fix(agents): start a Claude worker on its composer when its terminal title is off (#33384)

Claude worker-start also becomes ready when Claude's empty composer (❯ + NBSP, only after Claude's DECSET 2031) draws, racing the title-based tui-idle wait, so worker-start no longer times out when Claude's terminal title is disabled. Fixes #22655.

src/main/runtime/__fixtures__/claude-2-1-310-timed-boot-no-title.meta.json

@@ -0,0 +1,10 @@
+{
+  "capturedAt": "2026-10-25T03:40:00.000Z",
+  "platform": "darwin",
+  "command": ["claude"],
+  "env": { "CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_TERMINAL_TITLE": "1", "TERM": "xterm-256color" },
+  "cols": 120,
+  "rows": 40,
+  "note": "Claude Code 2.1.310, macOS arm64, Python pty in a trusted folder, DA1 answered, no input sent. With its title disabled Claude writes no OSC title at all, so the composer's pointer + NBSP is its only ready signal (#22655). <name>.timing.json holds each PTY chunk as [ms since spawn, UTF-16 length].",
+  "exitCode": null
+}

src/main/runtime/__fixtures__/claude-2-1-310-timed-boot-no-title.timing.json

@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"chunks": [[232, 13], [298, 6], [298, 24], [316, 622], [368, 268], [368, 97], [405, 414]], "recordedUntilMs": 6000}

src/main/runtime/__fixtures__/claude-2-1-310-timed-boot-no-title.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,13 @@
+78[?25h[?25l[?2004h[?2031h[?1004h ▐▛███▛█ClaudeCodev2.1.310␍
+▝▜██████▀Opus5.5(1Mcontext)·APIUsageBilling␍
+ ▝▝▝▝/private/tmp/agint-repo␍
+␍
+␍
+────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────␍
+❯ Try"fixlinterrors"␍
+────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────␍
+⏵⏵bypasspermissionson (shift+tabtocycle)·←foragents◐medium·/effort␍
+[?25h]11;?[?25l␍4 agents  ␍
+[?25h[>0q[?u[?25l␍  Opus 5.5 1M  󰉋 agint-repo   - · - tokens              ␍
+⏵⏵bypasspermissionson (shift+tabtocycle)·←4agents␍
+[?25h

