diff --git a/crates/zclaw-growth/src/retriever.rs b/crates/zclaw-growth/src/retriever.rs
index 7d1a110..814f48e 100644
--- a/crates/zclaw-growth/src/retriever.rs
+++ b/crates/zclaw-growth/src/retriever.rs
@@ -331,6 +331,36 @@ impl MemoryRetriever {
             self.config.experience_budget,
         ).await?;
 
+        // Fallback: if no results for this agent, search across ALL agents
+        // for identity-critical info (user name, workplace, preferences)
+        if preferences.is_empty() && knowledge.is_empty() && experience.is_empty() {
+            tracing::info!(
+                "[MemoryRetriever] No memories for agent {}, falling back to global scope",
+                agent_str
+            );
+            let global_prefs = self.retrieve_by_scope_any_agent(
+                MemoryType::Preference,
+                self.config.max_results_per_type,
+                self.config.preference_budget,
+            ).await?;
+            let global_knowledge = self.retrieve_by_scope_any_agent(
+                MemoryType::Knowledge,
+                self.config.max_results_per_type,
+                self.config.knowledge_budget,
+            ).await?;
+            let total: usize = global_prefs.iter()
+                .chain(global_knowledge.iter())
+                .map(|m| m.estimated_tokens())
+                .sum();
+
+            return Ok(RetrievalResult {
+                preferences: global_prefs,
+                knowledge: global_knowledge,
+                experience,
+                total_tokens: total,
+            });
+        }
+
         let total_tokens = preferences.iter()
             .chain(knowledge.iter())
             .chain(experience.iter())
@@ -352,6 +382,43 @@ impl MemoryRetriever {
         })
     }
 
+    /// Retrieve memories across ALL agents for a given type.
+    /// Used as fallback when agent-scoped retrieval returns nothing for identity recall.
+    async fn retrieve_by_scope_any_agent(
+        &self,
+        memory_type: MemoryType,
+        max_results: usize,
+        token_budget: usize,
+    ) -> Result<Vec<MemoryEntry>> {
+        // Match any agent by using only the type suffix as scope pattern
+        let scope_pattern = format!("/{}", memory_type);
+        let options = FindOptions {
+            scope: None, // No scope filter — search all agents
+            limit: Some(max_results * 3),
+            min_similarity: None,
+        };
+        let entries = self.viking.find("", options).await?;
+        // Filter to only matching memory type
+        let mut filtered: Vec<MemoryEntry> = entries
+            .into_iter()
+            .filter(|e| e.uri.contains(&scope_pattern) || e.memory_type == memory_type)
+            .collect();
+        filtered.sort_by(|a, b| {
+            b.importance.cmp(&a.importance)
+                .then_with(|| b.access_count.cmp(&a.access_count))
+        });
+        let mut result = Vec::new();
+        let mut used_tokens = 0;
+        for entry in filtered {
+            let tokens = entry.estimated_tokens();
+            if used_tokens + tokens > token_budget { break; }
+            used_tokens += tokens;
+            result.push(entry);
+            if result.len() >= max_results { break; }
+        }
+        Ok(result)
+    }
+
     /// Retrieve memories by scope only (no text search).
     /// Returns entries sorted by importance and recency, limited by budget.
     async fn retrieve_by_scope(