# Clean up your agent's long-term memory

> Researched. Small business · Intermediate · Operations. Updated 2026-11-02.

Canonical page: https://www.aisetupsthatwork.com/setups/clean-up-your-agents-long-term-memory/

## What it does
Review your AI agent's long-term memory monthly, delete stale facts, date the ones you keep, and stop task details from leaking into new work.

## Who it's for
Anyone whose AI assistant or agent keeps using an old price, an old rule or details from a past job.

## Tools
- Your assistant's memory settings
- A short list of current facts: prices, policies, contacts
- A monthly reminder

## Steps
1. Open the memory list. In ChatGPT it is Settings, then Personalization, then Manage memories; other tools have a similar page or a memory file.
2. Copy the list into the prompt below and get it sorted into keep, update and delete.
3. Delete stale entries. OpenAI says deleting a saved memory stops it being used, but does not remove it from past chats, so delete or archive old chats that repeat the stale fact.
4. Rewrite facts that changed with a date, for example: 'As of Nov 2026, call-out fee is $95.'
5. Keep one-off task details, such as a client's job notes, in that task's project or file, not in memory.
6. Start a fresh chat after the cleanup, and repeat monthly.

## Copy-paste prompt
Adapt bracketed fields to your situation.
```text
Here is my AI assistant's memory list and my current facts. Use only what I paste.

Memory list: [PASTE]
Current facts (prices, policies, contacts, preferences): [PASTE]

Sort every memory into:
- KEEP: still true
- UPDATE: changed; write the new version with today's date
- DELETE: outdated, a one-off task detail, or a duplicate
Give a one-line reason for each. Flag any memory that contradicts my current facts.
```

## Guardrails
- What it touches: Connected mail, calendar, sheets, or chat. Scoped to this job (Your assistant's memory settings; A short list of current facts: prices, policies, contacts).
- Needs your OK: Send, pay, publish, and account changes stay with you. Treat agent output as drafts first.
- Safety level: Read-only
- Turning memory off and assuming that deleted everything; it does not.
- Keeping two versions of the same price.
- Saving client details in memory where they leak into other work.

## Tips
- Dated facts make stale ones obvious next month.
- Memory is for lasting preferences and facts, not job details.
- If something keeps coming back, check old chats and files that repeat it.

## Estimates (labeled, not measured)
- Time saved: About 15 minutes a month.
- Money saved: Not stated in sources.
- Tool cost: Prices: Not stated in sources.

## Sources
Summaries use the public sources below, not independent verification.
- OpenAI: https://help.openai.com/en/articles/8590148-memory-faq (Memory FAQ: delete saved memories one at a time or all at once in Settings, Personalization, Manage memories; deleting a memory does not remove it from past chats; turning memory off does not delete what is stored (read 2026-11-02 from a search result summary of the page))

## Get the free starter pack
Five beginner copy-paste AI setups, free by email: https://www.aisetupsthatwork.com/starter-pack/?utm_source=ai-agent&utm_medium=markdown&utm_campaign=setup-clean-up-your-agents-long-term-memory

Related:
- [Fix wrong answers from your own documents](https://www.aisetupsthatwork.com/setups/fix-wrong-answers-from-your-own-documents/index.md)
- [How to give your AI bot a long-term memory with an Obsidian vault](https://www.aisetupsthatwork.com/setups/give-your-ai-bot-a-long-term-memory-with-obsidian/index.md)