🤔 When AI Gets Amnesia. 🤔

FYI: I’ve launched a new YouTube channel about the intersection of ADHD minds + AI. This is pretty brave for me but I think its such an important message 😃 I only have a few shorts uploaded for now, but longer form content is coming soon. I’d love it if you'd subscribe - I have 7 subs at the moment, and only one is a relative!)

For those of us with ADHD, memory is complicated. We might solve world hunger at 3 AM but can't find our car keys at 9 AM.

Our brilliant ideas slip away before we can capture them. That's why AI has become such a powerful ally - it helps us hold onto those thoughts, organize them, and bring them to life.

Except... AI has its own version of memory problems. You're having a great conversation about a project when suddenly you hit the usage limit or need to start a new chat. Poof - all that context disappears.

I experience this regularly while writing this newsletter. Just yesterday, I was deep in conversation with Claude when I hit the limit and was forced to start a new conversation thread.

Did that mean picking up where I’d left off? Nope. It meant briefing Claude on everything we’d already agreed.

For someone whose brain already struggles with working memory, having my digital partner "forget" everything feels ironic, to say the least.

But here's what I've learned: once I stopped expecting AI to remember everything forever, I started finding ways to work with these limitations. Different AI models handle information in different ways - some quite clever. And who better than ADHD minds to figure out creative workarounds for memory challenges?

Let me share what I've discovered about how today's AI models manage information, and some practical ways to make them work for minds like ours.

Memories Are Made of This …

To understand how different AI models handle information, imagine four different types of workspaces, each with its own way of organizing information and managing projects. I've been exploring these over the past year, and here's what I've discovered:

*Tbh, DeepSeek is brand new on the scene, and I don’t know much about it. I’ve had a few good chats with it but it kept freezing due to high demand, so we’ll see how this all unfolds.

Beyond Conversation Limits: Persistent Memory Strategies

Not all AI memory is created equal. While conversation windows have limits, some platforms now offer sophisticated project spaces and document repositories that act as long-term memory banks.

Project Spaces: Your AI Memory Headquarters

Think of project spaces as digital filing cabinets where your AI can continuously reference and build upon previous work. These aren't just filing solutions—they provide a knowledge framework that cuts across conversations.

Key Project Space Features:

• Persistent Document Storage: Upload and retain documents across multiple conversations

• Context Preservation: Maintain a consistent knowledge base for complex projects

• Cross-Conversation Learning: Reference previous interactions without manual reintroduction

The Memory Hack: Continuous Context Building

Imagine your AI workspace as a living, breathing knowledge ecosystem. Each document and each conversation adds layers of understanding. You're not just working around memory limitations—you're actively constructing a dynamic intelligence framework.

HOWEVER also take care to remove documents that are outdated, redundant, or wrong as these can mislead AI’s memory.

Find Your Flow

Tips and tricks to help you work around AI’s memory limitations and create a more efficient workflow.

Resources

Weekly Poll

In the recent poll about our meeting mindset, apparently, most of us are not paying much attention in meetings because of wandering minds (66%) or boredom (34%)

Next Week

We’ll be starting a new series on reframing our understanding of “productivity” and how, rather than squish ourselves into tight time-management boxes, we can get more done by working with our natural rhythms. Look out for Redefining Productivity: When Traditional Methods Miss the Point next week.

The Last Word

Forgetful AI tools aren't failing. They're in the early stages of their evolution. Every limitation is an invitation to get creative, to find new pathways, and find a better way to make it work. However, I don’t think it will be a lifetime before we see ‘perpetual memory’ become real.

About Me: After decades as an international executive for large media and tech companies—trying to force my ADHD brain to process information "normally"—I finally discovered that my divergent thinking style wasn't a bug, it was a feature. Now, with AI as my partner, I'm showing others how to turn their unique neuro-spicy minds into professional productivity.

We love hearing your views, insights and questions: [email protected]