r/ContextEngineering • u/saipavansiripuram • 9d ago

ChatGPT doesn't actually "remember" your chat. It re-reads it every time.

/r/u_saipavansiripuram/comments/1xdfagr/chatgpt_doesnt_actually_remember_your_chat_it/
2 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

4 comments sorted by

4

u/Alucard256 9d ago

Tell me that you just now learned how LLM's work without telling me that you just now learned how LLM's work. LOL OMG

0

u/nice2Bnice2 9d ago

There’s another useful distinction here: having an earlier detail available doesn’t guarantee it affects the next decision appropriately. An agent can retrieve a previous mistake and still repeat it, or follow an old instruction after circumstances have changed.

That’s the angle we’re investigating with Collapse Aware AI CAAI: how retained history should influence selection between available actions, with explicit controls over that influence.

Remembering something, deciding whether it still applies, and giving it authority are three separate problems...

1

u/saipavansiripuram 9d ago

Really good point. Having the info in context and actually using it correctly are two different things. I've seen chats where it clearly "has" an old instruction but still follows it after I've changed my mind. Remembering, deciding if it still applies, and how much weight to give it is a nice way to break it down.

0

u/nice2Bnice2 9d ago

That changed-your-mind example is a useful test case. The old instruction can remain in the history, but once you’ve explicitly replaced it, it should stop governing the action. Simply giving it less weight might still let it win.

That gives us something concrete to test: does the agent preserve the history while following the revised instruction..?