[Feature]: Memory Portability Standard - Open Interchange Format

[zircote]

Problem Statement

Currently, no interoperability standard exists between AI memory providers. This leads to:

• Vendor lock-in concerns for enterprises
• No migration path between tools
• Inability to combine memories from multiple sources
• Fragmented ecosystem

Market research indicates "vendor lock-in concerns emerging" as a growing issue. This represents a strategic opportunity for Subcog to lead standardization.

Proposed Solution

Define and implement an open Memory Interchange Format (MIF) that enables:

1. Export: Full memory export in standardized format
2. Import: Import memories from other providers
3. Migration Tools: Adapters for Mem0, Zep, Letta formats
4. Specification: Published open standard for community adoption

Format considerations:

• JSON-LD for semantic web compatibility
• Include embeddings in portable format
• Preserve entity/relationship graphs
• Maintain temporal metadata

Proposed API:

{
  "@context": "https://subcog.dev/mif/v1",
  "format_version": "1.0",
  "exported_at": "2025-01-22T10:00:00Z",
  "source": {
    "provider": "subcog",
    "version": "0.14.1"
  },
  "memories": [
    {
      "id": "abc123",
      "content": "Decision: Use PostgreSQL",
      "namespace": "decisions",
      "temporal": {
        "valid_from": "2024-01-15T00:00:00Z",
        "ingested_at": "2024-01-15T14:30:00Z"
      },
      "embeddings": {
        "model": "text-embedding-3-small",
        "vector": [0.123, 0.456]
      },
      "entities": ["PostgreSQL", "database"],
      "tags": ["database", "infrastructure"]
    }
  ],
  "entities": [],
  "relationships": []
}

CLI commands:

subcog export --format mif --output backup.mif.json
subcog import --format mif --file backup.mif.json
subcog migrate --from mem0 --file mem0_export.json

Alternatives Considered

• Proprietary format only (current) - limits adoption
• Per-provider adapters only - does not solve interop
• GGUF-style binary format - less human-readable

Additional Context

• Strategic opportunity to establish market leadership
• Could be submitted to AI standards bodies
• Aligns with Subcog open-source positioning

Breaking Change: No
Priority: Important
Contribution: Yes, I can submit a PR

[zircote]

https://github.com/zircote/MIF