Slices”What Slices Are
Section titled “What Slices Are”A MemorySlice is a view across multiple, possibly disjoint scopes. Unlike a scope (which restricts to one subtree), a slice lets you recall from several branches simultaneously.
When to Use Slices vs Scopes
Section titled “When to Use Slices vs Scopes”- Scope: Use when an agent or code block should be restricted to a single subtree. Example: an agent that only sees
/agent/researcher. - Slice: Use when you need to combine context from multiple branches. Example: an agent that reads from its own scope plus shared company knowledge.
Read-Only Slices
Section titled “Read-Only Slices”The most common pattern: give an agent read access to multiple branches without letting it write to shared areas.
memory = Memory()
# Agent can recall from its own scope AND company knowledge,# but cannot write to company knowledgeagent_view = memory.slice( scopes=["/agent/researcher", "/company/knowledge"], read_only=True,)
matches = agent_view.recall("company security policies", limit=5)# Searches both /agent/researcher and /company/knowledge, merges and ranks results
agent_view.remember("new finding") # Raises PermissionError (read-only)Read-Write Slices
Section titled “Read-Write Slices”When read-only is disabled, you can write to any of the included scopes, but you must specify which scope explicitly.
view = memory.slice(scopes=["/team/alpha", "/team/beta"], read_only=False)
# Must specify scope when writingview.remember("Cross-team decision", scope="/team/alpha", categories=["decisions"])Composite Scoring
Section titled “Composite Scoring”Recall results are ranked by a weighted combination of three signals:
composite = semantic_weight * similarity + recency_weight * decay + importance_weight * importanceWhere:
- similarity =
1 / (1 + distance)from the vector index (0 to 1) - decay =
0.5^(age_days / half_life_days)— exponential decay (1.0 for today, 0.5 at half-life) - importance = the record’s importance score (0 to 1), set at encoding time
Configure these directly on the Memory constructor:
# Sprint retrospective: favor recent memories, short half-lifememory = Memory( recency_weight=0.5, semantic_weight=0.3, importance_weight=0.2, recency_half_life_days=7,)
# Architecture knowledge base: favor important memories, long half-lifememory = Memory( recency_weight=0.1, semantic_weight=0.5, importance_weight=0.4, recency_half_life_days=180,)Each MemoryMatch includes a match_reasons list so you can see why a result ranked where it did (e.g. ["semantic", "recency", "importance"]).
LLM Analysis Layer
Section titled “LLM Analysis Layer”Memory uses the LLM in three ways:
- On save — When you omit scope, categories, or importance, the LLM analyzes the content and suggests scope, categories, importance, and metadata (entities, dates, topics).
- On recall — For deep/auto recall, the LLM analyzes the query (keywords, time hints, suggested scopes, complexity) to guide retrieval.
- Extract memories —
extract_memories(content)breaks raw text (e.g. task output) into discrete memory statements. Agents use this before callingremember()on each statement so that atomic facts are stored instead of one large blob.
All analysis degrades gracefully on LLM failure — see Failure Behavior.
Memory Consolidation
Section titled “Memory Consolidation”When saving new content, the encoding pipeline automatically checks for similar existing records in storage. If the similarity is above consolidation_threshold (default 0.85), the LLM decides what to do:
- keep — The existing record is still accurate and not redundant.
- update — The existing record should be updated with new information (LLM provides the merged content).
- delete — The existing record is outdated, superseded, or contradicted.
- insert_new — Whether the new content should also be inserted as a separate record.
This prevents duplicates from accumulating. For example, if you save “CrewAI ensures reliable operation” three times, consolidation recognizes the duplicates and keeps only one record.
Intra-batch Dedup
Section titled “Intra-batch Dedup”When using remember_many(), items within the same batch are compared against each other before hitting storage. If two items have cosine similarity >= batch_dedup_threshold (default 0.98), the later one is silently dropped. This catches exact or near-exact duplicates within a single batch without any LLM calls (pure vector math).
