diff --git a/frontend/src/lib/components/home/HomeAIChat.svelte b/frontend/src/lib/components/home/HomeAIChat.svelte
index d69cbeb776..e7e45d0aa4 100644
--- a/frontend/src/lib/components/home/HomeAIChat.svelte
+++ b/frontend/src/lib/components/home/HomeAIChat.svelte
@@ -82,10 +82,11 @@
 			inputProps={{ rows: 4, placeholder, onkeydown: onKeydown }}
 		/>
 		<Button
-			endIcon={{ icon: ArrowRight }}
+			endIcon={starting ? {} : { icon: ArrowRight }}
 			wrapperClasses="absolute right-2 bottom-3.5"
 			variant={value.trim() ? 'accent' : 'default'}
 			iconOnly
+			loading={starting}
 			disabled={!value.trim() || starting}
 			onclick={start}
 		></Button>
diff --git a/frontend/src/lib/components/sessions/SessionWrapper.svelte b/frontend/src/lib/components/sessions/SessionWrapper.svelte
index f5fa09c6d0..cfb8640d20 100644
--- a/frontend/src/lib/components/sessions/SessionWrapper.svelte
+++ b/frontend/src/lib/components/sessions/SessionWrapper.svelte
@@ -40,7 +40,8 @@
 		selectSession,
 		sessionState,
 		setSessionArchived,
-		syncWorkspaceTo
+		syncWorkspaceTo,
+		takeAutoSendPrompt
 	} from './sessionState.svelte'
 	import { getOrCreateRuntime, removeSession } from './sessionRuntime.svelte'
 	import { goto } from '$lib/navigation'
@@ -73,6 +74,12 @@
 	// transient draft slot (script-init: AIChatInput reads it once at mount).
 	const restoredDraftPrompt = peekTransientDraftPrompt(sessionId)
 
+	// One-shot: a prompt this session was created to auto-send (home composer).
+	// Read once at init and cleared; the effect below fires it when the chat is
+	// ready. Sent through the manager, so the composer stays empty (no prefill) —
+	// which is why initialInstructions is suppressed when this is set.
+	const autoSendPrompt = takeAutoSendPrompt(sessionId)
+
 	// The workspace the session acts on, shown in the header "Acting on" strip via the shared
 	// WorkspaceScopeTrigger chip. `targetId` is also the workspace the chip's ellipsis menu targets.
 	const acting = $derived.by(() => {
@@ -239,6 +246,21 @@
 		setTimeout(() => chat.focusInput(), 0)
 	})
 
+	// Auto-send the prompt this session was created with, once the chat is ready
+	// (same readiness gate as the focus effect: mounted + copilot loaded). Latched
+	// so it fires exactly once; guarded on an empty conversation so it can never
+	// interleave with a message the user already sent.
+	let autoSent = false
+	$effect(() => {
+		if (!autoSendPrompt || autoSent) return
+		if (sessionState.currentSessionId !== sessionId) return
+		if (!aiChat || !$copilotInfo.enabled) return
+		if (hasFirstUserMessage) return
+		autoSent = true
+		const chat = aiChat
+		setTimeout(() => chat.sendRequest({ instructions: autoSendPrompt }), 0)
+	})
+
 	// True when the session committed to a workspace that's no longer in
 	// the user's list (deleted / archived / access revoked). The chat is
 	// disabled and SessionChangesBar shows a move/discard banner.
@@ -414,7 +436,7 @@
 						hideHeader
 						hideModeSelector
 						wideLayout
-						initialInstructions={restoredDraftPrompt}
+						initialInstructions={autoSendPrompt ? undefined : restoredDraftPrompt}
 						onDraftChange={(text) => queueTransientDraftPrompt(sessionId, text)}
 						forceDisabled={isUnavailable || !!session.archived}
 						forceDisabledMessage={isUnavailable
diff --git a/frontend/src/lib/components/sessions/sessionState.svelte.ts b/frontend/src/lib/components/sessions/sessionState.svelte.ts
index 8382c201ce..7476136652 100644
--- a/frontend/src/lib/components/sessions/sessionState.svelte.ts
+++ b/frontend/src/lib/components/sessions/sessionState.svelte.ts
@@ -341,6 +341,24 @@ export function peekTransientDraftPrompt(sessionId: string): string | undefined
 	return transientPrompt?.sessionId === sessionId ? transientPrompt.text : undefined
 }
 
+// One-shot intent to auto-send a prompt as soon as a freshly-created session's
+// chat is ready (set by startSessionWithPrompt for the home composer). Held in
+// memory only — deliberately NOT persisted, so a reload never re-fires a send
+// the user didn't just trigger. Consumed once via takeAutoSendPrompt.
+let autoSendPrompt: { sessionId: string; text: string } | undefined
+export function queueAutoSendPrompt(sessionId: string, text: string): void {
+	autoSendPrompt = { sessionId, text }
+}
+
+// Take (read-and-clear) the auto-send prompt for a session. One-shot: the second
+// caller — a re-mount, or a different session — gets undefined.
+export function takeAutoSendPrompt(sessionId: string): string | undefined {
+	if (autoSendPrompt?.sessionId !== sessionId) return undefined
+	const text = autoSendPrompt.text
+	autoSendPrompt = undefined
+	return text
+}
+
 // Write-behind a single session record. Transient (unsent) sessions are not
 // written to IndexedDB — they live in memory plus a single localStorage draft
 // slot until materializeTransient() promotes them at first send.
diff --git a/frontend/src/lib/components/sessions/sessionSwitch.svelte.ts b/frontend/src/lib/components/sessions/sessionSwitch.svelte.ts
index c05c7f7175..3915e54a67 100644
--- a/frontend/src/lib/components/sessions/sessionSwitch.svelte.ts
+++ b/frontend/src/lib/components/sessions/sessionSwitch.svelte.ts
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@ import { goto } from '$lib/navigation'
 import { workspaceStore } from '$lib/stores'
 import {
 	createSession,
-	queueTransientDraftPrompt,
+	queueAutoSendPrompt,
 	selectSession,
 	sessionInCurrentFamily,
 	sessionState,
@@ -50,15 +50,15 @@ export async function enterSessionMode(opts?: { replace?: boolean }): Promise<vo
 	})
 }
 
-// Start a fresh AI session seeded with a prompt composed elsewhere (e.g. the
-// home page composer), then route into session mode. The prompt is queued onto
-// the transient draft so the session's chat input restores it on mount — the
-// same path a reload uses — leaving it composed-but-unsent for the user to
-// review and send. No-op routing is fine for a blank prompt; callers guard.
+// Start a fresh AI session from a prompt composed elsewhere (e.g. the home page
+// composer) and auto-send it, then route into session mode. The prompt is queued
+// as a one-shot auto-send intent that SessionWrapper fires once the session's
+// chat is ready (mounted + copilot loaded). No-op routing is fine for a blank
+// prompt; callers guard.
 export async function startSessionWithPrompt(prompt: string): Promise<void> {
 	const session = createSession()
 	const text = prompt.trim()
-	if (text) queueTransientDraftPrompt(session.id, text)
+	if (text) queueAutoSendPrompt(session.id, text)
 	selectSession(session.id)
 	await goto(`/sessions?session_name=${encodeURIComponent(session.name)}`)
 }