src/main/runtime/claude-worker-start-readiness.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,100 @@
+import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from 'vitest'
+import { createDraftPasteReadyScanner } from '../../shared/draft-paste-ready-scanner'
+import { createTranscriptPane, TRANSCRIPT_PANE_PTY_ID } from './agent-transcript-pane-test-harness'
+import { readRuntimeFixture, readTimedRuntimeFixture } from './agent-transcript-replay-test-harness'
+import { waitForWorkerStartComposer } from './launched-agent-composer-readiness'
+import { RuntimeMachineName } from './runtime-machine-name'
+
+vi.mock('electron', () => ({
+  BrowserWindow: { fromId: vi.fn(() => null) },
+  webContents: { fromId: vi.fn(() => null) },
+  ipcMain: { on: vi.fn(), removeListener: vi.fn() },
+  app: { getPath: vi.fn(() => '/tmp') }
+}))
+
+const NO_TITLE_BOOT = 'claude-2-1-310-timed-boot-no-title'
+
+describe('a Claude worker start with its terminal title turned off', () => {
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    vi.spyOn(RuntimeMachineName.prototype, 'start').mockImplementation(() => {})
+  })
+  afterEach(() => {
+    vi.useRealTimers()
+    vi.restoreAllMocks()
+  })
+
+  it('is ready on its composer, which is the only signal it draws', async () => {
+    const { chunks, times } = readTimedRuntimeFixture(NO_TITLE_BOOT)
+    // Presence precondition: no OSC title, so tui-idle alone never settles (#22655).
+    expect(chunks.join('')).not.toContain('\x1b]0;')
+    const composerAt = times[chunks.findIndex((chunk) => chunk.includes('❯ '))]
+    const { runtime, handle } = await createTranscriptPane({
+      paneTitle: 'Terminal',
+      foregroundProcess: 'claude',
+      launchAgent: 'claude',
+      size: { cols: 120, rows: 40 },
+      data: ''
+    })
+    vi.useFakeTimers()
+    const startedAt = Date.now()
+    let settledAt: number | null = null
+    void waitForWorkerStartComposer(runtime, handle, 'claude', 20_000).then(
+      (wait) => {
+        settledAt = wait.satisfied ? Date.now() - startedAt : null
+      },
+      () => {}
+    )
+    for (const [index, chunk] of chunks.entries()) {
+      await vi.advanceTimersByTimeAsync(Math.max(0, startedAt + times[index] - Date.now()))
+      runtime.onPtyData(TRANSCRIPT_PANE_PTY_ID, chunk, Date.now())
+    }
+    await vi.advanceTimersByTimeAsync(5_000)
+    expect(settledAt).not.toBeNull()
+    expect(settledAt).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(composerAt)
+    expect(settledAt).toBeLessThan(composerAt + 1_000)
+  })
+})
+
+describe('the Claude composer marker', () => {
+  const firesOn = (fixture: string): boolean => {
+    const scanner = createDraftPasteReadyScanner('claude-composer-prompt')
+    return scanner.observe(readRuntimeFixture(fixture)).ready
+  }
+
+  it('does not fire on the workspace-trust menu, which draws the same pointer', () => {
+    expect(readRuntimeFixture('claude-dialog-trust-workspace')).toContain('❯')
+    expect(firesOn('claude-dialog-trust-workspace')).toBe(false)
+  })
+
+  it('fires once that menu is answered and the composer mounts', () => {
+    expect(firesOn('claude-dialog-trust-workspace-answered')).toBe(true)
+  })
+
+  // A powerlevel10k/starship prompt draws the same `❯` + NBSP after the shell's own DECSET 2004.
+  const SHELL_PROMPT = '\x1b[?2004h~/repo \x1b[32m❯ \x1b[0m'
+
+  it('does not fire on a shell prompt that draws the same glyph', () => {
+    // Presence precondition: the shell turns bracketed paste on just as Claude does.
+    expect(readRuntimeFixture('zsh-prompt-runs-command')).toContain('\x1b[?2004h')
+    const scanner = createDraftPasteReadyScanner('claude-composer-prompt')
+    expect(scanner.observe(readRuntimeFixture('zsh-prompt-runs-command')).ready).toBe(false)
+    expect(scanner.observe(SHELL_PROMPT).ready).toBe(false)
+  })
+
+  it('does not fire on a fish prompt cycle, which holds palette reports while idle', () => {
+    const scanner = createDraftPasteReadyScanner('claude-composer-prompt')
+    // fish 4+: 2031/2004 on at its prompt, off when it runs the launch line.
+    expect(scanner.observe('\x1b[?2031h\x1b[?2004h~/repo> claude\r\n').ready).toBe(false)
+    expect(scanner.observe('\x1b[?2004l\x1b[?2031l').ready).toBe(false)
+    expect(scanner.observe(SHELL_PROMPT).ready).toBe(false)
+  })
+
+  it('does not fire on the shell prompt drawn after Claude exits', () => {
+    const scanner = createDraftPasteReadyScanner('claude-composer-prompt')
+    const boot = readRuntimeFixture('claude-dialog-trust-workspace')
+    expect(scanner.observe(boot).ready).toBe(false)
+    // Claude drops its modes on exit, as the answered-trust capture shows mid-boot.
+    expect(scanner.observe('\x1b[?1004l\x1b[?2031l\x1b[?2004l\r\n').ready).toBe(false)
+    expect(scanner.observe(SHELL_PROMPT).ready).toBe(false)
+  })
+})

src/main/runtime/launched-agent-composer-readiness.test.ts

@@ -131,8 +131,9 @@ describe('which lane a freshly launched worker waits on', () => {
 
