Agent Autonomy Primitives

Agent Autonomy Primitives

Turn any AI agent into a self-directing worker using five composable primitives: typed memory, task files, project grouping, template schemas, and heartbeat loops.

Prerequisites

npm install -g clawvault clawvault init

1. Typed Memory

Every memory has a type. The type determines where it lives and how it's retrieved. TypeDirectoryWhen to Usedecisiondecisions/Recording a choice with rationalelessonlessons/Something learned from experiencepersonpeople/Contact info, relationship contextcommitmentcommitments/Promise made, deliverable owedpreferencepreferences/How someone likes things donefactinbox/Raw information to file laterprojectprojects/Workstream with goals and status Store with type: clawvault remember decision "Chose Resend over SendGrid" --content "Lower cost, better DX, webhook support" clawvault remember lesson "LLMs rewrite keywords during compression" --content "Always post-process with regex" Rule: If you know WHAT KIND of thing it is, use the right command. Dumping everything into daily notes defeats retrieval later.

2. Task Primitives

• A task is a markdown file with YAML frontmatter in tasks/:
• ---
• status: open
• priority: high
• owner: your-agent-name
• project: my-project
• due: 2026-03-01
• tags: [infrastructure, deploy]
• estimate: 2h
• ---
• # Deploy API to production
• ## Context
• Server provisioned. Need Dockerfile fix.
• ## Next Steps
• Fix binding to 0.0.0.0
• Add health endpoint
• Push and verify
• Create tasks:
• clawvault task add "Deploy API to production" \
• --priority high \
• --owner my-agent \
• --project my-project \
• --due 2026-03-01 \
• --tags "infrastructure,deploy"
• Update status:
• clawvault task update deploy-api-to-production --status in-progress
• clawvault task done deploy-api-to-production --reason "Deployed, health check passing"
• Statuses: open → in-progress → done (or blocked)
• Priorities: critical > high > medium > low

3. Project Grouping

Projects group related tasks with metadata: clawvault project add "Outbound Engine" \ --owner pedro \ --client versatly \ --tags "gtm,sales" \ --deadline 2026-03-15 Tasks reference projects via the project field. Filter tasks by project: clawvault task list --project outbound-engine

4. Template Schemas

Templates are YAML schema definitions that control what fields exist on every primitive. They live in templates/ in your vault. See references/template-customization.md for full customization guide. Key points: Vault templates override builtins — drop a task.md in templates/ to change the schema Add fields (e.g., sprint, effort, client) by editing the template Remove fields you don't need Change defaults (e.g., default priority = high) Validation is advisory — warns but never blocks

5. Heartbeat Loop

The heartbeat is the autonomy mechanism. Wire it into your agent's periodic wake cycle. Every heartbeat (e.g., every 30 minutes): 1. clawvault task list --owner <agent-name> --status open 2. Sort by: priority (critical first), then due date (soonest first) 3. Pick the highest-impact task executable RIGHT NOW 4. Execute it 5. On completion: clawvault task done <slug> --reason "what was done" 6. On blocker: clawvault task update <slug> --status blocked --blocked-by "reason" 7. If new work discovered: clawvault task add "new task" --priority <p> --project <proj> 8. If lesson learned: clawvault remember lesson "what happened" 9. Go back to sleep Implementation for OpenClaw agents: Add to your HEARTBEAT.md: ## Task-Driven Autonomy Every heartbeat: 1. `clawvault task list --owner <your-name> --status open` → your work queue 2. Sort by priority + due date 3. Pick highest-impact task you can execute NOW 4. Work it. Update status. Mark done. Report. 5. Check for tasks due within 24h — those get priority For cron-based agents, schedule a recurring job: Schedule: every 30 minutes Action: Read task queue, pick highest priority, execute, report

Composing Primitives into Autonomy

The power is in composition, not any single primitive: Wake → Read memory → Check tasks → Execute → Learn → Update memory → Sleep ↑ | └──────────────────────────────────────┘ Each cycle compounds: Memory feeds context into task execution (decisions, lessons, preferences inform how work gets done) Task execution generates new memories (lessons learned, decisions made, commitments created) Lessons improve future execution (mistakes aren't repeated) Wiki-links ([[entity-name]]) build a knowledge graph across all files Projects provide scope boundaries so the agent doesn't drift

Adapting to Your Setup

See references/adaptation-guide.md for detailed patterns on: Wiring primitives into existing agent frameworks (OpenClaw, LangChain, CrewAI, custom) Choosing which primitives to adopt (start minimal, add as needed) Multi-agent collaboration through shared vaults Migrating from other memory systems

Quick Start: Zero to Autonomous in 5 Minutes

# 1. Install and init npm install -g clawvault clawvault init # 2. Create your first project clawvault project add "My Project" --owner my-agent # 3. Create tasks clawvault task add "Set up monitoring" --priority high --owner my-agent --project my-project clawvault task add "Write API docs" --priority medium --owner my-agent --project my-project # 4. Wire into heartbeat (add to HEARTBEAT.md or cron) # "Every 30min: clawvault task list --owner my-agent --status open, pick top task, execute" # 5. Start working clawvault task update set-up-monitoring --status in-progress # ... do the work ... clawvault task done set-up-monitoring --reason "Prometheus + Grafana configured" clawvault remember lesson "UptimeRobot free tier only checks every 5min" --content "Use Better Stack for <1min checks"

Anti-Patterns

Don'tDo InsteadStore everything in one big memory fileUse typed memory — decisions/, lessons/, people/Create tasks without owner/projectAlways set --owner and --projectAsk "what should I work on?"Read your task queue and decideForget lessons after learning themclawvault remember lesson immediatelySkip marking tasks doneAlways task done --reason — the ledger tracks transitionsCreate tasks for vague ideasPut ideas in backlog/, promote to tasks/ when readyModify template schemas constantlyStabilize schemas early — field renames break existing files

Obsidian Integration

Because everything is markdown + YAML frontmatter, Obsidian renders your agent's workspace as a human-readable dashboard: Kanban board — open all-tasks.base in Obsidian Bases, drag between status columns Blocked view — blocked.base shows what needs human input By owner — by-owner.base shows what each agent is working on By project — by-project.base scopes views per workstream The same file is both the agent's data structure AND the human's UI. No sync layer needed.