# Only 2 records are stored (the third is a near-duplicate of the first)memory.remember_many([ "CrewAI supports complex workflows.", "Python is a great language.", "CrewAI supports complex workflows.", # dropped by intra-batch dedup])Non-blocking Saves
Section titled “Non-blocking Saves”remember_many() is non-blocking — it submits the encoding pipeline to a background thread and returns immediately. This means the agent can continue to the next task while memories are being saved.
# Returns immediately -- save happens in backgroundmemory.remember_many(["Fact A.", "Fact B.", "Fact C."])
# recall() automatically waits for pending saves before searchingmatches = memory.recall("facts") # sees all 3 recordsRead Barrier
Section titled “Read Barrier”Every recall() call automatically calls drain_writes() before searching, ensuring the query always sees the latest persisted records. This is transparent — you never need to think about it.
Crew Shutdown
Section titled “Crew Shutdown”When a crew finishes, kickoff() drains all pending memory saves in its finally block, so no saves are lost even if the crew completes while background saves are in flight.
Standalone Usage
Section titled “Standalone Usage”For scripts or notebooks where there’s no crew lifecycle, call drain_writes() or close() explicitly:
memory = Memory()memory.remember_many(["Fact A.", "Fact B."])
# Option 1: Wait for pending savesmemory.drain_writes()
# Option 2: Drain and shut down the background poolmemory.close()Source and Privacy
Section titled “Source and Privacy”Every memory record can carry a source tag for provenance tracking and a private flag for access control.
Source Tracking
Section titled “Source Tracking”The source parameter identifies where a memory came from:
# Tag memories with their originmemory.remember("User prefers dark mode", source="user:alice")memory.remember("System config updated", source="admin")memory.remember("Agent found a bug", source="agent:debugger")
# Recall only memories from a specific sourcematches = memory.recall("user preferences", source="user:alice")Private Memories
Section titled “Private Memories”Private memories are only visible to recall when the source matches:
# Store a private memorymemory.remember("Alice's API key is sk-...", source="user:alice", private=True)
# This recall sees the private memory (source matches)matches = memory.recall("API key", source="user:alice")
# This recall does NOT see it (different source)matches = memory.recall("API key", source="user:bob")
# Admin access: see all private records regardless of sourcematches = memory.recall("API key", include_private=True)This is particularly useful in multi-user or enterprise deployments where different users’ memories should be isolated.
RecallFlow (Deep Recall)
Section titled “RecallFlow (Deep Recall)”recall() supports two depths:
depth="shallow"— Direct vector search with composite scoring. Fast (~200ms), no LLM calls.depth="deep"(default) — Runs a multi-step RecallFlow: query analysis, scope selection, parallel vector search, confidence-based routing, and optional recursive exploration when confidence is low.
Smart LLM skip: Queries shorter than query_analysis_threshold (default 200 characters) skip the LLM query analysis entirely, even in deep mode. Short queries like “What database do we use?” are already good search phrases — the LLM analysis adds little value. This saves ~1-3s per recall for typical short queries. Only longer queries (e.g. full task descriptions) go through LLM distillation into targeted sub-queries.
# Shallow: pure vector search, no LLMmatches = memory.recall("What did we decide?", limit=10, depth="shallow")
# Deep (default): intelligent retrieval with LLM analysis for long queriesmatches = memory.recall( "Summarize all architecture decisions from this quarter", limit=10, depth="deep",)The confidence thresholds that control the RecallFlow router are configurable:
memory = Memory( confidence_threshold_high=0.9, # Only synthesize when very confident confidence_threshold_low=0.4, # Explore deeper more aggressively exploration_budget=2, # Allow up to 2 exploration rounds query_analysis_threshold=200, # Skip LLM for queries shorter than this)Embedder Configuration
Section titled “Embedder Configuration”Memory needs an embedding model to convert text into vectors for semantic search. By default, Memory() uses OpenAI text-embedding-3-large embeddings, which produce 3072-dimensional vectors. Set OPENAI_API_KEY for the default path, or configure a custom embedder in one of three ways.
