diff --git a/packages/shared/src/index.ts b/packages/shared/src/index.ts
index bddbb769..d2990056 100644
--- a/packages/shared/src/index.ts
+++ b/packages/shared/src/index.ts
@@ -331,6 +331,7 @@ export type {
   AgentWakeupRequest,
   InstanceSchedulerHeartbeatAgent,
   LiveEvent,
+  DashboardRunActivityDay,
   DashboardSummary,
   ActivityEvent,
   UserProfileActivitySummary,
diff --git a/packages/shared/src/types/dashboard.ts b/packages/shared/src/types/dashboard.ts
index 0127a4fd..e4225f43 100644
--- a/packages/shared/src/types/dashboard.ts
+++ b/packages/shared/src/types/dashboard.ts
@@ -1,3 +1,11 @@
+export interface DashboardRunActivityDay {
+  date: string;
+  succeeded: number;
+  failed: number;
+  other: number;
+  total: number;
+}
+
 export interface DashboardSummary {
   companyId: string;
   agents: {
@@ -24,4 +32,5 @@ export interface DashboardSummary {
     pausedAgents: number;
     pausedProjects: number;
   };
+  runActivity: DashboardRunActivityDay[];
 }
diff --git a/packages/shared/src/types/index.ts b/packages/shared/src/types/index.ts
index 971bf14f..97d20d01 100644
--- a/packages/shared/src/types/index.ts
+++ b/packages/shared/src/types/index.ts
@@ -167,7 +167,7 @@ export type {
   InstanceSchedulerHeartbeatAgent,
 } from "./heartbeat.js";
 export type { LiveEvent } from "./live.js";
-export type { DashboardSummary } from "./dashboard.js";
+export type { DashboardRunActivityDay, DashboardSummary } from "./dashboard.js";
 export type { ActivityEvent } from "./activity.js";
 export type {
   UserProfileActivitySummary,
diff --git a/server/src/__tests__/dashboard-service.test.ts b/server/src/__tests__/dashboard-service.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..ad2934fa
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/__tests__/dashboard-service.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,158 @@
+import { randomUUID } from "node:crypto";
+import { afterAll, afterEach, beforeAll, describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+import { agents, companies, createDb, heartbeatRuns } from "@paperclipai/db";
+import {
+  getEmbeddedPostgresTestSupport,
+  startEmbeddedPostgresTestDatabase,
+} from "./helpers/embedded-postgres.js";
+import { dashboardService } from "../services/dashboard.ts";
+
+const embeddedPostgresSupport = await getEmbeddedPostgresTestSupport();
+const describeEmbeddedPostgres = embeddedPostgresSupport.supported ? describe : describe.skip;
+
+if (!embeddedPostgresSupport.supported) {
+  console.warn(
+    `Skipping embedded Postgres dashboard service tests on this host: ${embeddedPostgresSupport.reason ?? "unsupported environment"}`,
+  );
+}
+
+function utcDay(offsetDays: number): Date {
+  const now = new Date();
+  const day = Date.UTC(now.getUTCFullYear(), now.getUTCMonth(), now.getUTCDate() + offsetDays, 12);
+  return new Date(day);
+}
+
+function utcDateKey(date: Date): string {
+  return date.toISOString().slice(0, 10);
+}
+
+describeEmbeddedPostgres("dashboard service", () => {
+  let db!: ReturnType<typeof createDb>;
+  let tempDb: Awaited<ReturnType<typeof startEmbeddedPostgresTestDatabase>> | null = null;
+
+  beforeAll(async () => {
+    tempDb = await startEmbeddedPostgresTestDatabase("paperclip-dashboard-service-");
+    db = createDb(tempDb.connectionString);
+  }, 20_000);
+
+  afterEach(async () => {
+    await db.delete(heartbeatRuns);
+    await db.delete(agents);
+    await db.delete(companies);
+  });
+
+  afterAll(async () => {
+    await tempDb?.cleanup();
+  });
+
+  it("aggregates the full 14-day run activity window without recent-run truncation", async () => {
+    const companyId = randomUUID();
+    const otherCompanyId = randomUUID();
+    const agentId = randomUUID();
+    const otherAgentId = randomUUID();
+    const today = utcDay(0);
+    const weekAgo = utcDay(-7);
+
+    await db.insert(companies).values([
+      {
+        id: companyId,
+        name: "Paperclip",
+        issuePrefix: `T${companyId.replace(/-/g, "").slice(0, 6).toUpperCase()}`,
+        requireBoardApprovalForNewAgents: false,
+      },
+      {
+        id: otherCompanyId,
+        name: "Other",
+        issuePrefix: `T${otherCompanyId.replace(/-/g, "").slice(0, 6).toUpperCase()}`,
+        requireBoardApprovalForNewAgents: false,
+      },
+    ]);
+
+    await db.insert(agents).values([
+      {
+        id: agentId,
+        companyId,
+        name: "CodexCoder",
+        role: "engineer",
+        status: "running",
+        adapterType: "codex_local",
+        adapterConfig: {},
+        runtimeConfig: {},
+        permissions: {},
+      },
+      {
+        id: otherAgentId,
+        companyId: otherCompanyId,
+        name: "OtherAgent",
+        role: "engineer",
+        status: "running",
+        adapterType: "codex_local",
+        adapterConfig: {},
+        runtimeConfig: {},
+        permissions: {},
+      },
+    ]);
+
+    await db.insert(heartbeatRuns).values([
+      ...Array.from({ length: 105 }, () => ({
+        id: randomUUID(),
+        companyId,
+        agentId,
+        invocationSource: "assignment",
+        status: "succeeded",
+        createdAt: today,
+      })),
+      {
+        id: randomUUID(),
+        companyId,
+        agentId,
+        invocationSource: "assignment",
+        status: "failed",
+        createdAt: weekAgo,
+      },
+      {
+        id: randomUUID(),
+        companyId,
+        agentId,
+        invocationSource: "assignment",
+        status: "timed_out",
+        createdAt: weekAgo,
+      },
+      {
+        id: randomUUID(),
+        companyId,
+        agentId,
+        invocationSource: "assignment",
+        status: "cancelled",
+        createdAt: weekAgo,
+      },
+      {
+        id: randomUUID(),
+        companyId: otherCompanyId,
+        agentId: otherAgentId,
+        invocationSource: "assignment",
+        status: "succeeded",
+        createdAt: weekAgo,
+      },
+    ]);
+
+    const summary = await dashboardService(db).summary(companyId);
+
+    expect(summary.runActivity).toHaveLength(14);
+    const todayBucket = summary.runActivity.find((bucket) => bucket.date === utcDateKey(today));
+    const weekAgoBucket = summary.runActivity.find((bucket) => bucket.date === utcDateKey(weekAgo));
+
+    expect(todayBucket).toMatchObject({
+      succeeded: 105,
+      failed: 0,
+      other: 0,
+      total: 105,
+    });
+    expect(weekAgoBucket).toMatchObject({
+      succeeded: 0,
+      failed: 2,
+      other: 1,
+      total: 3,
+    });
+  });
+});
diff --git a/server/src/services/dashboard.ts b/server/src/services/dashboard.ts
index c1169aa9..e02ca96d 100644
--- a/server/src/services/dashboard.ts
+++ b/server/src/services/dashboard.ts
@@ -1,9 +1,23 @@
 import { and, eq, gte, sql } from "drizzle-orm";
 import type { Db } from "@paperclipai/db";
-import { agents, approvals, companies, costEvents, issues } from "@paperclipai/db";
+import { agents, approvals, companies, costEvents, heartbeatRuns, issues } from "@paperclipai/db";
 import { notFound } from "../errors.js";
 import { budgetService } from "./budgets.js";
 
