Operating memory

Operating memory is the governed layer of organisational context that both people and approved AI agents may draw on: decisions, rationale, exceptions, and approved source material, each permission-aware and traceable to its source.

It differs from a document store in what it holds. A repository holds artefacts; operating memory holds the reasoning, the exception criteria, and the record of who approved what and when.

It differs from model memory in who governs it. Retention, residency, and access are chosen by the customer, and every answer names the source it came from.

It is additive to systems of record. The CRM stays authoritative for customer state and the ticketing system for delivery. Operating memory governs the reasoning around those records, not the records themselves.