Hermes Learning Loop for OpenClaw#

Inspired by: NousResearch/hermes-agent (Self-improving AI agent)

Implements Hermes Agent's core learning loop in OpenClaw — automatically extracts successful workflows, creates reusable skills, and persists curated knowledge across sessions.

When to Use#

• After completing complex multi-step tasks
• When you discover a workflow worth repeating
• Automatically via heartbeat (periodic nudge)
• When user says "remember this" or "save this workflow"

Features#

• Periodic Nudge — Auto-reflect every N tasks (default: 5)
• Skill Extraction — Convert successful workflows to reusable skills
• 4-Layer Memory — Prompt memory + Session search + Skills + User modeling
• Curated Memory — Agent decides what's worth keeping (not logging everything)
• Progressive Disclosure — Only load skill summaries by default, full content on-demand
• FTS5 Session Search — SQLite-powered historical context retrieval

Quick Start#

Install#

bash

clawhub install hermes-learning-loop

Manual Trigger#

bash

# After completing a task
node learning-loop.js extract --session=<session_id>

# Create skill from workflow
node learning-loop.js create-skill --name="my-skill" --description="What it does"

# Periodic nudge (heartbeat)
node learning-loop.js nudge

Auto-Trigger (Integration)#

Add to HEARTBEAT.md:

markdown

## Learning Loop - Periodic Nudge

**Frequency:** Every 5 tasks or 30 minutes

**Task:**
1. Run `node learning-loop.js nudge`
2. Review extracted memories
3. Approve/reject skill creations

Architecture#

Learning Loop Cycle#

text

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│  1. Task Execution                                      │
│     - Agent completes task                              │
│     - Track tool calls, decisions, outcomes             │
└──────────────┬──────────────────────────────────────────┘
               │
               ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│  2. Periodic Nudge (every 5 tasks)                      │
│     - System prompt: "Reflect on recent activity"       │
│     - Agent evaluates: Is this worth persisting?        │
└──────────────┬──────────────────────────────────────────┘
               │
               ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│  3. Memory Extraction                                   │
│     - If valuable → Write to MEMORY.md / USER.md        │
│     - If workflow → Create skill file                   │
│     - If context → Index in session archive             │
└──────────────┬──────────────────────────────────────────┘
               │
               ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│  4. Skill Creation                                      │
│     - Extract steps, tool calls, file references        │
│     - Write to ~/.openclaw/skills/<category>/<name>/   │
│     - Follow agentskills.io specification               │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

4-Layer Memory System#

LayerPurposeLocationLoad TimingPrompt MemoryAlways-on contextMEMORY.md, USER.mdEvery session startSkillsProcedural memory (how-to)~/.openclaw/skills/On-demand (summary → full)Session ArchiveEpisodic memory (what happened)SQLite + FTS5Deliberate retrievalUser ModelBehavioral patternsOptional (Honcho-like)Continuous passive

Skill Triggers#

Automatically create skill when:

• ✅ 5+ tool calls in sequence
• ✅ Recovered from error successfully
• ✅ User corrected → fixed approach
• ✅ Non-obvious workflow that worked
• ✅ Repeated pattern detected (3+ times)

Usage Examples#

Example 1: Post-Task Skill Extraction#

bash

# After completing complex deployment
export SESSION_ID="2026-04-03-deploy"
export TASK_OUTCOME="success"
export TOOL_CALLS="15"

node learning-loop.js extract

Output:

text

📊 Learning Loop Analysis

✅ Task completed successfully
📈 Tool calls: 15
⚠️  Error recovery: 2 instances
💡  User corrections: 1

🎯 Skill-worthy detected: YES

Proposed skill:
  Name: deploy-to-k8s
  Description: Deploy application to Kubernetes with health checks
  Steps: 7
  Tool calls: 15

📄 Created: ~/.openclaw/skills/devops/deploy-to-k8s/SKILL.md

Example 2: Periodic Nudge#

bash

# Heartbeat triggers this
node learning-loop.js nudge

Output:

text

🔔 Periodic Nudge - Task #5

Looking back at tasks 1-5...

