Zero-setup onboarding means memory works from the first message with no installation, configuration, or infrastructure required. Platform memory products like ChatGPT and Claude provide this by embedding memory into the chat product itself.
Trade-offs
The convenience of zero-setup comes at a cost: the vendor controls where data lives, how it is structured, and what guarantees it provides. Users cannot export, version, or audit memory independently. Retrieval systems and file-based approaches require setup but offer more control. Neotoma requires installation but provides
deterministic state evolution
,
versioned history
, and
human inspectability
in exchange.
Getting started with Neotoma
While Neotoma is not zero-setup, the install process is minimal. See the install guide for step-by-step instructions.
npm install -g neotoma
neotoma api start --env prod
Compare memory approaches on the
memory models
page.