# Toward Natural and Companionable Virtual Agents via Cross-Temporal Emotional Modeling

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2605.15812 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2605.15812/

## Key facts

- No citing papers in the map yet (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Placed in Social simulation and multi-agent debate, one of 16 directions in LLM agents and tool use.
- Builds on 15 of its 78 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 15 May 2026.

## Placed in

- LLM agents and tool use / [Social simulation and multi-agent debate](https://mlsanity.com/agents/social-simulation-and-multi-agent-debate/)

## Builds on (most cited first, 15 of 15)

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- [User Behavior Simulation with Large Language Model based Agents](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2306.02552/) (2023)
- [CharacterChat: Learning towards Conversational AI with Personalized Social Support](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2308.10278/) (2023)
- [ComPeer: A Generative Conversational Agent for Proactive Peer Support](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2407.18064/) (2024)
- ["My Boyfriend is AI": A Computational Analysis of Human-AI Companionship in Reddit's AI Community](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2509.11391/) (2025)
- [An Appraisal-Based Chain-Of-Emotion Architecture for Affective Language Model Game Agents](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2309.05076/) (2023)
- [Understanding the Impact of Long-Term Memory on Self-Disclosure with Large Language Model-Driven Chatbots for Public Health Intervention](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2402.11353/) (2024)
- [AI on My Shoulder: Supporting Emotional Labor in Front-Office Roles with an LLM-based Empathetic Coworker](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2411.02408/) (2024)
- [A Longitudinal Randomized Control Study of Companion Chatbot Use: Anthropomorphism and Its Mediating Role on Social Impacts](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2509.19515/) (2025)
- [Future You: A Conversation with an AI-Generated Future Self Reduces Anxiety, Negative Emotions, and Increases Future Self-Continuity](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2405.12514/) (2024)
- [Leveraging AI-Generated Emotional Self-Voice to Nudge People towards their Ideal Selves](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2409.11531/) (2024)
- [Exploring Persona Sentiment Sensitivity in Personalized Dialogue Generation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2502.11423/) (2025)
- [IRL Dittos: Embodied Multimodal AI Agent Interactions in Open Spaces](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2504.21347/) (2025)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Recent advances in foundation models have enabled conversational agents that aim for sustained companionship rather than mere task completion. Yet most still remain unable to support natural, long-term companion-like interactions, resulting in experiences that feel episodic and inauthentic. We argue that current agents overlooked cross-temporal modeling of agents' social behaviors and internal emotions: generated behaviors rarely influence an agent's emotional state, and emotional states seldom shape subsequent behaviors. We present Cross-Temporal Emotion Modeling (CTEM), a framework that links long-term behavioral history to moment-to-moment emotional expression. CTEM establishes a closed loop where past experiences update an evolving emotional state; this state conditions immediate interactions; and user feedback continually revises both memory and emotional state, enabling reflection and anticipation. We instantiate CTEM as Auri, a companion agent on an instant-messaging platform, and report a 21-day in-the-wild study showing that CTEM shows improvements in perceived naturalness, coherence, and emotional harmony.