 describe('which idle-lane worker starts also answer on their composer marker', () => {
   // Their only rest signal is their bare name, which a launch holds to quiet output; Grok's logo
-  // animates for ten seconds after its composer glyph. Gemini's title needs corroboration: absent.
-  it('is exactly the bare-name agents whose composer draws a marker', () => {
+  // animates for ten seconds after its composer glyph. Claude's `✳` title can be turned off.
+  // Gemini's title needs corroboration: absent.
+  it('is exactly the bare-name or title-optional agents whose composer draws a marker', () => {
     expect(
       Object.keys(EXPECTED_LANES)
         .filter(isTuiAgent)
@@ -142,7 +143,7 @@ describe('which idle-lane worker starts also answer on their composer marker', (
             workerStartReadsComposerMarker(agent)
         )
         .sort()
-    ).toEqual(['dsh', 'grok', 'mimo-code'])
+    ).toEqual(['claude', 'claude-agent-teams', 'dsh', 'grok', 'mimo-code'])
   })
 })
 

src/main/runtime/launched-agent-composer-readiness.ts

@@ -97,16 +97,17 @@ export async function waitForWorkerStartComposer(
 }
 
 /**
- * An agent whose only rest signal is its bare name, which a launch holds to quiet output, and whose
- * composer draws a marker: that marker answers first. Grok draws its glyph at 0.6 s, then animates
- * its logo for ten.
+ * An agent whose composer draws a marker, and whose only rest signal is its bare name (which a
+ * launch holds to quiet output) or a title the user can turn off: that marker answers first. Grok
+ * draws its glyph at 0.6 s, then animates its logo for ten; Claude without its title never settles.
  */
 export function workerStartReadsComposerMarker(agent: TuiAgent): boolean {
-  const signal = TUI_AGENT_CONFIG[agent].draftPasteReadySignal
+  const config = TUI_AGENT_CONFIG[agent]
+  const signal = config.draftPasteReadySignal
   return (
     signal !== undefined &&
     draftPasteReadySignalHasMarker(signal) &&
-    !nameOnlyIdleNeedsCorroboration(agent)
+    (config.workerStartReadsComposerMarker === true || !nameOnlyIdleNeedsCorroboration(agent))
   )
 }
 

src/main/runtime/launched-agent-shell-handoff-readiness.test.ts

@@ -98,10 +98,9 @@ describe('a launched agent’s ready signal, after the shell that ran it', () =>
     await vi.advanceTimersByTimeAsync(3_000)
     expect(pane.settled).not.toHaveBeenCalled()
 
+    // Claude's composer marker answers once it draws, ahead of the quiet window.
     pane.emit(readFixture('claude-dialog-trust-workspace-answered'))
-    await vi.advanceTimersByTimeAsync(QUIET_WINDOW_MS - 100)
-    expect(pane.settled).not.toHaveBeenCalled()
-    await vi.advanceTimersByTimeAsync(200)
+    await vi.advanceTimersByTimeAsync(100)
     expect(pane.settled).toHaveBeenCalledWith('pty-1')
   })
 

src/shared/draft-paste-ready-scanner.ts

@@ -27,6 +27,14 @@ const GROK_COMPOSER_PROMPT = '❯'
 // means the composer specifically. Anchored on the alternate-screen switch for the same
 // reason as grok: a powerline shell prompt can also draw `╭`.
 const ZCODE_COMPOSER_BOX_CORNER = '╭'
+// Why: Claude Code's prompt-input mode indicator is `figures.pointer` + NBSP; its startup menus
+// (trust, theme) draw the same pointer followed by a cursor move, so the NBSP means the composer.
+const CLAUDE_COMPOSER_PROMPT = '❯\u00a0'
+// Why: Claude 2.1.310 turns on palette-change reports with bracketed paste and drops both on exit.
+// zsh/bash never send it, so their p10k/starship `❯` prompt cannot arm the marker; fish 4+ holds it
+// only while idle at its prompt, where a `❯` + NBSP glyph is unlikely.
+const DECSET_COLOR_PALETTE_UPDATES = '\x1b[?2031h'
+const DECRST_COLOR_PALETTE_UPDATES = '\x1b[?2031l'
 const DECSET_ALT_SCREEN = '\x1b[?1049h'
 const DECRST_ALT_SCREEN = '\x1b[?1049l'
 