Task 1: ✅ Simple (no extraction needed)
Task 2: ✅ Complex workflow detected
  → Extracted: "github-pr-workflow"
Task 3: ✅ Error recovery pattern
  → Extracted: "debug-python-import"
Task 4: ✅ Simple
Task 5: ✅ User correction applied
  → Updated: "github-pr-workflow" (v1.0.1)

📊 Summary:
  - New skills: 2
  - Updated skills: 1
  - Memory entries: 3

Example 3: Memory Curation#

bash

# Review what's worth keeping
node learning-loop.js curate --session="2026-04-03"

Decision Framework:

text

┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Should this be persisted?                            │
├──────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ ❌ Chat pleasantries → Discard                       │
│ ❌ Failed attempts → Discard (keep only success)     │
│ ✅ Successful workflows → Extract as skill           │
│ ✅ User preferences → Add to USER.md                 │
│ ✅ Project context → Add to MEMORY.md (project/)     │
│ ✅ Corrections/feedback → Add to MEMORY.md (feedback/)│
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Configuration#

Environment Variables#

VariableDescriptionDefaultLEARNING_NUDGE_INTERVALTasks between nudges5``LEARNING_MIN_TOOL_CALLSMin tool calls for skill5``LEARNING_AUTO_CREATEAuto-create skills (vs approve)false``LEARNING_SKILLS_DIRSkills directory~/.openclaw/skills/``LEARNING_MEMORY_DIRMemory directory~/.openclaw/memory/

Config File#

yaml

# ~/.openclaw/learning-loop.yaml
learning:
  nudge:
    enabled: true
    interval: 5  # tasks

  skill_creation:
    auto_approve: false  # Review before creating
    min_tool_calls: 5
    categories:
      - devops
      - research
      - productivity

  memory:
    max_prompt_chars: 3575  # Hermes-style tight limit
    archive_enabled: true
    fts5_enabled: true

Skill File Format#

Follows agentskills.io specification:

markdown

---
name: deploy-to-k8s
description: Deploy application to Kubernetes with health checks
version: 1.0.0
platforms: [linux, macos]
metadata:
  tags: [kubernetes, devops, deployment]
  category: devops
  created_from: session-2026-04-03
---

# deploy-to-k8s

## Overview

Deploy any application to Kubernetes cluster with automated health checks and rollback.

## Prerequisites

- kubectl configured
- Kubernetes cluster access
- Docker image ready

## Steps

1. **Validate cluster connection**
   ```bash
   kubectl cluster-info

1. Apply deployment manifest bash

   kubectl apply -f deployment.yaml
   
   

2. Wait for rollout bash

   kubectl rollout status deployment/app
   
   

3. Health check bash

   kubectl get pods -l app=myapp
   
   

4. Verify service bash

   kubectl get svc app-service
   
   

Tool Calls Used#

• exec: kubectl commands
• read: deployment.yaml
• web_search: Kubernetes docs (if errors)

Related Skills#

• docker-build-optimization
• k8s-troubleshooting

text

## Integration with OpenClaw

### Heartbeat Integration

```markdown
## HEARTBEAT.md Update

### Learning Loop - Periodic Nudge

**Frequency:** Every 5 tasks

**Steps:**
1. Check task counter
2. If counter % 5 == 0 → Run nudge
3. Review proposed skills/memories
4. Approve/reject
5. Reset counter

PUA Integration#

bash

# Task PUA can trigger learning loop
if task.failed && task.recovered:
  node learning-loop.js extract --reason="error-recovery"

if task.pua_level >= "L2":
  # Complex task → likely skill-worthy
  node learning-loop.js nudge

Memory PUA Integration#

bash

# Memory health check includes learning loop status
node memory-pua.js audit

# Output includes:
# - Skills created this week
# - Memories curated
# - Nudge effectiveness

Comparison: Hermes vs This Implementation#

FeatureHermes AgentThis SkillPeriodic Nudge✅ Built-in✅ Via heartbeatSkill Auto-Creation✅ Full auto⚠️ Opt-in approval4-Layer Memory✅ SQLite + FTS5⚠️ Markdown + optional SQLiteProgressive Disclosure✅ Summary → Full✅ Same patternUser Modeling (Honcho)✅ Optional❌ Not implementedGateway Integration✅ Multi-platform⚠️ OpenClaw channels onlyContext Compression✅ Lineage-aware⚠️ Basic summarization

Benefits#

• ✅ Curated not dumped — Agent decides what's worth keeping
• ✅ Token-efficient — Progressive disclosure keeps context small
• ✅ Portable skills — Follows agentskills.io standard
• ✅ Self-improving — Gets better the more you use it
• ✅ OpenClaw native — Works with existing memory system

Related Skills#

• claude-memory-optimizer: Memory structure and migration
• task-pua: Task persistence and quality
• memory-pua: Memory health maintenance

References#

• Hermes Agent: https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent
• Hermes Docs: https://hermes-agent.nousresearch.com/
• agentskills.io: https://agentskills.io/specification
• FTS5 Docs: https://www.sqlite.org/fts5.html

License#

MIT-0

---

Version 1.0.0: Initial implementation inspired by Hermes Agent learning loop