diff --git a/frontend/src/lib/components/copilot/chat/LinkRenderer.svelte b/frontend/src/lib/components/copilot/chat/LinkRenderer.svelte
index 491c2e11d5..1e885fa304 100644
--- a/frontend/src/lib/components/copilot/chat/LinkRenderer.svelte
+++ b/frontend/src/lib/components/copilot/chat/LinkRenderer.svelte
@@ -19,6 +19,7 @@
 		'data-wm-kind'?: WindmillItemKind
 		'data-wm-path'?: string
 		'data-wm-target-kind'?: WorkspaceItemTargetKind
+		'data-wm-raw-app'?: string
 		title?: string
 	}
 	let {
@@ -27,15 +28,25 @@
 		'data-wm-kind': wmKind,
 		'data-wm-path': wmPath,
 		'data-wm-target-kind': wmTargetKind,
+		'data-wm-raw-app': wmRawApp,
 		title
 	}: Props = $props()
 
 	// The drawers ride with the docked chat, so a surface can render this pill with nothing
 	// able to open one.
-	const drawerAction = $derived.by(() => {
-		const action = workspaceItemAction(wmKind, wmPath, wmTargetKind)
+	const available = $derived.by(() => {
+		const action = workspaceItemAction(wmKind, wmPath, wmTargetKind, wmRawApp === 'true')
 		return action && hasToolDisplayActionHandler(action.type) ? action : undefined
 	})
+	// Only the preview panel takes the plain click. A drawer keeps its own button beside an
+	// outbound link: the docked chat mounts drawer handlers on nearly every page, so claiming
+	// that click would redirect these pills far outside the sessions page.
+	const previewAction = $derived(available?.type === 'open_item_preview' ? available : undefined)
+	const drawerAction = $derived(available?.type === 'open_created_resource' ? available : undefined)
+
+	const hint = $derived(
+		previewAction ? `Open ${wmPath} in the preview panel` : `Open ${wmPath} in a new tab`
+	)
 
 	async function openDrawer(event?: Event) {
 		event?.preventDefault()
@@ -44,6 +55,14 @@
 			await runToolDisplayAction(drawerAction)
 		}
 	}
+
+	async function onclick(event: MouseEvent) {
+		// Modifier clicks are the only remaining route to the tab once the plain click is
+		// spoken for, so leave them to the browser.
+		if (!previewAction || event.metaKey || event.ctrlKey || event.shiftKey || event.altKey) return
+		event.preventDefault()
+		await runToolDisplayAction(previewAction)
+	}
 </script>
 