+const DASHBOARD_RUN_ACTIVITY_DAYS = 14;
+
+function formatUtcDateKey(date: Date): string {
+  return date.toISOString().slice(0, 10);
+}
+
+function getRecentUtcDateKeys(now: Date, days: number): string[] {
+  const todayUtc = Date.UTC(now.getUTCFullYear(), now.getUTCMonth(), now.getUTCDate());
+  return Array.from({ length: days }, (_, index) => {
+    const dayOffset = index - (days - 1);
+    return formatUtcDateKey(new Date(todayUtc + dayOffset * 24 * 60 * 60 * 1000));
+  });
+}
+
 export function dashboardService(db: Db) {
   const budgets = budgetService(db);
   return {
@@ -62,7 +76,9 @@ export function dashboardService(db: Db) {
       }
 
       const now = new Date();
-      const monthStart = new Date(now.getFullYear(), now.getMonth(), 1);
+      const monthStart = new Date(Date.UTC(now.getUTCFullYear(), now.getUTCMonth(), 1));
+      const runActivityDays = getRecentUtcDateKeys(now, DASHBOARD_RUN_ACTIVITY_DAYS);
+      const runActivityStart = new Date(`${runActivityDays[0]}T00:00:00.000Z`);
       const [{ monthSpend }] = await db
         .select({
           monthSpend: sql<number>`coalesce(sum(${costEvents.costCents}), 0)::double precision`,
@@ -76,6 +92,38 @@ export function dashboardService(db: Db) {
         );
 
