Memory Consolidation overview

Memory Consolidation as a cross-cutting topic — background processes that merge, deduplicate, prune, and reorganize accumulated agent memories. Covers Claude Code's auto-dream cycle (a forked subagent with restricted tool surface that rewrites the memory directory), periodic consolidation in Zep and Mem0 (time-weighted decay, entity merging), and the general pattern of treating memory as a living document that requires maintenance. Without consolidation, auto-memory systems accumulate noise, contradictions, and redundancy that degrades retrieval quality over time. The key design decisions are frequency (per-session, periodic, on-demand), scope (what memories to touch), and safety (locks to prevent concurrent corruption).