mlsanityData to 14 Oct 2026

Task Memory Engine: Spatial Memory for Robust Multi-Step LLM Agents

arXiv 2505.19436 ↗First posted 26 May 2025cs.AI cs.CLcited by 5

On the map: LLM agents and tool use → Agent memory systems

Abstract (arXiv)

Large Language Models (LLMs) falter in multi-step interactions -- often hallucinating, repeating actions, or misinterpreting user corrections -- due to reliance on linear, unstructured context. This fragility stems from the lack of persistent memory to track evolving goals and task dependencies, undermining trust in autonomous agents. We introduce the Task Memory Engine (TME), a modular memory controller that transforms existing LLMs into robust, revision-aware agents without fine-tuning. TME implements a spatial memory framework that replaces flat context with graph-based structures to support consistent, multi-turn reasoning. Departing from linear concatenation and ReAct-style prompting, TME builds a dynamic task graph -- either a tree or directed acyclic graph (DAG) -- to map user inputs to subtasks, align them with prior context, and enable dependency-tracked revisions. Its Task Representation and Intent Management (TRIM) component models task semantics and user intent to ensure accurate interpretation. Across four multi-turn scenarios-trip planning, cooking, meeting scheduling, and shopping cart editing -- TME eliminates 100% of hallucinations and misinterpretations in three tasks, and reduces hallucinations by 66.7% and misinterpretations by 83.3% across 27 user turns, outperforming ReAct. TME's modular design supports plug-and-play deployment and domain-specific customization, adaptable to both personal assistants and enterprise automation. We release TME's codebase, benchmarks, and components as open-source resources, enabling researchers to develop reliable LLM agents. TME's scalable architecture addresses a critical gap in agent performance across complex, interactive settings.

Key facts. Cited by 5 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026). Placed in Agent memory systems, one of 16 directions in LLM agents and tool use. Builds on 9 of its 11 references that are in the map. First posted on arXiv 26 May 2025.

Builds on

9 of 11 references.

References · 9

  1. 2020Language Models are Few-Shot Learnerscited by 32,419
  2. 2022Chain-of-Thought Prompting Elicits Reasoning in Large Language Modelscited by 12,459
  3. 2020Retrieval-Augmented Generation for Knowledge-Intensive NLP Taskscited by 9,297
  4. 2022ReAct: Synergizing Reasoning and Acting in Language Modelscited by 8,695
  5. 2023Tree of Thoughts: Deliberate Problem Solving with Large Language Modelscited by 3,211
  6. 2022Survey of Hallucination in Natural Language Generationcited by 2,075
  7. 2023MemoryBank: Enhancing Large Language Models with Long-Term Memorycited by 556
  8. 2024Searching for Best Practices in Retrieval-Augmented Generationcited by 83
  9. 2024Large Language Models for Networking: Workflow, Advances and Challengescited by 15

Built on by

Cited by year (2026 to 14 Oct)

Citing papers per year: 2025: 2; 2026: 3.

5 papers.

Similar, not cited

Close in wording, no citation either way

  1. 2025Task Memory Engine (TME): Enhancing State Awareness for Multi-Step LLM Agent Tasks
  2. 2026AdMem: Advanced Memory for Task-solving Agents
  3. 2026Weighted Memory Tree: Remembering What Matters for Long-Horizon LLM Agents
  4. 2025Intrinsic Memory Agents: Heterogeneous Multi-Agent LLM Systems through Structured Contextual Memory
  5. 2025Evaluating Memory in LLM Agents via Incremental Multi-Turn Interactions
  6. 2025Rethinking Memory in LLM based Agents: Representations, Operations, and Emerging Topics
  7. 2026Mem2ActBench: A Benchmark for Evaluating Long-Term Memory Utilization in Task-Oriented Autonomous Agents
  8. 2026Memory in the LLM Era: Modular Architectures and Strategies in a Unified Framework