       const monthSpendCents = Number(monthSpend);
+      const runActivityDayExpr = sql<string>`to_char(${heartbeatRuns.createdAt} at time zone 'UTC', 'YYYY-MM-DD')`;
+      const runActivityRows = await db
+        .select({
+          date: runActivityDayExpr,
+          status: heartbeatRuns.status,
+          count: sql<number>`count(*)::double precision`,
+        })
+        .from(heartbeatRuns)
+        .where(
+          and(
+            eq(heartbeatRuns.companyId, companyId),
+            gte(heartbeatRuns.createdAt, runActivityStart),
+          ),
+        )
+        .groupBy(runActivityDayExpr, heartbeatRuns.status);
+
+      const runActivity = new Map(
+        runActivityDays.map((date) => [
+          date,
+          { date, succeeded: 0, failed: 0, other: 0, total: 0 },
+        ]),
+      );
+      for (const row of runActivityRows) {
+        const bucket = runActivity.get(row.date);
+        if (!bucket) continue;
+        const count = Number(row.count);
+        if (row.status === "succeeded") bucket.succeeded += count;
+        else if (row.status === "failed" || row.status === "timed_out") bucket.failed += count;
+        else bucket.other += count;
+        bucket.total += count;
+      }
+
       const utilization =
         company.budgetMonthlyCents > 0
           ? (monthSpendCents / company.budgetMonthlyCents) * 100
@@ -103,6 +151,7 @@ export function dashboardService(db: Db) {
           pausedAgents: budgetOverview.pausedAgentCount,
           pausedProjects: budgetOverview.pausedProjectCount,
         },
+        runActivity: Array.from(runActivity.values()),
       };
     },
   };
diff --git a/ui/src/components/ActiveAgentsPanel.tsx b/ui/src/components/ActiveAgentsPanel.tsx
index feca6161..5a5534f9 100644
--- a/ui/src/components/ActiveAgentsPanel.tsx
+++ b/ui/src/components/ActiveAgentsPanel.tsx
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import { useMemo } from "react";
+import { memo, useMemo } from "react";
 import { Link } from "@/lib/router";
 import { useQuery } from "@tanstack/react-query";
 import type { Issue } from "@paperclipai/shared";
@@ -13,6 +13,11 @@ import { RunChatSurface } from "./RunChatSurface";
 import { useLiveRunTranscripts } from "./transcript/useLiveRunTranscripts";
 
 const MIN_DASHBOARD_RUNS = 4;
+const DASHBOARD_RUN_CARD_LIMIT = 4;
+const DASHBOARD_LOG_POLL_INTERVAL_MS = 15_000;
+const DASHBOARD_LOG_READ_LIMIT_BYTES = 64_000;
+const DASHBOARD_MAX_CHUNKS_PER_RUN = 40;
+const EMPTY_TRANSCRIPT: TranscriptEntry[] = [];
 
 function isRunActive(run: LiveRunForIssue): boolean {
   return run.status === "queued" || run.status === "running";
@@ -29,10 +34,12 @@ export function ActiveAgentsPanel({ companyId }: ActiveAgentsPanelProps) {
   });
 
   const runs = liveRuns ?? [];
+  const visibleRuns = useMemo(() => runs.slice(0, DASHBOARD_RUN_CARD_LIMIT), [runs]);
+  const hiddenRunCount = Math.max(0, runs.length - visibleRuns.length);
   const { data: issues } = useQuery({
     queryKey: [...queryKeys.issues.list(companyId), "with-routine-executions"],
     queryFn: () => issuesApi.list(companyId, { includeRoutineExecutions: true }),
-    enabled: runs.length > 0,
+    enabled: visibleRuns.length > 0,
   });
 
   const issueById = useMemo(() => {
@@ -44,9 +51,12 @@ export function ActiveAgentsPanel({ companyId }: ActiveAgentsPanelProps) {
   }, [issues]);
 
   const { transcriptByRun, hasOutputForRun } = useLiveRunTranscripts({
-    runs,
+    runs: visibleRuns,
     companyId,
-    maxChunksPerRun: 120,
+    maxChunksPerRun: DASHBOARD_MAX_CHUNKS_PER_RUN,
+    logPollIntervalMs: DASHBOARD_LOG_POLL_INTERVAL_MS,
+    logReadLimitBytes: DASHBOARD_LOG_READ_LIMIT_BYTES,
+    enableRealtimeUpdates: false,
   });
 
   return (
@@ -60,24 +70,31 @@ export function ActiveAgentsPanel({ companyId }: ActiveAgentsPanelProps) {
         </div>
       ) : (
         <div className="grid grid-cols-1 gap-2 sm:grid-cols-2 sm:gap-4 xl:grid-cols-4">
-          {runs.map((run) => (
+          {visibleRuns.map((run) => (
             <AgentRunCard
               key={run.id}
               companyId={companyId}
               run={run}
               issue={run.issueId ? issueById.get(run.issueId) : undefined}
-              transcript={transcriptByRun.get(run.id) ?? []}
+              transcript={transcriptByRun.get(run.id) ?? EMPTY_TRANSCRIPT}
               hasOutput={hasOutputForRun(run.id)}
               isActive={isRunActive(run)}
             />
           ))}
         </div>
       )}
+      {hiddenRunCount > 0 && (
+        <div className="mt-3 flex justify-end text-xs text-muted-foreground">
+          <Link to="/agents" className="hover:text-foreground hover:underline">
+            {hiddenRunCount} more active/recent run{hiddenRunCount === 1 ? "" : "s"}
+          </Link>
+        </div>
+      )}
     </div>
   );
 }
 
