[BUG] Slash-command picker only opens if "/" is the first character of the whole message

Environment

• Claude Code app: CLI (terminal)
• OS: macOS 26.6.2 (build 25G83)
• Version: 2.1.243

Summary

The slash-command picker opens only when the user types "/" as the first character in an empty message box. If text comes before the "/", the picker does not open. This is true even when spaces separate the text from the "/". The command still runs when the user sends the message. So the app runs a command it did not help the user find or check for spelling errors.

Steps to reproduce

1. Open an empty message box.
2. Type: asdfasdfasdfasdf / asdfasdfasdf
3. Look at the screen. The picker does not open for the "/" in the middle.
4. Send the message. The app runs the command anyway.

Expected

The picker should open for any "/" that could start a command name, not only at the first character of the message.

Actual

The picker does not open for a "/" that is not the first character of the message. The app does not filter commands. The app does not highlight a command.

Why it matters

A user can type a command name wrong with no warning. This blocks a normal way of writing: add context first, then add a command. Example: "please also /command-name this."

History — other users reported this same bug many times before

• 2025-12-04 — #13073 (closed)
• 2026-03-01 — #29752 (closed)
• 2026-03-18 — #35589 (closed)
• 2026-05-01 — #55173 (closed as "not planned" — a bot closed it for inactivity, not because a fix landed)
• 2026-08-25 — #89398 (open, exact duplicate of this report)

Do not close this issue as stale. This is a real, unfixed bug. Contact the reporter for more repro steps if needed.