diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/chrome.tsx b/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/chrome.tsx
index 3d422ab3c8759..a08bfa608c0b2 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/chrome.tsx
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/chrome.tsx
@@ -31,6 +31,9 @@ const rowLead = 'grid size-3.5 shrink-0 place-items-center'
 const rowInset = cn(rowPadX, rowGap, 'flex h-full min-w-0 items-center self-stretch py-0.5')
 const rowLabel = 'min-w-0 truncate text-[0.8125rem] leading-none text-(--ui-text-secondary)'
 
+/** Inbox-style card (workspace + age, title + preview, model + size). */
+export const SIDEBAR_ROW_CARD_MIN_H = 'min-h-[3.375rem]' as const
+
 /** Codicon size in sidebar row leads — matches the file tree (`tree.tsx`). */
 export const SIDEBAR_LEAD_ICON_SIZE = '0.875rem' as const
 
@@ -73,15 +76,16 @@ export function SidebarDateDivider({
  *  one selector: it holds real controls, never grab surface. */
 export function SidebarRowShell({
   actions,
+  actionsClassName,
   children,
   className,
   ...props
-}: React.ComponentProps<'div'> & { actions?: React.ReactNode }) {
+}: React.ComponentProps<'div'> & { actions?: React.ReactNode; actionsClassName?: string }) {
   return (
     <div className={cn(rowMinH, 'grid grid-cols-[minmax(0,1fr)_auto] items-stretch rounded-md', className)} {...props}>
       {children}
       {actions ? (
-        <div className="flex shrink-0 items-center self-center" data-row-actions>
+        <div className={cn('flex shrink-0 items-center self-center', actionsClassName)} data-row-actions>
           {actions}
         </div>
       ) : null}
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/filter-menu.tsx b/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/filter-menu.tsx
index f7019c3a8f707..2b205c23da47c 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/filter-menu.tsx
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/filter-menu.tsx
@@ -22,6 +22,7 @@ import { useI18n } from '@/i18n'
 import { desktopGit } from '@/lib/desktop-git'
 import { cn } from '@/lib/utils'
 import {
+  $sidebarCardRows,
   $sidebarFiltersActive,
   $sidebarGrouping,
   $sidebarOrdering,
@@ -34,6 +35,7 @@ import {
   $sidebarViewCustomized,
   $sidebarWorkspaceNodeOpen,
   resetSidebarView,
+  setSidebarCardRows,
   setSidebarGrouping,
   setSidebarOrdering,
   setSidebarShowArchived,
@@ -87,6 +89,7 @@ const ORDERINGS: Option<SidebarOrdering>[] = [
 
 const ROW_META: Option<SidebarRowMeta>[] = [
   { icon: 'clock', id: 'updated', label: 'Updated' },
+  { icon: 'comment', id: 'preview', label: 'Preview' },
   { icon: 'symbol-numeric', id: 'tokens', label: 'Tokens' },
   { icon: 'credit-card', id: 'cost', label: 'Cost' },
   { icon: 'git-pull-request', id: 'pr', label: 'PR' },
@@ -150,6 +153,7 @@ export function SidebarFilterMenu({ className }: { className?: string }) {
   const grouping = useStore($sidebarGrouping)
   const ordering = useStore($sidebarOrdering)
   const rowMeta = useStore($sidebarRowMeta)
+  const cardRows = useStore($sidebarCardRows)
   const statusFilter = useStore($sidebarStatusFilter)
   const projectFilter = useStore($sidebarProjectFilter)
   const profileFilter = useStore($sidebarProfileFilter)
@@ -190,6 +194,11 @@ export function SidebarFilterMenu({ className }: { className?: string }) {
       return hasCost || rowMeta.includes('cost')
     }
 
+    // Preview is a card line; the one-line row has nowhere to put it.
+    if (option.id === 'preview') {
+      return cardRows
+    }
+
     return option.id !== 'pr' || prAvailable
   })
 
@@ -263,6 +272,14 @@ export function SidebarFilterMenu({ className }: { className?: string }) {
               ))}
             </DropdownMenuSubContent>
           </DropdownMenuSub>
+
+          {/* A render variant, not a grouping: three-line cards (project · age /
+              title / model · size) compose with whichever grouping is active. */}
+          <OptionCheckbox
+            checked={cardRows}
+            onCheck={() => setSidebarCardRows(!cardRows)}
+            option={{ icon: 'inbox', id: 'card-rows', label: 'Inbox style' }}
+          />
         </DropdownMenuGroup>
 