-function AgentRunCard({
+const AgentRunCard = memo(function AgentRunCard({
   companyId,
   run,
   issue,
@@ -153,4 +170,4 @@ function AgentRunCard({
       </div>
     </div>
   );
-}
+});
diff --git a/ui/src/components/ActivityCharts.test.tsx b/ui/src/components/ActivityCharts.test.tsx
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..7eaf7218
--- /dev/null
+++ b/ui/src/components/ActivityCharts.test.tsx
@@ -0,0 +1,102 @@
+// @vitest-environment jsdom
+
+import { act } from "react";
+import type { ReactNode } from "react";
+import { createRoot, type Root } from "react-dom/client";
+import type { HeartbeatRun } from "@paperclipai/shared";
+import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
+import { RunActivityChart, SuccessRateChart } from "./ActivityCharts";
+
+// eslint-disable-next-line @typescript-eslint/no-explicit-any
+(globalThis as any).IS_REACT_ACT_ENVIRONMENT = true;
+
+let container: HTMLDivElement;
+let root: Root;
+
+beforeEach(() => {
+  vi.useFakeTimers();
+  vi.setSystemTime(new Date("2026-04-20T12:00:00.000Z"));
+  container = document.createElement("div");
+  document.body.appendChild(container);
+  root = createRoot(container);
+});
+
+afterEach(() => {
+  act(() => root.unmount());
+  container.remove();
+  vi.useRealTimers();
+});
+
+function render(ui: ReactNode) {
+  act(() => {
+    root.render(ui);
+  });
+}
+
+function createRun(overrides: Partial<HeartbeatRun> = {}): HeartbeatRun {
+  return {
+    id: "run-1",
+    companyId: "company-1",
+    agentId: "agent-1",
+    invocationSource: "on_demand",
+    triggerDetail: "manual",
+    status: "succeeded",
+    startedAt: new Date("2026-04-20T11:58:00.000Z"),
+    finishedAt: new Date("2026-04-20T11:59:00.000Z"),
+    error: null,
+    wakeupRequestId: null,
+    exitCode: 0,
+    signal: null,
+    usageJson: null,
+    resultJson: null,
+    sessionIdBefore: null,
+    sessionIdAfter: null,
+    logStore: null,
+    logRef: null,
+    logBytes: null,
+    logSha256: null,
+    logCompressed: false,
+    stdoutExcerpt: null,
+    stderrExcerpt: null,
+    errorCode: null,
+    externalRunId: null,
+    processPid: null,
+    processGroupId: null,
+    processStartedAt: null,
+    retryOfRunId: null,
+    processLossRetryCount: 0,
+    livenessState: null,
+    livenessReason: null,
+    continuationAttempt: 0,
+    lastUsefulActionAt: null,
+    nextAction: null,
+    contextSnapshot: null,
+    createdAt: new Date("2026-04-20T11:58:00.000Z"),
+    updatedAt: new Date("2026-04-20T11:59:00.000Z"),
+    ...overrides,
+  };
+}
+
+describe("ActivityCharts", () => {
+  it("renders empty run charts when dashboard aggregate data is temporarily missing", () => {
+    render(<RunActivityChart activity={undefined} />);
+    expect(container.textContent).toContain("No runs yet");
+
+    render(<SuccessRateChart activity={undefined} />);
+    expect(container.textContent).toContain("No runs yet");
+  });
+
+  it("still aggregates raw agent runs for detail charts", () => {
+    render(
+      <RunActivityChart
+        runs={[
+          createRun({ id: "run-success", status: "succeeded" }),
+          createRun({ id: "run-failed", status: "failed" }),
+        ]}
+      />,
+    );
+
+    expect(container.textContent).not.toContain("No runs yet");
+    expect(container.querySelector("[title='2026-04-20: 2 runs']")).not.toBeNull();
+  });
+});
diff --git a/ui/src/components/ActivityCharts.tsx b/ui/src/components/ActivityCharts.tsx
index f72e4e57..591bcc4e 100644
--- a/ui/src/components/ActivityCharts.tsx
+++ b/ui/src/components/ActivityCharts.tsx
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import type { HeartbeatRun } from "@paperclipai/shared";
+import type { DashboardRunActivityDay, HeartbeatRun } from "@paperclipai/shared";
 
 /* ---- Utilities ---- */
 
@@ -58,11 +58,14 @@ export function ChartCard({ title, subtitle, children }: { title: string; subtit
 
 /* ---- Chart Components ---- */
 
-export function RunActivityChart({ runs }: { runs: HeartbeatRun[] }) {
-  const days = getLast14Days();
+type RunChartProps =
+  | { activity?: DashboardRunActivityDay[] | null; runs?: never }
+  | { runs?: HeartbeatRun[] | null; activity?: never };
 
-  const grouped = new Map<string, { succeeded: number; failed: number; other: number }>();
-  for (const day of days) grouped.set(day, { succeeded: 0, failed: 0, other: 0 });
+function aggregateRuns(runs: readonly HeartbeatRun[] = []): DashboardRunActivityDay[] {
+  const days = getLast14Days();
+  const grouped = new Map<string, DashboardRunActivityDay>();
+  for (const day of days) grouped.set(day, { date: day, succeeded: 0, failed: 0, other: 0, total: 0 });
   for (const run of runs) {
     const day = new Date(run.createdAt).toISOString().slice(0, 10);
     const entry = grouped.get(day);
@@ -70,10 +73,24 @@ export function RunActivityChart({ runs }: { runs: HeartbeatRun[] }) {
     if (run.status === "succeeded") entry.succeeded++;
     else if (run.status === "failed" || run.status === "timed_out") entry.failed++;
     else entry.other++;
+    entry.total++;
   }
+  return Array.from(grouped.values());
+}
 
