| Option | Type | Does it travel? | Who owns it? | Local-first? | Carries the AI's character? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ChatGPT / Claude / Gemini memory | Vendor memory | One app; lossy one-time export | Vendor holds it | No | Facts only |
| Saved instructions / custom GPTs | Vendor settings | Per-app, manual | Vendor holds it | No | Partial, manual |
| Hand-maintained CLAUDE.md / CURSOR.md | DIY context files | You copy them yourself | You — but four drifting copies | Yes | Whatever you write by hand |
| Episodic-memory tools (e.g. MemPalace) | Conversation archive | Local search of past chats | You (local) | Yes | No — verbatim history, not character |
| aiperson★ | AI memory layer | Present across 30+ surfaces at once | You — one signed file | Yes — local-first | Yes — voice, values, refusals |
Vendor memory (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini)
The built-in memory inside each assistant is genuinely useful and improving fast. As of March 2026, the big vendors let you import your memory when you move in. But it is still their memory: it lives on their servers, works in their app, and travels only as a one-time copy. If you use more than one AI — or run a local model — you end up with several memories that never see the whole you.
Hand-maintained context files
Maintaining CLAUDE.md, CURSOR.md and
GEMINI.md by hand is the market's spontaneous answer to
this problem, and it works — until you're keeping four versions in
sync. aiperson embraces these files rather than replacing them: you
keep one canonical persona, and it projects into each tool's format.
Episodic-memory and conversation-archive tools
Tools like MemPalace store your conversation history verbatim and let you search it later. They're excellent at that, and they're local-first and open-source. They solve a different problem from ours: they remember what was said; aiperson carries who your AI is — the persona, portable across substrates. Both belong on a serious user's machine.
Where aiperson fits
aiperson is an AI memory layer: one persona you own, present across every AI at once, carrying both your context and the AI's character. It doesn't ask you to abandon your current assistant — it sits beneath all of them as the shared memory you hold. Your AI's memory should be yours; that's the only claim we lead with.
Frequently asked questions
What's the best alternative to ChatGPT memory?
If what you want is a memory that travels beyond ChatGPT, the alternative is an AI memory layer rather than another vendor's built-in memory. aiperson keeps your persona in a file you own that is read by ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, local models and 30+ surfaces at once — so you are not choosing one vendor's walls over another's.
Is aiperson a replacement for tools like MemPalace?
No — they solve different problems and work well together. Episodic-memory tools store your conversation history verbatim and let you search it. aiperson carries your persona and context portably across every AI you use. Both belong on a serious user's machine.
Do I have to stop using my current AI?
No. aiperson sits above your assistants rather than replacing them. Keep using Claude, ChatGPT or a local model — aiperson is the shared memory beneath all of them.