 {#if href}
@@ -51,20 +70,29 @@
 		<span class="group inline-flex items-baseline">
 			<a
 				{href}
-				target="_blank"
-				rel="noopener noreferrer"
-				title={title || wmPath || href}
+				target={previewAction ? undefined : '_blank'}
+				rel={previewAction ? undefined : 'noopener noreferrer'}
+				title={title || hint}
+				{onclick}
 				class="inline-flex items-baseline gap-1 px-1 rounded hover:bg-surface-hover text-primary no-underline font-mono text-[0.9em] align-baseline"
 			>
-				<span class="inline-flex self-center shrink-0">
-					<RowIcon kind={wmKind} size={12} />
+				<!-- Kind icon and action icon share one fixed 12px box, so the pill is the same
+				     width at rest and on hover and the surrounding sentence never reflows. -->
+				<span class="relative inline-flex self-center shrink-0 w-3 h-3">
+					<span class="absolute inset-0 transition-opacity group-hover:opacity-0">
+						<RowIcon kind={wmKind} size={12} />
+					</span>
+					<span
+						class="absolute inset-0 flex items-center justify-center text-tertiary opacity-0 transition-opacity group-hover:opacity-100"
+					>
+						{#if previewAction}
+							<PanelRight size={12} />
+						{:else}
+							<ExternalLink size={11} />
+						{/if}
+					</span>
 				</span>
 				{@render children?.()}
-				<span
-					class="inline-flex self-center shrink-0 text-tertiary opacity-0 group-hover:opacity-100 transition-opacity"
-				>
-					<ExternalLink size={10} />
-				</span>
 			</a>
 			{#if drawerAction}
 				<Button
diff --git a/frontend/src/lib/components/copilot/chat/itemPreview.ts b/frontend/src/lib/components/copilot/chat/itemPreview.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..ef9f14ddc9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/frontend/src/lib/components/copilot/chat/itemPreview.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,30 @@
+// The session preview panel's action, kept out of `shared.ts` so the chat message render
+// path can import it at runtime without pulling in that module's graph and risking the
+// chunk cycles docs/frontend-import-cycles.md exists to prevent. Keep this file import-free.
+
+/** Item kinds a session preview can host: the three live editors, which are also the
+ * subset a write tool can land. */
+export type PreviewCardKind = 'script' | 'flow' | 'raw_app'
+
+// Dispatched by a preview card on a tool call that created or updated a workspace item,
+// and by a path link in a chat message. Opens the item's live editor in the session side
+// panel — or focuses the tab if it is already open. The handler is registered by the
+// sessions page (the only surface with a preview panel).
+export type OpenItemPreviewAction = {
+	id: string
+	type: 'open_item_preview'
+	label: string
+	previewKind: PreviewCardKind
+	path: string
+}
+
+/** Build the action a preview card or path link dispatches from its (kind, path). */
+export function openItemPreviewAction(kind: PreviewCardKind, path: string): OpenItemPreviewAction {
+	return {
+		id: `open-item-preview:${kind}:${path}`,
+		type: 'open_item_preview',
+		label: `Open ${kind === 'raw_app' ? 'app' : kind} preview`,
+		previewKind: kind,
+		path
+	}
+}
diff --git a/frontend/src/lib/components/copilot/chat/shared.ts b/frontend/src/lib/components/copilot/chat/shared.ts
index b485be51b3..6d6794b56c 100644
--- a/frontend/src/lib/components/copilot/chat/shared.ts
+++ b/frontend/src/lib/components/copilot/chat/shared.ts
@@ -7,6 +7,12 @@ import type { UserDraftItemKind } from '$lib/gen'
 // The gate's two refusals, from a module that holds prose and one size limit: under the
 // shallow-import rule below, the rest of plan mode is not reachable from here.
 import { PLAN_MODE_MESSAGES } from './planModeMessages'
+// Import-free leaf, so it satisfies the shallow-import rule below.
+import {
+	openItemPreviewAction,
+	type OpenItemPreviewAction,
+	type PreviewCardKind
+} from './itemPreview'
 
 // The tool modules that import this one (workspaceTools, flow/core, global/core, ...)
 // call createToolDef and read SPECIAL_MODULE_IDS at *module scope*, so if a chunk cycle
@@ -526,35 +532,11 @@ export type NavigateAction = {
 	page: string
 }
 
-/** Kinds of previewable item a write tool can land — the subset of draft item
- * kinds a session preview can host. */
-export type PreviewCardKind = 'script' | 'flow' | 'raw_app'
-
-// A discrete card shown on a tool call that created or updated a workspace item.
-// Clicking it opens the item's live preview in the session side panel — or focuses
-// the tab if it is already open. The handler is registered by the sessions page
-// (the only surface with a preview panel).
-export type OpenItemPreviewAction = {
-	id: string
-	type: 'open_item_preview'
-	label: string
-	previewKind: PreviewCardKind
-	path: string
-}
+// Re-exported: most consumers reach these through this module.
+export { openItemPreviewAction, type PreviewCardKind, type OpenItemPreviewAction }
 
 export type ToolDisplayAction = CreatedResourceAction | NavigateAction | OpenItemPreviewAction
 
