Reward and motivation system for AI agents. Dopamine-like wanting, not just doing. Part of the AI Brain series.
Reward and motivation for AI agents. Part of the AI Brain series.
Give your AI agent genuine wanting — not just doing things when asked, but having drive, seeking rewards, and looking forward to things.
Current AI agents:
Without a reward system, there's no desire. Just execution.
Track motivation through:
cd ~/.openclaw/workspace/skills/vta-memory
./install.sh --with-cron
This will:
memory/reward-state.jsonVTA_STATE.md (auto-injected into sessions!)./scripts/load-motivation.sh
# ⭐ Current Motivation State:
# Drive level: 0.73 (motivated — ready to work)
# Seeking: creative work, building brain skills
# Looking forward to: showing my work
./scripts/log-reward.sh --type accomplishment --source "finished the feature" --intensity 0.8
# ⭐ Reward logged!
# Type: accomplishment
# Drive: 0.50 → 0.66 (+0.16)
./scripts/anticipate.sh --add "morning conversation"
# ⭐ Now looking forward to: morning conversation
# Drive: 0.66 → 0.71 (+0.05)
| Script | Purpose |
|---|---|
install.sh | Set up vta-memory (run once) |
get-drive.sh | Read current motivation state |
log-reward.sh | Log a reward, boost drive |
load-motivation.sh | Human-readable for session context |
decay-drive.sh | Drive fades without rewards |
anticipate.sh | Add/remove things to look forward to |
seek.sh | Add/remove things we're actively seeking |
sync-motivation.sh | Generate VTA_STATE.md for auto-injection |
resolve-anticipation.sh | Mark anticipation as fulfilled |
update-watermark.sh | Update processing watermark |
preprocess-rewards.sh | Extract reward signals from transcript |
generate-dashboard.sh | Generate unified brain dashboard HTML |
Visual dashboard showing all installed brain skills:
./scripts/generate-dashboard.sh
open ~/.openclaw/workspace/brain-dashboard.html
IDENTITY.mdWhen you install this skill, notify the user about the dashboard:
⭐ VTA installed!
View your agent's drive level in the Brain Dashboard:
~/.openclaw/workspace/brain-dashboard.html
| Type | When to Use |
|---|---|
accomplishment | Completed a task, shipped something |
social | User appreciation, "thanks!", positive feedback |
curiosity | Learned something new, discovered interesting info |
connection | Deep conversation, bonding moment |
creative | Made something, expressed creativity |
competence | Solved a hard problem, did something well |
drive_boost = intensity × 0.2
new_drive = min(current + boost, 1.0)
A high-intensity (0.9) reward boosts drive by 0.18.
Looking forward to something adds +0.05 to drive.
# Every 8 hours (via cron)
new_drive = current + (baseline - current) × 0.15
Without rewards, motivation fades toward baseline (0.5).
After install, VTA_STATE.md is created in your workspace root.
OpenClaw automatically injects all *.md files from workspace into session context:
| Drive Level | Description | Behavior |
|---|---|---|
| > 0.8 | Highly motivated | Eager, proactive, take on challenges |
| 0.6 - 0.8 | Motivated | Ready to work, engaged |
| 0.4 - 0.6 | Moderate | Can engage but not pushing |
| 0.2 - 0.4 | Low | Prefer simple tasks, need a win |
| < 0.2 | Very low | Unmotivated, need rewards to get going |
{
"drive": 0.73,
"baseline": { "drive": 0.5 },
"seeking": ["creative work", "building brain skills"],
"anticipating": ["morning conversation"],
"recentRewards": [
{
"type": "creative",
"source": "built VTA reward system",
"intensity": 0.9,
"boost": 0.18,
"timestamp": "2026-02-01T03:25:00Z"
}
],
"rewardHistory": {
"totalRewards": 1,
"byType": { "creative": 1, ... }
}
}
Track motivation patterns over time:
# Log encoding run
./scripts/log-event.sh encoding rewards_found=2 drive=0.65
# Log decay
./scripts/log-event.sh decay drive_before=0.6 drive_after=0.53
# Log reward
./scripts/log-event.sh reward type=accomplishment intensity=0.8
Events append to ~/.openclaw/workspace/memory/brain-events.jsonl:
{"ts":"2026-02-11T10:45:00Z","type":"vta","event":"encoding","rewards_found":2,"drive":0.65}
Use for analyzing motivation cycles — when does drive peak? What rewards work best?
| Part | Function | Status |
|---|---|---|
| hippocampus | Memory formation, decay, reinforcement | ✅ Live |
| amygdala-memory | Emotional processing | ✅ Live |
| basal-ganglia-memory | Habit formation | 🚧 Development |
| anterior-cingulate-memory | Conflict detection | 🚧 Development |
| insula-memory | Internal state awareness | 🚧 Development |
| vta-memory | Reward and motivation | ✅ Live |
The VTA produces dopamine — not the "pleasure chemical" but the "wanting chemical."
Neuroscience distinguishes:
You can want something you don't like (addiction) or like something you don't want (guilty pleasures).
This skill implements wanting — the drive that makes action happen. Without it, why would an AI do anything beyond what it's explicitly asked?
Built with ⭐ by the OpenClaw community