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Supermemory isn’t just another document storage system. It’s designed to mirror how human memory actually works - forming connections, evolving over time, and generating insights from accumulated knowledge.

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The Mental Model

Traditional systems store files. Supermemory creates a living knowledge graph.

Traditional Systems

  • Static files in folders
  • No connections between content
  • Search matches keywords
  • Information stays frozen

Supermemory

  • Dynamic knowledge graph
  • Rich relationships between memories
  • Semantic understanding
  • Information evolves and connects

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Documents vs Memories

Understanding this distinction is crucial to using Supermemory effectively.

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Documents: Your Raw Input

Documents are what you provide - the raw materials:
  • PDF files you upload
  • Web pages you save
  • Text you paste
  • Images with text
  • Videos to transcribe
Think of documents as books you hand to Supermemory. See Content Types for the full list of supported formats.

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Memories: Intelligent Knowledge Units

Memories are what Supermemory creates - the understanding:
  • Semantic chunks with meaning
  • Embedded for similarity search
  • Connected through relationships
  • Dynamically updated over time
Think of memories as the insights and connections your brain makes after reading those books.
Key Insight: When you upload a 50-page PDF, Supermemory doesn’t just store it. It breaks it into hundreds of interconnected memories, each understanding its context and relationships to your other knowledge.

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Memory Relationships

The graph connects memories through three types of relationships. For a deeper dive into how these relationships work, see Graph Memory.

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Updates: Information Changes

When new information contradicts or updates existing knowledge, Supermemory creates an “update” relationship.
The system tracks which memory is latest with an isLatest field, ensuring searches return current information.

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Extends: Information Enriches

When new information adds to existing knowledge without replacing it, Supermemory creates an “extends” relationship. Continuing our “working at supermemory” analogy, a memory about what you work on would extend the memory about your role given above.
Both memories remain valid and searchable, providing richer context.

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Derives: Information Infers

The most sophisticated relationship - when Supermemory infers new connections from patterns in your knowledge.
These inferences help surface insights you might not have explicitly stated.

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Processing Pipeline

Understanding the pipeline helps you optimize your usage:
Tip: Larger documents and videos take longer. A 100-page PDF might take 1-2 minutes, while a 1-hour video could take 5-10 minutes.

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Next Steps

Now that you understand how Supermemory works:

Add Memories

Start adding content to your knowledge graph

Search Memories

Learn to query your knowledge effectively