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152 lines
4.2 KiB
Text
152 lines
4.2 KiB
Text
---
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title: "How Supermemory Works"
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description: "Understanding the knowledge graph architecture that powers intelligent memory"
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icon: "brain"
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---
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Supermemory isn't just another document storage system. It's designed to mirror how human memory actually works - forming connections, evolving over time, and generating insights from accumulated knowledge.
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## The Mental Model
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Traditional systems store files. Supermemory creates a living knowledge graph.
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<CardGroup cols={2}>
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<Card title="Traditional Systems" icon="folder">
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- Static files in folders
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- No connections between content
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- Search matches keywords
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- Information stays frozen
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</Card>
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<Card title="Supermemory" icon="network">
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- Dynamic knowledge graph
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- Rich relationships between memories
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- Semantic understanding
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- Information evolves and connects
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</Card>
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</CardGroup>
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## Documents vs Memories
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Understanding this distinction is crucial to using Supermemory effectively.
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### Documents: Your Raw Input
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Documents are what you provide - the raw materials:
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- PDF files you upload
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- Web pages you save
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- Text you paste
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- Images with text
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- Videos to transcribe
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Think of documents as books you hand to Supermemory.
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### Memories: Intelligent Knowledge Units
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Memories are what Supermemory creates - the understanding:
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- Semantic chunks with meaning
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- Embedded for similarity search
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- Connected through relationships
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- Dynamically updated over time
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Think of memories as the insights and connections your brain makes after reading those books.
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<Note>
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**Key Insight**: When you upload a 50-page PDF, Supermemory doesn't just store it. It breaks it into hundreds of interconnected memories, each understanding its context and relationships to your other knowledge.
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</Note>
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## Memory Relationships
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The graph connects memories through three types of relationships:
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### Updates: Information Changes
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When new information contradicts or updates existing knowledge, Supermemory creates an "update" relationship.
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<CodeGroup>
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```text Original Memory
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"You work at Supermemory as a content engineer"
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```
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```text New Memory (Updates Original)
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"You now work at Supermemory as the CMO"
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```
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</CodeGroup>
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The system tracks which memory is latest with an `isLatest` field, ensuring searches return current information.
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### Extends: Information Enriches
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When new information adds to existing knowledge without replacing it, Supermemory creates an "extends" relationship.
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Continuing our "working at supermemory" analogy, a memory about what you work on would extend the memory about your role given above.
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<CodeGroup>
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```text Original Memory
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"You work at Supermemory as the CMO"
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```
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```text New Memory (Extension) - Separate From Previous
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"Your work consists of ensuring the docs are up to date, making marketing campaigns, SEO, etc."
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```
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</CodeGroup>
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Both memories remain valid and searchable, providing richer context.
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### Derives: Information Infers
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The most sophisticated relationship - when Supermemory infers new connections from patterns in your knowledge.
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<CodeGroup>
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```text Memory 1
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"Dhravya is the founder of Supermemory"
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```
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```text Memory 2
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"Dhravya frequently discusses AI and machine learning innovations"
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```
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```text Derived Memory
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"Supermemory is likely an AI-focused company"
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```
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</CodeGroup>
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These inferences help surface insights you might not have explicitly stated.
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## Processing Pipeline
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Understanding the pipeline helps you optimize your usage:
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| Stage | What Happens |
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|-------|-------------|
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| **Queued** | Document waiting to process
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| **Extracting** | Content being extracted |
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| **Chunking** | Creating memory chunks |
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| **Embedding** | Generating vectors |
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| **Indexing** | Building relationships |
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| **Done** | Fully searchable |
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<Note>
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**Tip**: Larger documents and videos take longer. A 100-page PDF might take 1-2 minutes, while a 1-hour video could take 5-10 minutes.
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</Note>
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## Next Steps
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Now that you understand how Supermemory works:
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<CardGroup cols={2}>
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<Card title="Add Memories" icon="plus" href="/add-memories/overview">
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Start adding content to your knowledge graph
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</Card>
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<Card title="Search Memories" icon="search" href="/search/overview">
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Learn to query your knowledge effectively
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</Card>
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</CardGroup>
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