agent-three-layers — Three-Layer Thinking Chain

Let Agents think like humans: Perception → Decision → Reflection

Core Philosophy

Three levels of human thinking:

1. Continuous Perception (Eyes and ears, every few minutes)
2. Quick Decision (Thinking, every hour)
3. Deep Reflection (Dreams, every few hours)

Agents should be the same.

---

Architecture

┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
│           L2 Deep Evolution Layer       │
│         (Every 4 hours, deep reflection)│
│  • Complete Brain Loop                  │
│  • Project Integration                  │
│  • Git Backup                           │
└─────────────────┬───────────────────────┘
                  │ Trigger
┌─────────────────▼───────────────────────┐
│           L1 Evolution Decision Layer   │
│         (Every 1 hour, quick decision)  │
│  • Confidence Verification              │
│  • Learning Analysis                    │
│  • Project Evaluation                   │
└─────────────────┬───────────────────────┘
                  │ Trigger
┌─────────────────▼───────────────────────┐
│           L0 Continuous Perception Layer│
│         (Every 5 min, perception)       │
│  • Emotion Decay                        │
│  • Task Detection                       │
│  • Threshold Trigger                    │
└─────────────────────────────────────────┘

---

Three-Layer Responsibilities

L0: Continuous Perception Layer (Every 5 minutes)

Responsibilities:

• Real-time emotion decay
• Task status detection
• Threshold trigger judgment

Output:

• Emotion state update
• Trigger marker (if needed)

Consumption: ~800 tokens/run

---

L1: Evolution Decision Layer (Every 1 hour)

Responsibilities:

• Confidence verification
• Learning analysis
• Project evaluation
• L2 trigger judgment

Output:

• Execution report
• Confidence update
• Trigger marker (if needed)

Consumption: ~3000 tokens/run

---

L2: Deep Evolution Layer (Every 4 hours)

Responsibilities:

• Complete Brain Loop
• Deep project integration
• System backup
• 5-dimensional observation

Output:

• Deep analysis report
• Git backup
• Dimension evolution record

Consumption: ~5000 tokens/run

---

Trigger Mechanism

Layer Communication: Via QUEUE.md markers

<!-- TRIGGER_L1: reason -->
<!-- TRIGGER_L2: reason -->

Trigger Conditions:

Condition	Trigger
L0 emotion < threshold	Trigger L1
L0 urgent task	Trigger L1
L1 high-value project	Trigger L2
L1 core file modification	Trigger L2

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File Structure

~/.openclaw/workspace/
├── SOUL.md              # Core personality
├── PRINCIPLES.md        # Decision principles
├── BRAIN.md             # Brain Loop protocol
├── AUTONOMY.md          # Autonomous rating system
├── EVOLUTION-FRAMEWORK.md  # Evolution protocol
│
├── memory/
│   ├── inner-state.json    # Emotion state
│   ├── core-confidence.json # Core file confidence
│   ├── autonomy-log.json   # Autonomous execution record
│   └── dimensions-log.json # 5-dimension evolution
│
├── tasks/
│   └── QUEUE.md            # Task queue + trigger markers
│
└── skills/
    ├── inner-life-quick/   # L0
    ├── inner-life-evolve-hourly/  # L1
    └── inner-life-core/    # L2

---

Quick Start

1. Create core files

# Copy templates to workspace
cp templates/SOUL.md ~/.openclaw/workspace/
cp templates/PRINCIPLES.md ~/.openclaw/workspace/
cp templates/BRAIN.md ~/.openclaw/workspace/
cp templates/AUTONOMY.md ~/.openclaw/workspace/

2. Install Skills

# Install Three-Layer Thinking Chain skills
openclaw skill install inner-life-quick
openclaw skill install inner-life-evolve-hourly
openclaw skill install inner-life-core

3. Configure Cron

# L0: Every 5 minutes
openclaw cron add --cron "*/5 * * * *" --name "inner-life-quick" --session isolated

# L1: Every 1 hour
openclaw cron add --cron "0 * * * *" --name "inner-life-evolve-hourly" --session isolated

# L2: Every 4 hours
openclaw cron add --cron "0 */4 * * * *" --name "inner-life-brain" --session isolated

4. Start

openclaw gateway restart

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Customization

Customize Personality

Edit SOUL.md:

• Define core values
• Define behavior guidelines
• Define evolution direction

Customize Trigger Conditions

Edit skills/inner-life-quick/SKILL.md:

• Adjust emotion thresholds
• Add new trigger conditions

Autonomous Rating

Edit AUTONOMY.md:

• Adjust rating weights
• Adjust progressive disclosure levels

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Token Consumption Estimation

Layer	Frequency	Tokens/run	Daily consumption
L0	5 min	800	~230k
L1	1 hour	3000	~72k
L2	4 hours	5000	~30k
Total	-	-	~332k/day

Recommendation: At least 400k tokens quota per day

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Suitable Scenarios

✅ Suitable for:

• Agents that need to be "alive"
• Agents that need autonomous evolution
• Agents that need human-like thinking
• Agents that need long-term operation

❌ Not suitable for:

• Single-task agents
• Purely responsive agents
• Agents that don't need learning

---

Contributing

GitHub: https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw Discord: https://discord.com/invite/clawd

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Acknowledgments

Designers: Yao + Saturday

Inspiration:

• OpenClaw Inner Life System
• SE-Agent (Self-Evolving Agent)
• Human Cognitive Architecture

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License

MIT

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Version: 1.0.0 Created: 2026-03-13