### Preflight Checklist - [x] I have searched [existing issues](https://github.com/anthropics/claude-code/issues?q=is%3Aissue%20state%3Aopen%20label%3Abug) and this hasn't been reported yet - [x] This is a single bug report (please file separate reports for different bugs) - [x] I am using the latest version of Claude Code ### What's Wrong? Claude Desktop hangs indefinitely on startup with an orange spinner, immediately after accepting the cookie/consent dialog. The app never becomes usable.

Claude Desktop stuck indefinitely (5+ min) on [buddy] starting bridge — never reaches "bridge started" (unlike #71951)

Status Open

Reported on v2.1.207

Maintainer reply None cached

Activity 0 comments · opened Jul 21, 2026

Preflight Checklist

[x] I have searched existing issues and this hasn't been reported yet
[x] This is a single bug report (please file separate reports for different bugs)
[x] I am using the latest version of Claude Code

What's Wrong?

Claude Desktop hangs indefinitely on startup with an orange spinner, immediately after accepting the cookie/consent dialog. The app never becomes usable. 100% reproducible, persisted across multiple app updates over roughly two months.

Possibly related to #27625 (same account-UUID/bridge resolution path).

What Should Happen?

Stale app version — reproduced identically on v1.9659.2 (May) and v1.21459.0 (July), across multiple auto-updates in between.
Gatekeeper/quarantine — ls -lO shows no schg flag; app updates normally.
Config corruption — ~/.claude.json is well-formed, with a valid oauthAccount block and accountUuid.
GrowthBook feature flag tengu_bridge_system_init — found cached as false; manually forced to true, confirmed persisted across restart (not overwritten by the [growthbook] refreshing for account change step) — hang unchanged. Doesn't appear to control this.
Network connectivity — confirmed working during the hang.
Hardware generalization — same macOS build (26.5, 25F71) runs Claude Desktop with no issue on a second machine (MacBook, Apple A18 Pro chip), same account. Rules out account-level or macOS-build-level cause.

Error Messages/Logs

Waited 5+ minutes with no resolution (unlike anthropics/claude-code#71951, where the same [buddy] starting bridge stall self-resolves after ~69-70 seconds). In this case, [buddy] bridge started never appears at all, even after extended waiting.

Steps to Reproduce

Steps to Reproduce
Install/update Claude Desktop on a Mac mini M4
Sign in with a Claude Pro account
Accept the cookie/consent dialog on first screen
Observe: orange spinner never resolves; main.log stuck at [buddy] starting bridge

Claude Model

None

Is this a regression?

Yes, this worked in a previous version

Last Working Version

_No response_

Claude Code Version

2.1.207 (Claude Code)

Platform

Anthropic API

Operating System

macOS

Terminal/Shell

Terminal.app (macOS)

Additional Information

Hardware: Mac mini M4, 16 GB RAM
macOS: 26.5 (build 25F71), also reproduced on 26.5.2 (25F84)
Claude Desktop version: 1.21459.0 (also reproduced on 1.9659.2 in late May)
Install method: native
Account: Claude Pro subscription (organizationType: claude_pro), authenticated and working fine everywhere else (browser, CLI)

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