Decentralizing AI Memory: SHIMI, a Semantic Hierarchical Memory Index for Scalable Agent Reasoning

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Author: Helmi, Tooraj
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Helmi, Tooraj
author_facet Helmi, Tooraj
contents Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) and vector-based search have become foundational tools for memory in AI systems, yet they struggle with abstraction, scalability, and semantic precision - especially in decentralized environments. We present SHIMI (Semantic Hierarchical Memory Index), a unified architecture that models knowledge as a dynamically structured hierarchy of concepts, enabling agents to retrieve information based on meaning rather than surface similarity. SHIMI organizes memory into layered semantic nodes and supports top-down traversal from abstract intent to specific entities, offering more precise and explainable retrieval. Critically, SHIMI is natively designed for decentralized ecosystems, where agents maintain local memory trees and synchronize them asynchronously across networks. We introduce a lightweight sync protocol that leverages Merkle-DAG summaries, Bloom filters, and CRDT-style conflict resolution to enable partial synchronization with minimal overhead. Through benchmark experiments and use cases involving decentralized agent collaboration, we demonstrate SHIMI's advantages in retrieval accuracy, semantic fidelity, and scalability - positioning it as a core infrastructure layer for decentralized cognitive systems.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2504_06135
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Decentralizing AI Memory: SHIMI, a Semantic Hierarchical Memory Index for Scalable Agent Reasoning
Helmi, Tooraj
Artificial Intelligence
Multiagent Systems
Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) and vector-based search have become foundational tools for memory in AI systems, yet they struggle with abstraction, scalability, and semantic precision - especially in decentralized environments. We present SHIMI (Semantic Hierarchical Memory Index), a unified architecture that models knowledge as a dynamically structured hierarchy of concepts, enabling agents to retrieve information based on meaning rather than surface similarity. SHIMI organizes memory into layered semantic nodes and supports top-down traversal from abstract intent to specific entities, offering more precise and explainable retrieval. Critically, SHIMI is natively designed for decentralized ecosystems, where agents maintain local memory trees and synchronize them asynchronously across networks. We introduce a lightweight sync protocol that leverages Merkle-DAG summaries, Bloom filters, and CRDT-style conflict resolution to enable partial synchronization with minimal overhead. Through benchmark experiments and use cases involving decentralized agent collaboration, we demonstrate SHIMI's advantages in retrieval accuracy, semantic fidelity, and scalability - positioning it as a core infrastructure layer for decentralized cognitive systems.
title Decentralizing AI Memory: SHIMI, a Semantic Hierarchical Memory Index for Scalable Agent Reasoning
topic Artificial Intelligence
Multiagent Systems
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2504.06135