-/** Build the action a preview card dispatches from its (kind, path). */
-export function openItemPreviewAction(kind: PreviewCardKind, path: string): OpenItemPreviewAction {
-	return {
-		id: `open-item-preview:${kind}:${path}`,
-		type: 'open_item_preview',
-		label: `Open ${kind === 'raw_app' ? 'app' : kind} preview`,
-		previewKind: kind,
-		path
-	}
-}
-
 export type UserQuestionDisplay = {
 	question: string
 	choices: string[]
diff --git a/frontend/src/lib/components/copilot/chat/workspaceItems.svelte.ts b/frontend/src/lib/components/copilot/chat/workspaceItems.svelte.ts
index b1a6f695d3..1e02573a32 100644
--- a/frontend/src/lib/components/copilot/chat/workspaceItems.svelte.ts
+++ b/frontend/src/lib/components/copilot/chat/workspaceItems.svelte.ts
@@ -22,6 +22,8 @@ import { findAndReplace } from 'mdast-util-find-and-replace'
 import { visit } from 'unist-util-visit'
 import type { Root, InlineCode, Link } from 'mdast'
 import type { CreatedResourceAction, ToolDisplayAction } from './shared'
+// Leaf module, deliberately not './shared' — see the header of itemPreview.ts.
+import { openItemPreviewAction } from './itemPreview'
 
 export type WindmillItemKind =
 	| 'script'
@@ -46,6 +48,9 @@ export interface WorkspaceItemEntry {
 	kind: WindmillItemKind
 	path: string
 	targetKind?: WorkspaceItemTargetKind
+	/** Apps only. Both kinds share the `app` kind and the same `/apps/get/<path>` route,
+	 * so this flag is all that tells them apart downstream. */
+	rawApp?: boolean
 }
 
 export type WorkspaceItemTargetKind = 'script' | 'flow'
@@ -96,6 +101,7 @@ export function itemHref(entry: WorkspaceItemEntry, workspace?: string): string
 type WorkspaceItemListResult = Array<{
 	path: string
 	is_flow?: boolean | null
+	raw_app?: boolean | null
 }>
 
 const workspaceItemLoaders: Array<{
@@ -165,7 +171,8 @@ class WorkspaceItemRegistry {
 						kind,
 						path: it.path,
 						targetKind:
-							typeof it.is_flow === 'boolean' ? (it.is_flow ? 'flow' : 'script') : undefined
+							typeof it.is_flow === 'boolean' ? (it.is_flow ? 'flow' : 'script') : undefined,
+						rawApp: kind === 'app' ? it.raw_app === true : undefined
 					})
 				}
 			}
@@ -213,13 +220,30 @@ export function extractCandidatePaths(text: string | undefined | null): string[]
 	return [...seen]
 }
 
+/**
+ * The in-app action a resolved path link runs instead of opening a new tab, or undefined
+ * when the kind has none (its link then stays outbound). Returning an action does not mean
+ * it can run on this surface — only the sessions page hosts a preview panel, so callers
+ * gate on `hasToolDisplayActionHandler(action.type)`.
+ */
 export function workspaceItemAction(
 	kind: WindmillItemKind | undefined,
 	path: string | undefined,
-	targetKind?: WorkspaceItemTargetKind
+	targetKind?: WorkspaceItemTargetKind,
+	rawApp?: boolean
 ): ToolDisplayAction | undefined {
 	if (!kind || !path) return undefined
 
+	if (kind === 'script' || kind === 'flow') {
+		return openItemPreviewAction(kind, path)
+	}
+
+	// Raw apps only. A legacy drag-and-drop app has no editor the panel can host, and
+	// legacy items are not extended onto new surfaces — its link stays outbound.
+	if (kind === 'app') {
+		return rawApp ? openItemPreviewAction('raw_app', path) : undefined
+	}
+
 	const base = {
 		id: `open_workspace_item:${kind}:${path}`,
 		type: 'open_created_resource' as const,
@@ -253,6 +277,9 @@ function buildPathLinkNode(
 	if (entry.targetKind) {
 		hProperties['data-wm-target-kind'] = entry.targetKind
 	}
+	if (entry.rawApp) {
+		hProperties['data-wm-raw-app'] = 'true'
+	}
 
 	return {
 		type: 'link',
diff --git a/frontend/src/lib/components/copilot/chat/workspaceItems.test.ts b/frontend/src/lib/components/copilot/chat/workspaceItems.test.ts
index 9bb477fa83..70810dad9a 100644
--- a/frontend/src/lib/components/copilot/chat/workspaceItems.test.ts
+++ b/frontend/src/lib/components/copilot/chat/workspaceItems.test.ts
@@ -153,10 +153,27 @@ describe('workspaceItemAction', () => {
 		})
 	})
 
