What I Learned Trying ChatGPT’s New Memory Feature

Everything reminds me of Her. While ChatGPT is not as powerful as the artificial intelligence from Spike Jonze’s sci-fi romance movie, OpenAI’s experimental memory tool for its chatbot seems to suggest a future where bots are highly personalized and capable of more fluid, lifelike conversations.

OpenAI just soft-launched a new feature for ChatGPT called Memory, where the AI chatbot stores personal details that you share in conversations and refers to this information during future chats. Right now, ChatGPT’s Memory feature is available only to a small group of users to test—it’s unclear when a wider rollout for more chatbot users will happen. The feature is expected to be available for all chatbot users, not just subscribers to ChatGPT Plus.

WIRED received early access to the feature from OpenAI, and I’ve spent the past few days trying it out to better understand this new functionality and to collect some advice you can use to get started. While a few specifics may change before the feature is made available to everyone, here’s what you can likely expect from ChatGPT’s Memory.

How to Navigate ChatGPT’s Memory Feature

When ChatGPT’s Memory arrived on my paid account, I received a pop-up notification explaining the fresh tool and how it can be used for remembering certain details across conversations. It’s worth noting that Memory is enabled automatically. You can easily opt out if you’d prefer by opening Settings, then Personalization, and toggling the Memory option by moving the slider to the left.

Adding facts about yourself to ChatGPT’s Memory is simple: Just chat with the bot. As you use OpenAI’s software, ChatGPT gleans personal insights from the conversations, like your name and where you live, as well as more niche observations, like your favorite movies and least favorite foods. While the chatbot passively gathers this data, you can also try a more direct approach. Start a prompt with “Please remember that …” or use similar language to add info you want filed to ChatGPT’s Memory.

Removing memories from ChatGPT is just as easy. To see everything the bot actively remembers about you, click on your username, go to Settings and Personalization, and then tap on the Manage button at the bottom of the screen. Next, select the trash can icon next to any memory you’d like to remove. You can also go nuclear by choosing Clear ChatGPT’s Memory, which will let you start over with a clean slate.

If you already have a grasp on what the bot remembers about you, you can request that certain things get deleted or adjusted through conversations with the AI. Prompt ChatGPT to change what’s saved in the Memory with commands like, “Forget everything you remember from this chat,” or “Adjust my current city from San Francisco to Sacramento.”