Technology Stack
This document centralizes all technology decisions for the AICO system. It provides a comprehensive overview of the technologies selected for each layer of the architecture.
Interface Layer
| Technology |
Purpose |
Justification |
| Flutter |
Cross-platform UI framework |
Single codebase for desktop/mobile, high performance, rich widget library |
| WebView |
3D avatar rendering |
Embeds web-based avatar technologies within Flutter |
| Three.js |
3D graphics library |
Industry standard for web-based 3D rendering |
| Ready Player Me |
Avatar creation |
Customizable avatars with built-in animation support |
| TalkingHead.js |
Lip-sync and expressions |
Real-time lip-sync and facial expression capabilities |
| JavaScript Bridge |
Flutter-WebView communication |
Bidirectional communication between Flutter and web avatar |
AI/ML Layer
| Technology |
Purpose |
Justification |
| Llama.cpp |
Local LLM inference |
Efficient quantized models, cross-platform support |
| Ollama |
LLM management |
Simplified model management and API |
| Mistral |
Base LLM architecture |
Strong performance in quantized form |
| LangChain/LangGraph |
Agent orchestration |
Graph-based workflow for complex agent behaviors |
| CrewAI/Autogen |
Multi-agent coordination |
Enables collaborative agent behaviors |
| RND |
Curiosity algorithm |
Random Network Distillation for intrinsic motivation |
| ICM |
Curiosity algorithm |
Intrinsic Curiosity Module for prediction-based rewards |
| HER |
Goal-conditioned learning |
Hindsight Experience Replay for learning from failures |
| GCPO |
Goal-conditioned learning |
Goal-Conditioned Policy Optimization for on-policy learning |
| MCTS |
Planning system |
Monte Carlo Tree Search for decision making |
| Behavior Trees |
Action modeling |
Goal-oriented behavior modeling and execution |
| AppraisalCloudPCT |
Emotion simulation |
Component Process Model for sophisticated emotion generation |
| ONNX Runtime |
Model inference |
Cross-platform inference optimization |
| OpenVINO |
Edge inference |
Intel optimization for edge devices |
| Whisper.cpp |
Speech-to-text |
Efficient local speech recognition |
| Coqui/Piper |
Text-to-speech |
Local high-quality voice synthesis |
Data & Storage Layer
AICO employs a specialized multi-database architecture optimized for local-first operation. See Data Layer for comprehensive details.
| Technology |
Purpose |
Justification |
| libSQL |
Primary storage |
Modern SQLite fork with encryption, improved concurrency, and vector extensions |
| DuckDB |
Analytical engine |
Columnar storage for efficient OLAP workloads and complex analytics |
| ChromaDB |
Vector database |
Embedded vector storage with document metadata and similarity search |
| LMDB |
Key-value store (optional) |
High-performance, memory-mapped key-value store for session data |
| Sentence Transformers |
Embedding generation |
Efficient text embedding models for semantic understanding |
| P2P Sync Protocol |
Federated device sync |
Custom protocol for secure device-to-device synchronization |
Communication Layer
| Technology |
Purpose |
Justification |
| ZeroMQ |
Internal message bus |
Lightweight, embedded pub/sub messaging for all core modules |
| FastAPI |
API framework |
Modern, fast Python web framework powering the service gateway |
| REST API |
UI/adapter protocol |
Standard HTTP API for commands, queries, and configuration |
| WebSocket API |
UI/adapter protocol |
Real-time, bidirectional communication for events and notifications |
| Protocol Buffers |
Message format |
High-performance binary serialization with strong typing and cross-platform support |
| protoc |
Code generation |
Automatic code generation for multiple languages (Python, Dart) |
Security & Privacy Layer
| Technology |
Purpose |
Justification |
| SQLCipher/libSQL |
Database-level encryption |
Native database encryption with AES-256-GCM for all structured data |
| AES-256-GCM |
Authenticated encryption |
Industry standard encryption with integrity verification |
| Argon2id |
Key derivation |
Industry-leading memory-hard KDF, winner of Password Hashing Competition |
| Python-Cryptography |
Cryptographic library |
