What is the 'Neural Link'?

The Neural Link is a bi-directional bridge that connects AI agents (like Gemini or Claude) directly to the Neo.mjs runtime. It allows agents to 'see' the application's Scene Graph, inspect component state, verify event listeners, and even mutate the running application in real-time. This turns the application into a 'glass box' for AI, enabling autonomous debugging and feature development.

Why is Neo.mjs called an 'Application Engine' instead of a framework?

Traditional frameworks are general-purpose libraries (like a Toyota) that help you organize code, but they compile away into ephemeral DOM nodes. Neo.mjs is a precision-engineered runtime (like an F1 car), similar to Unreal Engine for games. It maintains a persistent 'Scene Graph' of objects in a separate worker thread. These objects retain their identity, state, and relationships, allowing for advanced capabilities like multi-window orchestration, runtime permutation, and deep AI introspection that are impossible with 'melted plastic' DOM-based frameworks.

What is 'Context Engineering'?

Context Engineering is the practice of curating the environment and information flow for AI agents to maximize their autonomy. In Neo.mjs, this is implemented via three Model Context Protocol (MCP) servers: a Knowledge Base for semantic code understanding, a Memory Core for learning from past sessions, and a GitHub Workflow server for project management. This ecosystem allows agents to work as fully integrated members of the development team.

What is 'Object Permanence' in the context of Neo.mjs?

In Neo.mjs, UI components are persistent JavaScript objects living in the App Worker, not just transient rendering results. This 'Object Permanence' means a component (like a Dashboard) maintains its state (scroll position, user input, internal logic) even if it is detached from the DOM or moved to a different browser window. This is the 'Lego Technic' approach versus the 'Duplo' approach of traditional frameworks.

What is an 'Agent Operating System'?

Neo.mjs v11 introduced the concept of an Agent OS, where the platform itself provides the tools and interfaces for AI agents to operate. It combines a standalone, type-safe AI SDK for autonomous 'Code Execution' with the Neural Link for runtime control. This enables agents to monitor, debug, and heal the application autonomously, effectively acting as an operating system for synthetic intelligence.

How does Neo.mjs handle multi-window applications?

Neo.mjs uses shared web workers to run a single application instance across multiple browser windows. All windows share the same application state and data in real-time. Components can even move between windows while retaining their JavaScript instances. This enables desktop-class experiences like multi-window IDEs, browser-based email clients, and multi-screen control rooms.

What makes Neo.mjs different from React, Angular, or Vue?

Neo.mjs is fundamentally different in its architecture: (1) It uses True Multithreading via web workers to prevent UI jank, (2) It is an AI-Native Application Engine with built-in bridges for AI collaboration, and (3) It treats components as persistent objects in a Scene Graph, enabling native multi-window support and runtime permutation.

Frontmatter

id	9193
title	Implement Virtual Fields for Zero-Overhead Records
state	Closed
labels	enhancementaiperformancecore
assignees	tobiu
createdAt	Feb 17, 2026, 1:41 PM
updatedAt	Feb 17, 2026, 2:40 PM
githubUrl	https://github.com/neomjs/neo/issues/9193
author	tobiu
commentsCount	1
parentIssue	9194
subIssues	[]
subIssuesCompleted	0
subIssuesTotal	0
blockedBy	[]
blocking	[]
closedAt	Feb 17, 2026, 2:40 PM

Implement Virtual Fields for Zero-Overhead Records

Name: Neo.mjs Application Engine
Author: Neo.mjs

Closed v12.0.0 enhancementaiperformancecore

tobiu commented on Feb 17, 2026, 1:41 PM

Objective

Implement virtual: true support in Neo.data.RecordFactory and update DevIndex.model.Contributor to utilize it.

Motivation

The DevIndex.model.Contributor currently generates 60+ fields for yearly stats (e.g., y2020, cy2020). Despite claims of "Zero Overhead", these are currently stored as individual properties on every record instance, causing significant memory duplication.

Implementation Plan

Update Neo.data.RecordFactory:
- Support virtual: true in field configs.
- Getter Logic: Virtual fields will define a getter on the prototype that executes field.calculate(this[dataSymbol]).
- Storage Logic: assignDefaultValues and setRecordFields must skip virtual fields to ensure they are never written to the instance data.
Update DevIndex.model.Contributor:
- Update addYearFields to set virtual: true for all year-based fields (y..., cy..., py...).
- Ensure the calculate functions for these fields use efficient O(1) array lookups.

Outcome

True "Zero Overhead" for calculated year fields, reducing memory footprint for the 50k+ contributor dataset while maintaining O(1) access performance.

tobiu added the enhancement label on Feb 17, 2026, 1:41 PM

tobiu added the ai label on Feb 17, 2026, 1:41 PM

tobiu added the performance label on Feb 17, 2026, 1:41 PM

tobiu added the core label on Feb 17, 2026, 1:41 PM

tobiu cross-referenced by #9194 on Feb 17, 2026, 2:35 PM

tobiu added parent issue #9194 on Feb 17, 2026, 2:35 PM

tobiu referenced in commit b3c9b2c - "feat(core): Implement virtual fields and fix grid data mode switching (#9193, #9195)" on Feb 17, 2026, 2:37 PM

tobiu assigned to @tobiu on Feb 17, 2026, 2:38 PM

tobiu Feb 17, 2026, 2:40 PM

Input from Gemini 3 Pro:

✦ Implemented virtual: true support in RecordFactory and updated DevIndex.model.Contributor to use it. Commits pushed to feature/zero-overhead-records. Closing as the core feature implementation is complete. Verification and regression fixing continues in #9195 and the parent Epic #9194.

tobiu closed this issue on Feb 17, 2026, 2:40 PM

tobiu cross-referenced by #9199 on Feb 17, 2026, 3:33 PM