Fix projectless standalone chats

apps/web/src/components/ChatView.logic.test.ts

@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@ import {
   hasServerAcknowledgedLocalDispatch,
   reconcileMountedTerminalThreadIds,
   reconcileRetainedMountedThreadIds,
+  requiresDraftProjectSelection,
   resolveEffectiveServerThreadWorktreePath,
   resolveSendEnvMode,
   shouldWriteThreadErrorToCurrentServerThread,
@@ -78,6 +79,28 @@ const readySession = {
   updatedAt: "2026-03-29T00:00:10.000Z",
 };
 
+describe("requiresDraftProjectSelection", () => {
+  it("keeps standalone local drafts available without a project", () => {
+    expect(
+      requiresDraftProjectSelection({
+        isLocalDraftThread: true,
+        projectId: null,
+        hasActiveProject: false,
+      }),
+    ).toBe(false);
+  });
+
+  it("requires a project when a local project draft becomes orphaned", () => {
+    expect(
+      requiresDraftProjectSelection({
+        isLocalDraftThread: true,
+        projectId,
+        hasActiveProject: false,
+      }),
+    ).toBe(true);
+  });
+});
+
 describe("buildThreadTurnInterruptInput", () => {
   it("targets the session's active running turn", () => {
     const activeTurnId = TurnId.make("turn-running");

apps/web/src/components/ChatView.logic.ts

@@ -56,6 +56,14 @@ export function buildLocalDraftThread(
   };
 }
 
+export function requiresDraftProjectSelection(input: {
+  readonly isLocalDraftThread: boolean;
+  readonly projectId: ProjectId | null | undefined;
+  readonly hasActiveProject: boolean;
+}): boolean {
+  return input.isLocalDraftThread && input.projectId !== null && !input.hasActiveProject;
+}
+
 export function shouldWriteThreadErrorToCurrentServerThread(input: {
   serverThread:
     | {

apps/web/src/components/ChatView.tsx

@@ -247,6 +247,7 @@ import {
   deriveLockedProvider,
   readFileAsDataUrl,
   reconcileMountedTerminalThreadIds,
+  requiresDraftProjectSelection,
   resolveEffectiveServerThreadWorktreePath,
   resolveSendEnvMode,
   revokeBlobPreviewUrl,
@@ -1525,6 +1526,12 @@ function ChatViewContent(props: ChatViewProps) {
     ? scopeProjectRef(activeThread.environmentId, activeThread.projectId)
     : null;
   const activeProject = useProject(activeProjectRef);
+  const isStandaloneThread = activeThread?.projectId === null;
+  const projectSelectionRequired = requiresDraftProjectSelection({
+    isLocalDraftThread,
+    projectId: activeThread?.projectId,
+    hasActiveProject: activeProject !== null,
+  });
   const activeEnvironmentShell = useEnvironmentQuery(
     activeThread ? environmentShell.stateAtom(activeThread.environmentId) : null,
   );
@@ -4300,7 +4307,6 @@ function ChatViewContent(props: ChatViewProps) {
       }
       return;
     }
-    const isStandaloneThread = activeThread.projectId === null;
     if (!activeProject && !isStandaloneThread) {
       toastManager.add(
         stackedThreadToast({
@@ -5596,6 +5602,7 @@ function ChatViewContent(props: ChatViewProps) {
                         <DraftHeroHeadline
                           activeProjectRef={activeProjectRef}
                           activeProjectTitle={activeProject?.title ?? null}
+                          isStandalone={isStandaloneThread}
                         />
                       </div>
                       <ComposerBannerStack className="relative z-0" items={composerBannerItems} />
@@ -5628,7 +5635,7 @@ function ChatViewContent(props: ChatViewProps) {
                         isServerThread={isServerThread}
                         isLocalDraftThread={isLocalDraftThread}
                         forceExpandedOnMobile={forceExpandedMobileComposer && isDraftHeroState}
-                        projectSelectionRequired={isLocalDraftThread && activeProject === null}
+                        projectSelectionRequired={projectSelectionRequired}
                         phase={phase}
                         isConnecting={isConnecting}
                         isSendBusy={isSendBusy}

apps/web/src/components/chat/DraftHeroHeadline.test.tsx

@@ -0,0 +1,15 @@
+import { renderToStaticMarkup } from "react-dom/server";
+import { describe, expect, it } from "vite-plus/test";
+
+import { DraftHeroHeadline } from "./DraftHeroHeadline";
+
+describe("DraftHeroHeadline", () => {
+  it("does not ask standalone chats to choose a project", () => {
+    const markup = renderToStaticMarkup(
+      <DraftHeroHeadline activeProjectRef={null} activeProjectTitle={null} isStandalone />,
+    );
+
+    expect(markup).toContain("What can I help you with?");
+    expect(markup).not.toContain("Choose a project");
+  });
+});

apps/web/src/components/chat/DraftHeroHeadline.tsx

@@ -20,12 +20,34 @@ import {
 interface DraftHeroHeadlineProps {
   readonly activeProjectRef: ScopedProjectRef | null;
   readonly activeProjectTitle: string | null;
+  readonly isStandalone: boolean;
 }
 
 export function DraftHeroHeadline({
   activeProjectRef,
   activeProjectTitle,
+  isStandalone,
 }: DraftHeroHeadlineProps) {
+  if (isStandalone) {
+    return (
+      <h1 className="mx-auto w-full max-w-5xl text-center font-normal text-2xl text-foreground tracking-tight sm:text-3xl">
+        What can I help you with?
+      </h1>
+    );
+  }
+
+  return (
+    <ProjectDraftHeroHeadline
+      activeProjectRef={activeProjectRef}
+      activeProjectTitle={activeProjectTitle}
+    />
+  );
+}
+
+function ProjectDraftHeroHeadline({
+  activeProjectRef,
+  activeProjectTitle,
+}: Omit<DraftHeroHeadlineProps, "isStandalone">) {
   const projects = useProjects();
   const threads = useThreadShells();
   const handleNewThread = useNewThreadHandler();

docs/personal-fork-changes.md

@@ -68,6 +68,8 @@ Upstream PRs integrated into the fork are listed in
 - Creating a standalone chat opens a local draft immediately, matching project-thread creation;
   the server thread is materialized atomically with the first message instead of blocking
   navigation on an empty-thread request.
+- Standalone drafts remain writable in the shared new-thread composer and use projectless hero
+  copy; missing-project guards continue to apply only to orphaned project drafts.
 - Standalone chats participate in the same desktop completion sounds and macOS notifications as
   project threads. When agent-activity publishing is enabled, they also publish completion and
   attention states to connected mobile clients under the generic `Chats` activity group.