@@ -88,6 +96,14 @@ const DRAFT_PASTE_READY_SIGNALS: Record<SingleSignal, DraftPasteReadySignalSpec>
     marker: GROK_COMPOSER_PROMPT,
     quietAnchor: DECSET_BRACKETED_PASTE
   },
+  // Why: Claude renders inline (no alt screen); the quiet window keeps the old delivery where the
+  // glyph differs (Windows `figures` fallback).
+  'claude-composer-prompt': {
+    markerAnchor: DECSET_COLOR_PALETTE_UPDATES,
+    markerAnchorEnd: DECRST_COLOR_PALETTE_UPDATES,
+    marker: CLAUDE_COMPOSER_PROMPT,
+    quietAnchor: DECSET_BRACKETED_PASTE
+  },
   'zcode-composer-prompt': {
     markerAnchor: DECSET_ALT_SCREEN,
     markerAnchorEnd: DECRST_ALT_SCREEN,

src/shared/tui-agent-config-types.ts

@@ -13,6 +13,7 @@ export type DraftPasteMarkerSignal =
   | 'render-cursor-after-bracketed-paste'
   | 'grok-composer-prompt'
   | 'dsh-composer-prompt'
+  | 'claude-composer-prompt'
   | 'zcode-composer-prompt'
 
 /** Submit signals may also ask for a grace (`readyAfterMs`); only the paste waiters honour it. */
@@ -47,6 +48,8 @@ export type TuiAgentConfig = {
   draftPasteReadySignal?: DraftPasteMarkerSignal
   /** Signal before a paste that Enter follows, for agents that show their composer before it can submit; defaults to `draftPasteReadySignal`. */
   submitPasteReadySignal?: DraftPasteReadySignal
+  /** A worker start also answers on the composer marker, for an agent whose rest title the user can turn off. */
+  workerStartReadsComposerMarker?: true
   /** Hard deadline for the agent's composer readiness signal. */
   draftPasteReadyTimeoutMs?: number
   /** Captured boots proving the composer marker used for fresh worker dispatch (the submit signal where set). */

src/shared/tui-agent-config.ts

@@ -25,7 +25,10 @@ const TUI_AGENT_CONFIG_SOURCE: Record<TuiAgent, TuiAgentConfigSource> = {
     pasteNeedsTypedRequest: true,
     // Why: `claude --prefill <text>` seeds the input without submitting, avoiding the paste-after-ready race (PR https://github.com/stablyai/orca/pull/926).
     draftPromptFlag: '--prefill',
-    preflightTrust: 'claude'
+    preflightTrust: 'claude',
+    // Why: CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_TERMINAL_TITLE drops the `✳` title tui-idle waits on (#22655).
+    draftPasteReadySignal: 'claude-composer-prompt',
+    workerStartReadsComposerMarker: true
   },
   'claude-agent-teams': {
     // Why: an Orca-provided launch mode, not a separate binary; detection follows the Orca CLI.
@@ -43,7 +46,9 @@ const TUI_AGENT_CONFIG_SOURCE: Record<TuiAgent, TuiAgentConfigSource> = {
     expectedProcess: 'claude',
     promptInjectionMode: 'stdin-after-start',
     pasteNeedsTypedRequest: true,
-    preflightTrust: 'claude'
+    preflightTrust: 'claude',
+    draftPasteReadySignal: 'claude-composer-prompt',
+    workerStartReadsComposerMarker: true
   },
   codebuddy: {
     detectCmd: 'codebuddy',