Comprehensive, well-maintained cryptographic primitives with Argon2id support |
| Platform Key Storage |
Secure key management |
OS-native secure storage (Keychain, Credential Manager, Secret Service) |
| Homomorphic Encryption |
Privacy-preserving computation |
Compute on encrypted data |
| Differential Privacy |
Statistical privacy |
Privacy-preserving analytics |
| Zero-Knowledge Proofs |
Authentication |
Verify without revealing data |
| Secure Multi-party Computation |
Collaborative learning |
Learn without sharing raw data |
Deployment & Distribution Layer
| Technology |
Purpose |
Justification |
| Docker/Podman |
Containerization |
Isolated, reproducible environments |
| Alpine Linux |
Base images |
Minimal footprint for containers |
| Electron |
Desktop packaging |
Cross-platform desktop application packaging |
| Delta Updates |
Efficient updates |
Bandwidth-efficient update mechanism |
| Cryptographic Signatures |
Update verification |
Ensures update authenticity |
Development & Testing Layer
| Technology |
Purpose |
Justification |
| Python |
Core development |
Primary language for AI components |
| Dart/Flutter |
UI development |
Cross-platform UI framework |
| JavaScript/TypeScript |
Avatar development |
Web technologies for avatar system |
| Pytest |
Testing framework |
Comprehensive Python testing |
| GitHub Actions |
CI/CD |
Automated testing and deployment |
| MkDocs |
Documentation |
Markdown-based documentation system |
| Material for MkDocs |
Documentation theme |
Clean, responsive documentation UI |
Command-Line Interface (CLI)
| Technology |
Purpose |
Justification |
| Typer |
CLI framework |
Modern, maintainable, autocompleting command trees |
| Rich |
Output formatting |
Beautiful, readable, Unicode-rich CLI output |
| PyInstaller |
Packaging |
Creates single-file, dependency-free, cross-platform executables |
| Platformdirs |
Config management |
Cross-platform config/cache path handling |
| ZeroMQ (pyzmq) |
Message bus integration |
Direct backend communication for admin/automation |
| Requests/httpx |
API communication |
Fast, reliable backend service integration |
- CLI is cross-platform (Windows, macOS, Linux) and offers a top-tier, professional UX.
- Executable is universal, not dependent on Python/.venv on the target system.
- CLI reuses backend modules for DRY and maintainable architecture.
Monitoring & Instrumentation Layer
| Technology |
Purpose |
Justification |
| OpenTelemetry |
Telemetry standard |
Unified API for metrics, logs, and traces with minimal overhead |
| Structlog |
Structured logging |
Python library for consistent, structured log output |
| libSQL |
Log & telemetry storage |
Reuses existing database with time-series optimized tables |
| Pydantic |
Schema validation |
Efficient validation of telemetry and audit records |
| Grafana |
Visualization (dev only) |
Optional local dashboard for development and debugging |
| Loki |
Log aggregation (dev only) |
Lightweight log aggregation for development environments |
Module-Specific Technologies
Personality Simulation
| Technology |
Purpose |
Justification |
| Personality System |
Personality architecture |
Big Five and HEXACO trait-based personality modeling |
| Big Five & HEXACO |
Trait models |
Comprehensive personality representation |
Emotion Simulation
| Technology |
Purpose |
Justification |
| AppraisalCloudPCT |
Emotion architecture |
Advanced Component Process Model variant |
| 4-Stage Appraisal |
Emotion generation |
Cognitive appraisal process (Relevance → Implication → Coping → Normative) |
Autonomous Agency
| Technology |
Purpose |
Justification |
| MCTS |
Decision making |
Monte Carlo Tree Search for planning |
| Behavior Trees |
Action execution |
Structured behavior representation |
| RND/ICM |
Curiosity algorithms |
Intrinsic motivation for exploration |
| HER/GCPO |
Goal learning |
Goal-conditioned reinforcement learning |
Avatar System
| Technology |
Purpose |
Justification |
| Three.js |
3D rendering |
Web-based 3D graphics |
| Ready Player Me |
Avatar models |
Customizable 3D avatars |
| TalkingHead.js |
Facial animation |
Real-time lip-sync and expressions |
| WebView |
Integration |
Embedding web technologies in Flutter |