Passing to Memory Directly
Section titled “Passing to Memory Directly”from crewai import Memory
# As a config dictmemory = Memory(embedder={"provider": "openai", "config": {"model_name": "text-embedding-3-large"}})
# As a pre-built callablefrom crewai.rag.embeddings.factory import build_embedderembedder = build_embedder({"provider": "ollama", "config": {"model_name": "mxbai-embed-large"}})memory = Memory(embedder=embedder)Via Crew Embedder Config
Section titled “Via Crew Embedder Config”When using memory=True, the crew’s embedder config is passed through:
from crewai import Crew
crew = Crew( agents=[...], tasks=[...], memory=True, embedder={"provider": "openai", "config": {"model_name": "text-embedding-3-large"}},)Provider Examples
Section titled “Provider Examples”OpenAI (default)
memory = Memory(embedder={ "provider": "openai", "config": { "model_name": "text-embedding-3-large", # "api_key": "sk-...", # or set OPENAI_API_KEY env var },})Ollama (local, private)
memory = Memory(embedder={ "provider": "ollama", "config": { "model_name": "mxbai-embed-large", "url": "http://localhost:11434/api/embeddings", },})Azure OpenAI
memory = Memory(embedder={ "provider": "azure", "config": { "deployment_id": "your-embedding-deployment", "api_key": "your-azure-api-key", "api_base": "https://your-resource.openai.azure.com", "api_version": "2024-02-01", },})Google AI
memory = Memory(embedder={ "provider": "google-generativeai", "config": { "model_name": "gemini-embedding-001", # "api_key": "...", # or set GOOGLE_API_KEY env var },})Google Vertex AI
memory = Memory(embedder={ "provider": "google-vertex", "config": { "model_name": "gemini-embedding-001", "project_id": "your-gcp-project-id", "location": "us-central1", },})Cohere
memory = Memory(embedder={ "provider": "cohere", "config": { "model_name": "embed-english-v3.0", # "api_key": "...", # or set COHERE_API_KEY env var },})VoyageAI
memory = Memory(embedder={ "provider": "voyageai", "config": { "model": "voyage-3", # "api_key": "...", # or set VOYAGE_API_KEY env var },})AWS Bedrock
memory = Memory(embedder={ "provider": "amazon-bedrock", "config": { "model_name": "amazon.titan-embed-text-v1", # Uses default AWS credentials (boto3 session) },})Hugging Face
memory = Memory(embedder={ "provider": "huggingface", "config": { "model_name": "sentence-transformers/all-MiniLM-L6-v2", },})Jina
memory = Memory(embedder={ "provider": "jina", "config": { "model_name": "jina-embeddings-v2-base-en", # "api_key": "...", # or set JINA_API_KEY env var },})IBM WatsonX
memory = Memory(embedder={ "provider": "watsonx", "config": { "model_id": "ibm/slate-30m-english-rtrvr", "api_key": "your-watsonx-api-key", "project_id": "your-project-id", "url": "https://us-south.ml.cloud.ibm.com", },})Custom Embedder
# Pass any callable that takes a list of strings and returns a list of vectorsdef my_embedder(texts: list[str]) -> list[list[float]]: # Your embedding logic here return [[0.1, 0.2, ...] for _ in texts]
memory = Memory(embedder=my_embedder)Provider Reference
Section titled “Provider Reference”| Provider | Key | Typical Model | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| OpenAI | openai | text-embedding-3-large | Default. Set OPENAI_API_KEY. |
| Ollama | ollama | mxbai-embed-large | Local, no API key needed. |
| Azure OpenAI | azure | text-embedding-3-large | Default model. Requires deployment_id. |
| Google AI | google-generativeai | gemini-embedding-001 | Set GOOGLE_API_KEY. |
| Google Vertex | google-vertex | gemini-embedding-001 | Requires project_id. |
| Cohere | cohere | embed-english-v3.0 | Strong multilingual support. |
| VoyageAI | voyageai | voyage-3 | Optimized for retrieval. |
| AWS Bedrock | amazon-bedrock | amazon.titan-embed-text-v1 | Uses boto3 credentials. |
| Hugging Face | huggingface | all-MiniLM-L6-v2 | Local sentence-transformers. |
| Jina | jina | jina-embeddings-v2-base-en | Set JINA_API_KEY. |
| IBM WatsonX | watsonx | ibm/slate-30m-english-rtrvr | Requires project_id. |
| Sentence Transformer | sentence-transformer | all-MiniLM-L6-v2 | Local, no API key. |
| Custom | custom | — | Requires embedding_callable. |
LLM Configuration
Section titled “LLM Configuration”Memory uses an LLM for save analysis (scope, categories, importance inference), consolidation decisions, and deep recall query analysis. You can configure which model to use.