-  const maxValue = Math.max(...Array.from(grouped.values()).map(v => v.succeeded + v.failed + v.other), 1);
-  const hasData = Array.from(grouped.values()).some(v => v.succeeded + v.failed + v.other > 0);
+function resolveRunActivity(props: RunChartProps): DashboardRunActivityDay[] {
+  if (Array.isArray(props.activity)) return props.activity;
+  if (Array.isArray(props.runs)) return aggregateRuns(props.runs);
+  return [];
+}
+
+export function RunActivityChart(props: RunChartProps) {
+  const activity = resolveRunActivity(props);
+  const days = activity.length > 0 ? activity.map((day) => day.date) : getLast14Days();
+  const grouped = new Map(activity.map((day) => [day.date, day]));
+
+  const maxValue = Math.max(...activity.map(v => v.total), 1);
+  const hasData = activity.some(v => v.total > 0);
 
   if (!hasData) return <p className="text-xs text-muted-foreground">No runs yet</p>;
 
@@ -81,8 +98,8 @@ export function RunActivityChart({ runs }: { runs: HeartbeatRun[] }) {
     <div>
       <div className="flex items-end gap-[3px] h-20">
         {days.map(day => {
-          const entry = grouped.get(day)!;
-          const total = entry.succeeded + entry.failed + entry.other;
+          const entry = grouped.get(day) ?? { date: day, succeeded: 0, failed: 0, other: 0, total: 0 };
+          const total = entry.total;
           const heightPct = (total / maxValue) * 100;
           return (
             <div key={day} className="flex-1 h-full flex flex-col justify-end" title={`${day}: ${total} runs`}>
@@ -224,26 +241,19 @@ export function IssueStatusChart({ issues }: { issues: { status: string; created
   );
 }
 
-export function SuccessRateChart({ runs }: { runs: HeartbeatRun[] }) {
-  const days = getLast14Days();
-  const grouped = new Map<string, { succeeded: number; total: number }>();
-  for (const day of days) grouped.set(day, { succeeded: 0, total: 0 });
-  for (const run of runs) {
-    const day = new Date(run.createdAt).toISOString().slice(0, 10);
-    const entry = grouped.get(day);
-    if (!entry) continue;
-    entry.total++;
-    if (run.status === "succeeded") entry.succeeded++;
-  }
+export function SuccessRateChart(props: RunChartProps) {
+  const activity = resolveRunActivity(props);
+  const days = activity.length > 0 ? activity.map((day) => day.date) : getLast14Days();
+  const grouped = new Map(activity.map((day) => [day.date, day]));
 
-  const hasData = Array.from(grouped.values()).some(v => v.total > 0);
+  const hasData = activity.some(v => v.total > 0);
   if (!hasData) return <p className="text-xs text-muted-foreground">No runs yet</p>;
 
   return (
     <div>
       <div className="flex items-end gap-[3px] h-20">
         {days.map(day => {
-          const entry = grouped.get(day)!;
+          const entry = grouped.get(day) ?? { date: day, succeeded: 0, failed: 0, other: 0, total: 0 };
           const rate = entry.total > 0 ? entry.succeeded / entry.total : 0;
           const color = entry.total === 0 ? undefined : rate >= 0.8 ? "#10b981" : rate >= 0.5 ? "#eab308" : "#ef4444";
           return (
diff --git a/ui/src/components/IssueChatThread.tsx b/ui/src/components/IssueChatThread.tsx
index 13e494e6..b81fa2ed 100644
--- a/ui/src/components/IssueChatThread.tsx
+++ b/ui/src/components/IssueChatThread.tsx
@@ -1060,7 +1060,7 @@ function IssueChatUserMessage({ message }: { message: ThreadMessage }) {
     userProfileMap,
   });
   const authorAvatar = (
-    <Avatar size="sm" className="mt-1 shrink-0">
+    <Avatar size="sm" className="shrink-0">
       {avatarUrl ? <AvatarImage src={avatarUrl} alt={resolvedAuthorName} /> : null}
       <AvatarFallback>{initialsForName(resolvedAuthorName)}</AvatarFallback>
     </Avatar>
@@ -1248,7 +1248,7 @@ function IssueChatAssistantMessage({ message }: { message: ThreadMessage }) {
   return (
     <div id={anchorId}>
       <div className="flex items-start gap-2.5 py-1.5">
-        <Avatar size="sm" className="mt-0.5 shrink-0">
+        <Avatar size="sm" className="shrink-0">
           {agentIcon ? (
             <AvatarFallback><AgentIcon icon={agentIcon} className="h-3.5 w-3.5" /></AvatarFallback>
           ) : (
diff --git a/ui/src/components/RunChatSurface.tsx b/ui/src/components/RunChatSurface.tsx
index 71f6b2c1..66371b39 100644
--- a/ui/src/components/RunChatSurface.tsx
+++ b/ui/src/components/RunChatSurface.tsx
@@ -1,9 +1,15 @@
-import { useMemo } from "react";
+import { memo, useMemo } from "react";
 import type { TranscriptEntry } from "../adapters";
 import type { LiveRunForIssue } from "../api/heartbeats";
 import { IssueChatThread } from "./IssueChatThread";
 import type { IssueChatLinkedRun } from "../lib/issue-chat-messages";
 