-	it('skips non-drawerable items and trigger items without target kind', () => {
-		expect(workspaceItemAction('script', 'f/a/b')).toBeUndefined()
-		expect(workspaceItemAction('flow', 'f/a/b')).toBeUndefined()
+	it('creates preview actions for scripts, flows and raw apps', () => {
+		expect(workspaceItemAction('script', 'f/a/b')).toMatchObject({
+			type: 'open_item_preview',
+			previewKind: 'script',
+			path: 'f/a/b'
+		})
+		expect(workspaceItemAction('flow', 'f/a/b')).toMatchObject({
+			type: 'open_item_preview',
+			previewKind: 'flow'
+		})
+		expect(workspaceItemAction('app', 'f/a/b', undefined, true)).toMatchObject({
+			previewKind: 'raw_app'
+		})
+	})
+
+	it('leaves legacy apps as plain links', () => {
+		expect(workspaceItemAction('app', 'f/a/b', undefined, false)).toBeUndefined()
 		expect(workspaceItemAction('app', 'f/a/b')).toBeUndefined()
+	})
+
+	it('skips trigger items without target kind', () => {
 		expect(workspaceItemAction('schedule', 'f/a/b')).toBeUndefined()
 		expect(workspaceItemAction('http_trigger', 'f/a/b')).toBeUndefined()
 	})
@@ -172,6 +189,7 @@ const SAMPLE_ENTRIES: Record<string, WorkspaceItemEntry> = {
 		path: 'u/admin/cleanup_old_jobs'
 	},
 	'f/ops/dashboard': { kind: 'app', path: 'f/ops/dashboard' },
+	'f/ops/live_board': { kind: 'app', path: 'f/ops/live_board', rawApp: true },
 	'f/etl/daily': {
 		kind: 'schedule',
 		path: 'f/etl/daily',
@@ -249,6 +267,23 @@ describe('remarkWindmillPaths (mdast)', () => {
 		expect(props['data-wm-target-kind']).toBe('flow')
 	})
 
+	// Both app kinds reach the renderer as the same `app` kind and route, so this flag is
+	// the only thing that keeps a legacy app off the preview panel.
+	it('marks raw apps so the renderer can tell them from legacy apps', () => {
+		const processor = buildProcessor('admins')
+		const tree = processor.runSync(
+			processor.parse('Open f/ops/live_board and f/ops/dashboard.')
+		) as MdastRoot
+		const byPath = Object.fromEntries(
+			findLinks(tree).map((l) => [
+				(l.data?.hProperties as Record<string, string>)['data-wm-path'],
+				l.data?.hProperties as Record<string, string>
+			])
+		)
+		expect(byPath['f/ops/live_board']['data-wm-raw-app']).toBe('true')
+		expect(byPath['f/ops/dashboard']['data-wm-raw-app']).toBeUndefined()
+	})
+
 	it('leaves unknown paths as plain text', () => {
 		const processor = buildProcessor()
 		const tree = processor.runSync(
diff --git a/frontend/src/routes/(root)/(logged)/sessions/+page.svelte b/frontend/src/routes/(root)/(logged)/sessions/+page.svelte
index cbcbe92e82..da8fc31c65 100644
--- a/frontend/src/routes/(root)/(logged)/sessions/+page.svelte
+++ b/frontend/src/routes/(root)/(logged)/sessions/+page.svelte
@@ -591,9 +591,7 @@
 		}
 	})
 
-	// Preview cards on create/update tool calls dispatch here. Open
-	// (or focus, if already shown) the item's preview in the active session's panel —
-	// the visible chat is always the active session, so `owner` is its panel. Read
+	// The visible chat is always the active session, so `owner` is its panel. Read
 	// `owner` lazily inside the handler (not in the effect body) so this registers
 	// once, not on every session switch.
 	$effect(() => {