fix(sidebar): stop labeling split-pane agent rows with the focused pane's title

src/renderer/src/components/dashboard/build-dashboard-snapshot.ts

@@ -303,7 +303,13 @@ export function buildDashboardSnapshot(
         // board and the sidebar bold/mute the same agents at the same time.
         unseen,
         askSummary: bucket === 'attention' ? (row.entry.interactivePrompt ?? undefined) : undefined,
-        conversationName: boundedLabelOrUndefined(rowConversationName(row, generatedTitlesEnabled)),
+        conversationName: boundedLabelOrUndefined(
+          rowConversationName(
+            row,
+            generatedTitlesEnabled,
+            terminalLayoutsByTabId[tabId]?.root?.type === 'split'
+          )
+        ),
         ...(terminalInput ? { terminalInput } : {})
       })
     }

src/renderer/src/components/dashboard/dashboard-card-labels.ts

@@ -28,7 +28,8 @@ export function boundedLabelOrUndefined(value: string | undefined): string | und
  *  same agent with the same name. */
 export function rowConversationName(
   row: DashboardAgentRow,
-  generatedTitlesEnabled: boolean
+  generatedTitlesEnabled: boolean,
+  tabHasSplitPanes: boolean
 ): string | undefined {
   const parentPaneKey = row.entry.orchestration?.parentPaneKey
   // Why: a child row rendered on its parent's tab does not own that tab's name.
@@ -39,5 +40,8 @@ export function rowConversationName(
   ) {
     return undefined
   }
-  return getAgentRowConversationName(row.tab, row.agentType, generatedTitlesEnabled) ?? undefined
+  return (
+    getAgentRowConversationName(row.tab, row.agentType, generatedTitlesEnabled, tabHasSplitPanes) ??
+    undefined
+  )
 }

src/renderer/src/components/dashboard/use-agent-row-conversation-name.test.ts

@@ -4,9 +4,10 @@ import { useAgentRowConversationName } from './use-agent-row-conversation-name'
 import type { DashboardAgentRow } from './useDashboardData'
 
 const storeState = vi.hoisted(() => ({
-  current: { settings: {}, tabsByWorktree: {} } as {
+  current: { settings: {}, tabsByWorktree: {}, terminalLayoutsByTabId: {} } as {
     settings: Record<string, unknown>
     tabsByWorktree: Record<string, unknown[]>
+    terminalLayoutsByTabId: Record<string, unknown>
   }
 }))
 
@@ -30,7 +31,7 @@ function makeAgent(overrides: Partial<DashboardAgentRow> = {}): DashboardAgentRo
 }
 
 beforeEach(() => {
-  storeState.current = { settings: {}, tabsByWorktree: {} }
+  storeState.current = { settings: {}, tabsByWorktree: {}, terminalLayoutsByTabId: {} }
 })
 
 describe('useAgentRowConversationName', () => {
@@ -39,7 +40,11 @@ describe('useAgentRowConversationName', () => {
   })
 
   it('ignores a retired stored opt-out value', () => {
-    storeState.current = { settings: { agentRowsUseConversationName: false }, tabsByWorktree: {} }
+    storeState.current = {
+      settings: { agentRowsUseConversationName: false },
+      tabsByWorktree: {},
+      terminalLayoutsByTabId: {}
+    }
     expect(useAgentRowConversationName(makeAgent())).toBe('Patient sync spike')
   })
 
@@ -52,7 +57,7 @@ describe('useAgentRowConversationName', () => {
         }
       }
     )
-    storeState.current = { settings: {}, tabsByWorktree }
+    storeState.current = { settings: {}, tabsByWorktree, terminalLayoutsByTabId: {} }
     expect(useAgentRowConversationName(makeAgent({ rowSource: 'subagent' }))).toBeNull()
   })
 
@@ -65,7 +70,7 @@ describe('useAgentRowConversationName', () => {
         }
       }
     )
-    storeState.current = { settings: {}, tabsByWorktree }
+    storeState.current = { settings: {}, tabsByWorktree, terminalLayoutsByTabId: {} }
     expect(
       useAgentRowConversationName(
         makeAgent({
@@ -112,7 +117,8 @@ describe('useAgentRowConversationName', () => {
     )
     storeState.current = {
       settings: {},
-      tabsByWorktree: { 'wt-1': tabs }
+      tabsByWorktree: { 'wt-1': tabs },
+      terminalLayoutsByTabId: {}
     }
 
     expect(useAgentRowConversationName(makeAgent())).toBe('First name')
@@ -136,20 +142,61 @@ describe('useAgentRowConversationName', () => {
       // snapshot; a rename landing after that must still surface.
       tabsByWorktree: {
         'wt-1': [{ id: 'tab-1', worktreeId: 'wt-1', customTitle: 'Renamed later', title: '' }]
-      }
+      },
+      terminalLayoutsByTabId: {}
     }
     expect(useAgentRowConversationName(makeAgent())).toBe('Renamed later')
   })
 