+const EMPTY_COMMENTS: [] = [];
+const EMPTY_TIMELINE_EVENTS: [] = [];
+const EMPTY_LIVE_RUNS: [] = [];
+const EMPTY_LINKED_RUNS: [] = [];
+const handleEmbeddedAdd = async () => {};
+
 function isRunActive(run: LiveRunForIssue) {
   return run.status === "queued" || run.status === "running";
 }
@@ -15,18 +21,18 @@ interface RunChatSurfaceProps {
   companyId?: string | null;
 }
 
-export function RunChatSurface({
+export const RunChatSurface = memo(function RunChatSurface({
   run,
   transcript,
   hasOutput,
   companyId,
 }: RunChatSurfaceProps) {
   const active = isRunActive(run);
-  const liveRuns = active ? [run] : [];
+  const liveRuns = useMemo(() => (active ? [run] : EMPTY_LIVE_RUNS), [active, run]);
   const linkedRuns = useMemo<IssueChatLinkedRun[]>(
     () =>
       active
-        ? []
+        ? EMPTY_LINKED_RUNS
         : [{
             runId: run.id,
             status: run.status,
@@ -45,12 +51,12 @@ export function RunChatSurface({
 
   return (
     <IssueChatThread
-      comments={[]}
+      comments={EMPTY_COMMENTS}
       linkedRuns={linkedRuns}
-      timelineEvents={[]}
+      timelineEvents={EMPTY_TIMELINE_EVENTS}
       liveRuns={liveRuns}
       companyId={companyId}
-      onAdd={async () => {}}
+      onAdd={handleEmbeddedAdd}
       showComposer={false}
       showJumpToLatest={false}
       variant="embedded"
@@ -61,4 +67,4 @@ export function RunChatSurface({
       includeSucceededRunsWithoutOutput
     />
   );
-}
+});
diff --git a/ui/src/components/transcript/useLiveRunTranscripts.test.tsx b/ui/src/components/transcript/useLiveRunTranscripts.test.tsx
index 3d3a0634..9fdb4794 100644
--- a/ui/src/components/transcript/useLiveRunTranscripts.test.tsx
+++ b/ui/src/components/transcript/useLiveRunTranscripts.test.tsx
@@ -6,9 +6,10 @@ import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
 import { ApiError } from "../../api/client";
 import { useLiveRunTranscripts } from "./useLiveRunTranscripts";
 
-const { useQueryMock, logMock } = vi.hoisted(() => ({
+const { useQueryMock, logMock, buildTranscriptMock } = vi.hoisted(() => ({
   useQueryMock: vi.fn(() => ({ data: { censorUsernameInLogs: false } })),
   logMock: vi.fn(async () => ({ runId: "run-1", store: "memory", logRef: "log-1", content: "", nextOffset: 0 })),
+  buildTranscriptMock: vi.fn((chunks: unknown[]) => chunks),
 }));
 
 vi.mock("@tanstack/react-query", () => ({
@@ -28,7 +29,7 @@ vi.mock("../../api/heartbeats", () => ({
 }));
 
 vi.mock("../../adapters", () => ({
-  buildTranscript: (chunks: unknown[]) => chunks,
+  buildTranscript: buildTranscriptMock,
   getUIAdapter: () => null,
   onAdapterChange: () => () => {},
 }));
@@ -73,7 +74,9 @@ describe("useLiveRunTranscripts", () => {
   beforeEach(() => {
     FakeWebSocket.instances = [];
     useQueryMock.mockClear();
-    logMock.mockClear();
+    logMock.mockReset();
+    logMock.mockImplementation(async () => ({ runId: "run-1", store: "memory", logRef: "log-1", content: "", nextOffset: 0 }));
+    buildTranscriptMock.mockClear();
     globalThis.WebSocket = FakeWebSocket as unknown as typeof WebSocket;
   });
 
