Optional compact sidebar: inline project icons and clearer unsettled titles

[maurorozco]

Problem

The sidebar repeats the project name above every unsettled chat. When several chats belong to the same project, this adds visual repetition and takes space away from scanning conversation titles.

Proposal

Add a single Compact sidebar setting that:

• Places the project icon beside the conversation title.
• Shows the project name on hover instead of repeating it in each row.
• Uses a brighter theme text token for unsettled titles, while settled titles remain muted.
• Preserves timestamps, status indicators, and existing actions.

Keep the current layout available for users who prefer explicit project labels, particularly when working across multiple projects with similar icons.

Example

I tried a local UI customization in T3 Code v0.0.39 on macOS and found it easier to scan. It moves the title beside the project icon, removes the redundant project-name row, and uses the theme foreground token for unsettled titles. This is an appearance preference, not a functional bug.

The comparison below uses the original before/after screenshots, with private titles replaced by identical neutral examples and project names replaced by “demo-app.” The replacement text uses colors sampled from each side of the original, making the stronger contrast visible without exposing private content. Labels were added outside the screenshots.

Related discussions

• Compact sidebar mode
• Sidebar grouping and reducing repeated metadata

This proposes a smaller presentation option without requiring the broader grouping redesign. Happy for this to be consolidated into an existing discussion if preferred.

[juliusmarminge]

Closing as a duplicate of the existing compact-sidebar idea:

• [Feature]: Improve sidebar v2 with compact mode #6936 (Improve sidebar v2 with compact mode)
• Related broader grouping redesign: Sidebar: group the inbox by environment, project or provider — with rows that stop repeating themselves #7836
• In-flight implementation: feat(web): add compact thread list mode #9417 (compact thread list mode)

Please continue / upvote there — thanks for the mockups and the consolidate note.

[dkritarth]

I have the same issue described here. After selecting a project, each thread row in the left sidebar repeats the project name. Since the project is already selected and the threads are grouped under it, that label is redundant and makes the thread list harder to scan. A compact option that hides the repeated project name while keeping the project icon, or showing the name on hover, would be helpful. I also have a screenshot showing the repeated project label.