from crewai import Memory, LLM
# Default: gpt-4o-minimemory = Memory()
# Use a different OpenAI modelmemory = Memory(llm="gpt-4o")
# Use Anthropicmemory = Memory(llm="anthropic/claude-3-haiku-20240307")
# Use Ollama for fully local/private analysismemory = Memory(llm="ollama/llama3.2")
# Use Google Geminimemory = Memory(llm="gemini/gemini-2.0-flash")
# Pass a pre-configured LLM instance with custom settingsllm = LLM(model="gpt-4o", temperature=0)memory = Memory(llm=llm)The LLM is initialized lazily — it’s only created when first needed. This means Memory() never fails at construction time, even if API keys aren’t set. Errors only surface when the LLM is actually called (e.g. when saving without explicit scope/categories, or during deep recall).
For fully offline/private operation, use a local model for both the LLM and embedder:
memory = Memory( llm="ollama/llama3.2", embedder={"provider": "ollama", "config": {"model_name": "mxbai-embed-large"}},)Storage Backend
Section titled “Storage Backend”- Default: LanceDB, stored under
./.crewai/memory(or$CREWAI_STORAGE_DIR/memoryif the env var is set, or the path you pass asstorage="path/to/dir"). - Custom backend: Implement the
StorageBackendprotocol (seecrewai.memory.storage.backend) and pass an instance toMemory(storage=your_backend).
Discovery
Section titled “Discovery”Inspect the scope hierarchy, categories, and records:
memory.tree() # Formatted tree of scopes and record countsmemory.tree("/project", max_depth=2) # Subtree viewmemory.info("/project") # ScopeInfo: record_count, categories, oldest/newestmemory.list_scopes("/") # Immediate child scopesmemory.list_categories() # Category names and countsmemory.list_records(scope="/project/alpha", limit=20) # Records in a scope, newest firstFailure Behavior
Section titled “Failure Behavior”If the LLM fails during analysis (network error, rate limit, invalid response), memory degrades gracefully:
- Save analysis — A warning is logged and the memory is still stored with default scope
/, empty categories, and importance0.5. - Extract memories — The full content is stored as a single memory so nothing is dropped.
- Query analysis — Recall falls back to simple scope selection and vector search so you still get results.
No exception is raised for these analysis failures; only storage or embedder failures will raise.
Privacy Note
Section titled “Privacy Note”Memory content is sent to the configured LLM for analysis (scope/categories/importance on save, query analysis and optional deep recall). For sensitive data, use a local LLM (e.g. Ollama) or ensure your provider meets your compliance requirements.