@@ -225,4 +228,91 @@ describe("useLiveRunTranscripts", () => {
     });
     container.remove();
   });
+
+  it("can hydrate active runs without opening the live event socket", async () => {
+    function Harness() {
+      useLiveRunTranscripts({
+        companyId: "company-1",
+        runs: [{ id: "run-1", status: "running", adapterType: "codex_local" }],
+        enableRealtimeUpdates: false,
+        logReadLimitBytes: 64_000,
+      });
+      return null;
+    }
+
+    const container = document.createElement("div");
+    document.body.appendChild(container);
+    const root = createRoot(container);
+
+    await act(async () => {
+      root.render(<Harness />);
+      await Promise.resolve();
+    });
+
+    expect(FakeWebSocket.instances).toHaveLength(0);
+    expect(logMock).toHaveBeenCalledWith("run-1", 0, 64_000);
+
+    act(() => {
+      root.unmount();
+    });
+    container.remove();
+  });
+
+  it("rebuilds only the transcript for the run that receives live output", async () => {
+    function Harness() {
+      useLiveRunTranscripts({
+        companyId: "company-1",
+        runs: [
+          { id: "run-1", status: "running", adapterType: "codex_local" },
+          { id: "run-2", status: "running", adapterType: "codex_local" },
+        ],
+      });
+      return null;
+    }
+
+    const container = document.createElement("div");
+    document.body.appendChild(container);
+    const root = createRoot(container);
+
+    await act(async () => {
+      root.render(<Harness />);
+      await Promise.resolve();
+      await Promise.resolve();
+    });
+
+    expect(FakeWebSocket.instances).toHaveLength(1);
+    expect(buildTranscriptMock).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(2);
+    buildTranscriptMock.mockClear();
+
+    await act(async () => {
+      FakeWebSocket.instances[0]!.onmessage?.(
+        new MessageEvent("message", {
+          data: JSON.stringify({
+            companyId: "company-1",
+            type: "heartbeat.run.log",
+            createdAt: "2026-04-20T00:00:00.000Z",
+            payload: {
+              runId: "run-1",
+              ts: "2026-04-20T00:00:00.000Z",
+              stream: "stdout",
+              chunk: "hello from run 1\n",
+            },
+          }),
+        }),
+      );
+      await Promise.resolve();
+    });
+
+    expect(buildTranscriptMock).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+    expect(buildTranscriptMock).toHaveBeenCalledWith(
+      [{ ts: "2026-04-20T00:00:00.000Z", stream: "stdout", chunk: "hello from run 1\n" }],
+      null,
+      { censorUsernameInLogs: false },
+    );
+
+    act(() => {
+      root.unmount();
+    });
+    container.remove();
+  });
 });
diff --git a/ui/src/components/transcript/useLiveRunTranscripts.ts b/ui/src/components/transcript/useLiveRunTranscripts.ts
index 5f42a905..991b9658 100644
--- a/ui/src/components/transcript/useLiveRunTranscripts.ts
+++ b/ui/src/components/transcript/useLiveRunTranscripts.ts
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ import { queryKeys } from "../../lib/queryKeys";
 
 const LOG_POLL_INTERVAL_MS = 2000;
 const LOG_READ_LIMIT_BYTES = 256_000;
+const EMPTY_RUN_LOG_CHUNKS: RunLogChunk[] = [];
 
 export interface RunTranscriptSource {
   id: string;
@@ -21,6 +22,9 @@ interface UseLiveRunTranscriptsOptions {
   runs: RunTranscriptSource[];
   companyId?: string | null;
   maxChunksPerRun?: number;
+  logPollIntervalMs?: number;
+  logReadLimitBytes?: number;
+  enableRealtimeUpdates?: boolean;
 }
 
 function readString(value: unknown): string | null {
@@ -71,6 +75,9 @@ export function useLiveRunTranscripts({
   runs,
   companyId,
   maxChunksPerRun = 200,
+  logPollIntervalMs = LOG_POLL_INTERVAL_MS,
+  logReadLimitBytes = LOG_READ_LIMIT_BYTES,
+  enableRealtimeUpdates = true,
 }: UseLiveRunTranscriptsOptions) {
   const runsKey = useMemo(
     () =>
@@ -87,6 +94,13 @@ export function useLiveRunTranscripts({
   const pendingLogRowsByRunRef = useRef(new Map<string, string>());
   const logOffsetByRunRef = useRef(new Map<string, number>());
   const missingTerminalLogRunIdsRef = useRef(new Set<string>());
+  const transcriptCacheRef = useRef(new Map<string, {
+    adapterType: string;
+    chunks: RunLogChunk[];
+    censorUsernameInLogs: boolean;
+    parserTick: number;
+    transcript: TranscriptEntry[];
+  }>());
   // Tick counter to force transcript recomputation when dynamic parser loads
   const [parserTick, setParserTick] = useState(0);
   useEffect(() => {
@@ -167,6 +181,11 @@ export function useLiveRunTranscripts({
         missingTerminalLogRunIdsRef.current.delete(runId);
       }
     }
+    for (const runId of transcriptCacheRef.current.keys()) {
+      if (!knownRunIds.has(runId)) {
+        transcriptCacheRef.current.delete(runId);
+      }
+    }
   }, [normalizedRuns]);
 
   useEffect(() => {
@@ -180,7 +199,7 @@ export function useLiveRunTranscripts({
       }
       const offset = logOffsetByRunRef.current.get(run.id) ?? 0;
       try {
-        const result = await heartbeatsApi.log(run.id, offset, LOG_READ_LIMIT_BYTES);
+        const result = await heartbeatsApi.log(run.id, offset, logReadLimitBytes);
         if (cancelled) return;
 
         appendChunks(run.id, parsePersistedLogContent(run.id, result.content, pendingLogRowsByRunRef.current));
@@ -214,19 +233,20 @@ export function useLiveRunTranscripts({
 
     void readAll();
     const activeRuns = normalizedRuns.filter((run) => !isTerminalStatus(run.status));
-    const interval = activeRuns.length > 0
+    const interval = activeRuns.length > 0 && logPollIntervalMs > 0
       ? window.setInterval(() => {
           void Promise.all(activeRuns.map((run) => readRunLog(run)));
-        }, LOG_POLL_INTERVAL_MS)
+        }, logPollIntervalMs)
       : null;
 
     return () => {
       cancelled = true;
       if (interval !== null) window.clearInterval(interval);
     };
-  }, [normalizedRuns, runIdsKey]);
+  }, [logPollIntervalMs, logReadLimitBytes, normalizedRuns, runIdsKey]);
 
   useEffect(() => {
+    if (!enableRealtimeUpdates) return;
     if (!companyId || activeRunIds.size === 0) return;
 
