An actor is a participant within one agent’s perspective. Its presentation name
is not proof of identity. Slack’s display name (then real name) is the initial
label; handles and external IDs remain fallbacks, never a reason to invent a
first name or nickname.
The participant can choose how this agent addresses them across conversations.
A preferred name belongs to the actor and takes precedence over connector name
refreshes. The agent can ask how someone prefers to be addressed, but saves only
the participant’s answer. Corrections use the same small runtime tool; no separate name-classification model runs on every
message. Tools target the authenticated current speaker, never an actor ID
supplied by the model. Names do not link accounts.
The name question is offered at most once per actor. Recording an offer means
the conversational model received permission to ask, not that the connector
acknowledged delivery. An ignored question must not nag on later turns; an actor
can always volunteer or correct their preference.
The rest of a profile is a view of attributed memory, not a second unscoped
biography. Durable preferences about participants in the current conversation
should be available even when unrelated to the current message’s search words.
All existing audience checks, provenance, revision history, forgetting, and
context budgets still apply. A private fact does not become channel-visible
merely because its subject joins a thread.
Automatic context considers the speaker and up to twelve recently active thread
participants, admitting at most eight permitted preference or communication-style
memories independently of search terms. Task-relevant matches still rank first
under tight budgets. Explicit recall retains its normal search semantics.
The set_preferred_name tool requires an excerpt of the current speaker’s answer;
offer_name_question atomically grants one turn permission to ask. Saved names
record their source message and appear on the actor inspection API and dashboard.
Verified account links carry names into private conversations while their proof
is live; private verification does not introduce a linked name into a group.
Dreaming maintains those memories from conversation evidence. Explicit
preferences are distinct from observations: repeated playful sarcasm may support
a tentative communication-style observation, but one sarcastic remark does not
establish a permanent personality or permission to insult someone. Adapt to the
current tone and situation, attribute observations to the right participant,
and prefer explicit corrections over inferred style. Dreaming must not silently
choose or replace a preferred name.