Memory Events
Section titled “Memory Events”All memory operations emit events with source_type="unified_memory". You can listen for timing, errors, and content.
| Event | Description | Key Properties |
|---|---|---|
| MemoryQueryStartedEvent | Query begins | query, limit |
| MemoryQueryCompletedEvent | Query succeeds | query, results, query_time_ms |
| MemoryQueryFailedEvent | Query fails | query, error |
| MemorySaveStartedEvent | Save begins | value, metadata |
| MemorySaveCompletedEvent | Save succeeds | value, save_time_ms |
| MemorySaveFailedEvent | Save fails | value, error |
| MemoryRetrievalStartedEvent | Agent retrieval starts | task_id |
| MemoryRetrievalCompletedEvent | Agent retrieval done | task_id, memory_content, retrieval_time_ms |
Example: monitor query time:
from crewai.events import BaseEventListener, MemoryQueryCompletedEvent
class MemoryMonitor(BaseEventListener): def setup_listeners(self, crewai_event_bus): @crewai_event_bus.on(MemoryQueryCompletedEvent) def on_done(source, event): if getattr(event, "source_type", None) == "unified_memory": print(f"Query '{event.query}' completed in {event.query_time_ms:.0f}ms")Troubleshooting
Section titled “Troubleshooting”Memory not persisting?
- Ensure the storage path is writable (default
./.crewai/memory). Passstorage="./your_path"to use a different directory, or set theCREWAI_STORAGE_DIRenvironment variable. - When using a crew, confirm
memory=Trueormemory=Memory(...)is set.
Slow recall?
- Use
depth="shallow"for routine agent context. Reservedepth="deep"for complex queries. - Increase
query_analysis_thresholdto skip LLM analysis for more queries.
LLM analysis errors in logs?
- Memory still saves/recalls with safe defaults. Check API keys, rate limits, and model availability if you want full LLM analysis.
Background save errors in logs?
- Memory saves run in a background thread. Errors are emitted as
MemorySaveFailedEventbut don’t crash the agent. Check logs for the root cause (usually LLM or embedder connection issues).
Embedding dimension mismatch?
- Existing local memory stores may have been created with a different embedding model. The default OpenAI memory embedder is now
text-embedding-3-large(3072 dimensions), while older stores commonly used 1536-dimensional embeddings. For local testing, runcrewai reset-memories -m, delete the local memory storage directory, or configure the previous embedder model explicitly.
Concurrent write conflicts?
- LanceDB operations are serialized with a shared lock and retried automatically on conflict. This handles multiple
Memoryinstances pointing at the same database (e.g. agent memory + crew memory). No action needed.
Browse memory from the terminal:
crewai memory # Opens the TUI browsercrewai memory --storage-path ./my_memory # Point to a specific directoryReset memory (e.g. for tests):
crew.reset_memories(command_type="memory") # Resets unified memory# Or on a Memory instance:memory.reset() # All scopesmemory.reset(scope="/project/old") # Only that subtreeConfiguration Reference
Section titled “Configuration Reference”All configuration is passed as keyword arguments to Memory(...). Every parameter has a sensible default.
| Parameter | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
llm | "gpt-4o-mini" | LLM for analysis (model name or BaseLLM instance). |
storage | "lancedb" | Storage backend ("lancedb", a path string, or a StorageBackend instance). |
embedder | None (OpenAI text-embedding-3-large) | Embedder (config dict, callable, or None for default OpenAI). |
recency_weight | 0.3 | Weight for recency in composite score. |
semantic_weight | 0.5 | Weight for semantic similarity in composite score. |
importance_weight | 0.2 | Weight for importance in composite score. |
recency_half_life_days | 30 | Days for recency score to halve (exponential decay). |
consolidation_threshold | 0.85 | Similarity above which consolidation is triggered on save. Set to 1.0 to disable. |
consolidation_limit | 5 | Max existing records to compare during consolidation. |
default_importance | 0.5 | Importance assigned when not provided and LLM analysis is skipped. |
batch_dedup_threshold | 0.98 | Cosine similarity for dropping near-duplicates within a remember_many() batch. |
confidence_threshold_high | 0.8 | Recall confidence above which results are returned directly. |
confidence_threshold_low | 0.5 | Recall confidence below which deeper exploration is triggered. |
complex_query_threshold | 0.7 | For complex queries, explore deeper below this confidence. |
exploration_budget | 1 | Number of LLM-driven exploration rounds during deep recall. |
query_analysis_threshold | 200 | Queries shorter than this (in characters) skip LLM analysis during deep recall. |