+  it('gives split-pane rows no shared name, so each keeps its own per-pane label', () => {
+    const splitTab = { id: 'tab-1', worktreeId: 'wt-1', customTitle: null, title: '✳ Redis cache' }
+    storeState.current = {
+      settings: {},
+      tabsByWorktree: { 'wt-1': [splitTab] },
+      // Why: a split root means tab.title is only the focused pane's title.
+      terminalLayoutsByTabId: {
+        'tab-1': {
+          root: {
+            type: 'split',
+            direction: 'horizontal',
+            first: { type: 'leaf', leafId: 'leaf-1' },
+            second: { type: 'leaf', leafId: 'leaf-2' },
+            ratio: 0.5
+          }
+        }
+      }
+    }
+    const paneA = makeAgent({ tab: splitTab } as Partial<DashboardAgentRow>)
+    const paneB = makeAgent({
+      paneKey: 'tab-1:leaf-2',
+      tab: splitTab
+    } as Partial<DashboardAgentRow>)
+    expect(useAgentRowConversationName(paneA)).toBeNull()
+    expect(useAgentRowConversationName(paneB)).toBeNull()
+  })
+
+  it('keeps the live title on a single-pane tab', () => {
+    const tab = { id: 'tab-1', worktreeId: 'wt-1', customTitle: null, title: '✳ Redis cache' }
+    storeState.current = {
+      settings: {},
+      tabsByWorktree: { 'wt-1': [tab] },
+      terminalLayoutsByTabId: { 'tab-1': { root: { type: 'leaf', leafId: 'leaf-1' } } }
+    }
+    expect(useAgentRowConversationName(makeAgent({ tab } as Partial<DashboardAgentRow>))).toBe(
+      'Redis cache'
+    )
+  })
+
   it('honors the generated-titles setting for generated names', () => {
     const agent = makeAgent({
       tab: { customTitle: null, title: '', generatedTitle: 'Fix intake flow' }
     } as Partial<DashboardAgentRow>)
-    storeState.current = { settings: {}, tabsByWorktree: {} }
+    storeState.current = { settings: {}, tabsByWorktree: {}, terminalLayoutsByTabId: {} }
     expect(useAgentRowConversationName(agent)).toBeNull()
     storeState.current = {
       settings: { tabAutoGenerateTitle: true },
-      tabsByWorktree: {}
+      tabsByWorktree: {},
+      terminalLayoutsByTabId: {}
     }
     expect(useAgentRowConversationName(agent)).toBe('Fix intake flow')
   })

src/renderer/src/components/dashboard/use-agent-row-conversation-name.ts

@@ -39,10 +39,21 @@ export function useAgentRowConversationName(agent: DashboardAgentRow): string |
       ? undefined
       : getIndexedTab(s.tabsByWorktree[agent.tab.worktreeId], agent.tab.id)
   )
+  // Why: a split root means the tab holds more than one pane, so its live title
+  // belongs to whichever pane has focus. Selecting the boolean (not the layout)
+  // keeps this row subscribed to splits, not to every title frame.
+  const tabHasSplitPanes = useAppStore(
+    (s) => !cannotOwnTabName && s.terminalLayoutsByTabId[agent.tab.id]?.root?.type === 'split'
+  )
   // Why: synthetic and same-tab child rows do not own the parent tab's name.
   if (cannotOwnTabName) {
     return null
   }
   // Why: retained row snapshots need a fallback after their live tab disappears.
-  return getAgentRowConversationName(liveTab ?? agent.tab, agent.agentType, generatedTitlesEnabled)
+  return getAgentRowConversationName(
+    liveTab ?? agent.tab,
+    agent.agentType,
+    generatedTitlesEnabled,
+    tabHasSplitPanes
+  )
 }

src/shared/agent-row-conversation-name.test.ts

@@ -37,6 +37,43 @@ describe('getAgentRowConversationName', () => {
     expect(getAgentRowConversationName(tab, 'claude', false)).toBe('Investigate replay bug')
   })
 
+  it('drops the live title in a split tab, where it names only the focused pane', () => {
+    const tab = makeTab({ title: '✳ Investigate replay bug' })
+    expect(getAgentRowConversationName(tab, 'claude', false)).toBe('Investigate replay bug')
+    expect(getAgentRowConversationName(tab, 'claude', false, true)).toBeNull()
+    // OpenCode semantic titles are live titles too, so they go with it.
+    const openCodeTab = makeTab({ title: 'OC | build the release pipeline' })
+    expect(getAgentRowConversationName(openCodeTab, 'opencode', false, true)).toBeNull()
+  })
+
+  it('keeps tab-owned names in a split tab', () => {
+    // Why: the user gave these to the whole tab, so every pane in it may show them.
+    expect(
+      getAgentRowConversationName(
+        makeTab({ customTitle: 'Patient sync spike' }),
+        'claude',
+        false,
+        true
+      )
+    ).toBe('Patient sync spike')
+    expect(
+      getAgentRowConversationName(
+        makeTab({ quickCommandLabel: 'Run tests' }),
+        'claude',
+        false,
+        true
+      )
+    ).toBe('Run tests')
+    expect(
+      getAgentRowConversationName(
+        makeTab({ generatedTitle: 'Fix intake flow' }),
+        'claude',
+        true,
+        true
+      )
+    ).toBe('Fix intake flow')
+  })
+
   it('strips leading status decoration from agent-set titles', () => {
     expect(
       getAgentRowConversationName(makeTab({ title: '✳ Fix patient intake flow' }), 'claude', false)

src/shared/agent-row-conversation-name.ts

@@ -113,7 +113,8 @@ function conversationNameFromLiveTitle(
 export function getAgentRowConversationName(
   tab: ConversationNameTab,
   agentType: AgentType | null | undefined,
-  generatedTitlesEnabled: boolean
+  generatedTitlesEnabled: boolean,
+  tabHasSplitPanes = false
 ): string | null {
   const customTitle = tab.customTitle?.trim()
   if (customTitle) {
@@ -123,7 +124,9 @@ export function getAgentRowConversationName(
   if (quickCommandLabel) {
     return quickCommandLabel
   }
-  const liveTitle = tab.title?.trim() ?? ''
+  // Why: pty-connection only propagates the focused pane's title to the tab
+  // (deliberately, to stop split agents flickering), so in a split it mislabels siblings.
+  const liveTitle = tabHasSplitPanes ? '' : (tab.title?.trim() ?? '')
   if (isMeaningfulOpenCodeTerminalTitle(liveTitle)) {
     return liveTitle
   }