         <DropdownMenuSeparator />
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/index.tsx b/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/index.tsx
index 40adea2a544ed..10556dff1ffef 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/index.tsx
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/index.tsx
@@ -36,6 +36,7 @@ import {
   $dismissedAutoProjectIds,
   $panesFlipped,
   $pinnedSessionIds,
+  $sidebarCardRows,
   $sidebarCronOpen,
   $sidebarFiltersActive,
   $sidebarGrouping,
@@ -334,6 +335,7 @@ export function ChatSidebar({
   const pullRequests = useStore($pullRequestsByBranch)
   const filtersActive = useStore($sidebarFiltersActive)
   const showArchived = useStore($sidebarShowArchived)
+  const cardRows = useStore($sidebarCardRows)
   const archivedSessions = useStore($archivedSessions)
   const dotStates = useStore($sessionDotStateById)
   // The active sort key as an id order. The flat list applies it within its
@@ -1598,6 +1600,10 @@ export function ChatSidebar({
                 // list does — only the flat list can swap its dividers for
                 // WORKING / DONE.
                 grouping={showArchived || rankedGlobally ? 'none' : grouping === 'status' ? 'status' : 'date'}
+                // Inbox style is a render variant, not a grouping: only the
+                // flat recents list opts in, and only outside the project tree
+                // (whose rows already carry workspace context).
+                card={cardRows && !agentsGrouped}
                 groups={displayAgentGroups}
                 headerAction={
                   inProject && enteredProject ? (
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/session-row.test.tsx b/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/session-row.test.tsx
index f3c91c5411e05..90b5211852624 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/session-row.test.tsx
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/session-row.test.tsx
@@ -26,6 +26,7 @@ vi.mock('@/i18n', () => ({
           backgroundRunning: 'Running in background',
           finishedUnread: 'Finished',
           handoffOrigin: (platform: string) => `Started on ${platform}`,
+          messageCount: (count: number) => `${count} messages`,
           needsInput: 'Needs input',
           sessionActions: 'Session actions',
           sessionRunning: 'Running',
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/session-row.tsx b/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/session-row.tsx
index c4602f1ace5d6..91efb5c8ca218 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/session-row.tsx
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/session-row.tsx
@@ -13,15 +13,19 @@ import { Tip } from '@/components/ui/tooltip'
 import type { SessionInfo } from '@/hermes'
 import { type Translations, useI18n } from '@/i18n'
 import { sessionTitle } from '@/lib/chat-runtime'
+import { pathLeaf } from '@/lib/display-path'
 import { compactNumber } from '@/lib/format'
 import { triggerHaptic } from '@/lib/haptics'
 import { middleClickHandlers } from '@/lib/middle-click'
+import { displayModelName } from '@/lib/model-status-label'
+import { sessionProjectLabel } from '@/lib/session-project-label'
 import { handoffOriginSource, sessionSourceLabel } from '@/lib/session-source'
 import { coarseElapsed } from '@/lib/time'
 import { useStoreSelector } from '@/lib/use-session-slice'
 import { cn } from '@/lib/utils'
 import { $sidebarRowMeta } from '@/store/layout'
 import { normalizeProfileKey } from '@/store/profile'
+import { $projects } from '@/store/projects'
 import { $pullRequestsByBranch, sessionPrKey } from '@/store/pull-requests'
 import { $sessionDotStateById, hasLiveTurn, showsRunningArc } from '@/store/session-dot-state'
 import { sessionCostUsd } from '@/store/sidebar-archive'
@@ -29,6 +33,7 @@ import { sessionCostUsd } from '@/store/sidebar-archive'
 import { SessionStatusDot } from '../session-status-dot'
 
 import {
+  SIDEBAR_ROW_CARD_MIN_H,
   SidebarRowBody,
   SidebarRowGrab,
   SidebarRowLabel,
@@ -57,6 +62,10 @@ interface SidebarSessionRowProps extends React.ComponentProps<'div'> {
    *  flat cross-profile lists — Pinned and search results in the All-profiles
    *  view — where no group header communicates ownership (#66003). */
   showProfile?: boolean
+  /** Inbox-style card: workspace header, title + last-message preview, and a
+   *  model · size footer. The flat recents list opts in via the filter menu;
+   *  dense tree surfaces (projects, messaging, pins) keep the one-line row. */
+  card?: boolean
 }
 
 const AGE_KEY = { day: 'ageDay', hour: 'ageHour', minute: 'ageMin' } as const
@@ -89,6 +98,7 @@ function SidebarSessionRowImpl({
   dragging = false,
   dragHandleProps,
   showProfile = false,
+  card = false,
   className,
   style,
   ref,
@@ -126,7 +136,10 @@ function SidebarSessionRowImpl({
     // Sub-cent spend rounds to "$0.00", which reads as a bug rather than as a
     // cheap session — below a cent the row says nothing at all.
     rowMeta.includes('cost') && cost >= 0.01 ? `$${cost.toFixed(2)}` : null,
-    pinnedAge ? age : null
+    // The card always shows its age — it IS the header line's right edge — and
+    // it rides the same trailing slot as everything else, so the kebab swaps
+    // over it on hover exactly like the one-line row.
+    pinnedAge || card ? age : null
   ].filter(Boolean) as string[]
 