     let closed = false;
@@ -334,19 +354,45 @@ export function useLiveRunTranscripts({
         }
       }
     };
-  }, [activeRunIds, companyId, runById]);
+  }, [activeRunIds, companyId, enableRealtimeUpdates, runById]);
 
   const transcriptByRun = useMemo(() => {
     const next = new Map<string, TranscriptEntry[]>();
     const censorUsernameInLogs = generalSettings?.censorUsernameInLogs === true;
+    const cache = transcriptCacheRef.current;
+    const currentRunIds = new Set<string>();
     for (const run of normalizedRuns) {
+      currentRunIds.add(run.id);
+      const chunks = chunksByRun.get(run.id) ?? EMPTY_RUN_LOG_CHUNKS;
+      const cached = cache.get(run.id);
+      if (
+        cached &&
+        cached.adapterType === run.adapterType &&
+        cached.chunks === chunks &&
+        cached.censorUsernameInLogs === censorUsernameInLogs &&
+        cached.parserTick === parserTick
+      ) {
+        next.set(run.id, cached.transcript);
+        continue;
+      }
+
       const adapter = getUIAdapter(run.adapterType);
-      next.set(
-        run.id,
-        buildTranscript(chunksByRun.get(run.id) ?? [], adapter, {
-          censorUsernameInLogs,
-        }),
-      );
+      const transcript = buildTranscript(chunks, adapter, {
+        censorUsernameInLogs,
+      });
+      cache.set(run.id, {
+        adapterType: run.adapterType,
+        chunks,
+        censorUsernameInLogs,
+        parserTick,
+        transcript,
+      });
+      next.set(run.id, transcript);
+    }
+    for (const runId of cache.keys()) {
+      if (!currentRunIds.has(runId)) {
+        cache.delete(runId);
+      }
     }
     return next;
   }, [chunksByRun, generalSettings?.censorUsernameInLogs, normalizedRuns, parserTick]);
diff --git a/ui/src/lib/inbox.test.ts b/ui/src/lib/inbox.test.ts
index 5f6a8eb6..340d302e 100644
--- a/ui/src/lib/inbox.test.ts
+++ b/ui/src/lib/inbox.test.ts
@@ -295,6 +295,7 @@ const dashboard: DashboardSummary = {
     pausedAgents: 0,
     pausedProjects: 0,
   },
+  runActivity: [],
 };
 
 describe("inbox helpers", () => {
diff --git a/ui/src/pages/Dashboard.tsx b/ui/src/pages/Dashboard.tsx
index 273fc35d..a5176100 100644
--- a/ui/src/pages/Dashboard.tsx
+++ b/ui/src/pages/Dashboard.tsx
@@ -7,7 +7,6 @@ import { accessApi } from "../api/access";
 import { issuesApi } from "../api/issues";
 import { agentsApi } from "../api/agents";
 import { projectsApi } from "../api/projects";
-import { heartbeatsApi } from "../api/heartbeats";
 import { buildCompanyUserProfileMap } from "../lib/company-members";
 import { useCompany } from "../context/CompanyContext";
 import { useDialog } from "../context/DialogContext";
@@ -28,8 +27,6 @@ import { PageSkeleton } from "../components/PageSkeleton";
 import type { Agent, Issue } from "@paperclipai/shared";
 import { PluginSlotOutlet } from "@/plugins/slots";
 
-const DASHBOARD_HEARTBEAT_RUN_LIMIT = 100;
-
 function getRecentIssues(issues: Issue[]): Issue[] {
   return [...issues]
     .sort((a, b) => new Date(b.updatedAt).getTime() - new Date(a.updatedAt).getTime());
@@ -78,12 +75,6 @@ export function Dashboard() {
     enabled: !!selectedCompanyId,
   });
 
-  const { data: runs } = useQuery({
-    queryKey: [...queryKeys.heartbeats(selectedCompanyId!), "limit", DASHBOARD_HEARTBEAT_RUN_LIMIT],
-    queryFn: () => heartbeatsApi.list(selectedCompanyId!, undefined, DASHBOARD_HEARTBEAT_RUN_LIMIT),
-    enabled: !!selectedCompanyId,
-  });
-
   const { data: companyMembers } = useQuery({
     queryKey: queryKeys.access.companyUserDirectory(selectedCompanyId!),
     queryFn: () => accessApi.listUserDirectory(selectedCompanyId!),
@@ -300,7 +291,7 @@ export function Dashboard() {
 
           <div className="grid grid-cols-2 lg:grid-cols-4 gap-4">
             <ChartCard title="Run Activity" subtitle="Last 14 days">
-              <RunActivityChart runs={runs ?? []} />
+              <RunActivityChart activity={data.runActivity} />
             </ChartCard>
             <ChartCard title="Issues by Priority" subtitle="Last 14 days">
               <PriorityChart issues={issues ?? []} />
@@ -309,7 +300,7 @@ export function Dashboard() {
               <IssueStatusChart issues={issues ?? []} />
             </ChartCard>
             <ChartCard title="Success Rate" subtitle="Last 14 days">
-              <SuccessRateChart runs={runs ?? []} />
+              <SuccessRateChart activity={data.runActivity} />
             </ChartCard>
           </div>