   // Everything the Show menu puts after the title shares ONE right-aligned
@@ -147,7 +160,11 @@ function SidebarSessionRowImpl({
   }
 
   if (figures.length) {
-    const head = figures.slice(0, -1).join(' · ')
+    // The card's meta lines separate by spacing alone, so its header figures
+    // match (non-breaking pair — plain spaces collapse to one); the one-line
+    // row keeps the interpunct between joined figures.
+    const sep = card ? '\u00A0\u00A0' : ' · '
+    const head = figures.slice(0, -1).join(sep)
 
     trailing.push({
       key: 'figures',
@@ -156,7 +173,7 @@ function SidebarSessionRowImpl({
           {head}
           {/* The figures own their tail: the separator goes with it. */}
           <span className={cn('inline-block text-right', TAIL_HIDES)}>
-            {head && ' · '}
+            {head && sep}
             {figures.at(-1)}
           </span>
         </span>
@@ -177,6 +194,25 @@ function SidebarSessionRowImpl({
   const dotState = useStoreSelector($sessionDotStateById, states => states[session.id] ?? 'idle')
   const liveTurn = hasLiveTurn(dotState)
 
+  // Card header line: the workspace this belongs to — the project when it
+  // resolves (same function the session color reads, so name and tint agree;
+  // a worktree reports its repo, not the scratch dir it sits in), else the
+  // bare cwd leaf, else the same synthetic "Home" the project views use for
+  // workspace-less chats. Always text: an empty header line reads as a hole.
+  // A SELECTOR, not useStore($projects): the projects atom refreshes on the
+  // tree poll with fresh identity, and a plain subscription would re-render
+  // every row (card or not) on every poll. Selecting the resolved label means
+  // a row only repaints when its own label actually changes — and one-line
+  // rows always select null.
+  const context = useStoreSelector($projects, projects =>
+    card ? (sessionProjectLabel(session, projects) ?? (pathLeaf(session.cwd) || t.sidebar.projects.home)) : null
+  )
+  // Card footer line: which model worked on it and how big it got. Rendered
+  // as separate spans with a flex gap — a joined string can't put real space
+  // between them (HTML collapses runs of whitespace to one).
+  const model = card && session.model ? displayModelName(session.model) : ''
+  const size = card && session.message_count > 0 ? r.messageCount(session.message_count) : ''
+
   // An archived session has no live status to paint, so the archive glyph takes
   // the lead slot the dot would occupy instead of adding a column of its own.
   const lead = session.archived ? (
@@ -185,6 +221,50 @@ function SidebarSessionRowImpl({
     </SidebarRowLeadGlyph>
   ) : null
 
+  // The trailing metadata sits in normal flow and the kebab lifts out of it,
+  // so this cluster's intrinsic width IS the metadata's. In the one-line row
+  // it rides the shell's `auto` actions column and the title truncates
+  // against it. In the card it renders INSIDE the header row instead — the
+  // shell column would span the card's full height and shave every line,
+  // when only the header shares its line with the age and kebab.
+  const actionsNode = (
+    <div className="relative z-2 flex shrink-0 items-center justify-end gap-1" data-row-actions>
+      {trailing.map(({ key, node }, index) => (
+        <span
+          className={
+            chipEndsSlot && index === trailing.length - 1 ? cn('inline-flex justify-end', TAIL_HIDES) : undefined
+          }
+          key={key}
+        >
+          {node}
+        </span>
+      ))}
+      <SessionActionsMenu
+        onArchive={onArchive}
+        onBranch={onBranch}
+        onDelete={onDelete}
+        onPin={onPin}
+        pinned={isPinned}
+        profile={session.profile}
+        sessionId={session.id}
+        title={title}
+      >
+        <Button
+          aria-label={r.sessionActions}
+          className={cn(
+            'size-5 rounded-[4px] bg-transparent text-transparent transition-colors duration-100 hover:bg-(--ui-control-active-background) hover:text-foreground focus-visible:bg-(--ui-control-active-background) focus-visible:text-foreground focus-visible:ring-0 data-[state=open]:bg-(--ui-control-active-background) data-[state=open]:text-foreground group-hover:text-(--ui-text-tertiary) [&_svg]:size-3.5!',
+            trailing.length > 0 && 'absolute right-0',
+            pr && KEBAB_YIELDS
+          )}
+          size="icon"
+          variant="ghost"
+        >
+          <Codicon name="kebab-vertical" size="0.875rem" />
+        </Button>
+      </SessionActionsMenu>
+    </div>
+  )
+
   return (
     <SessionContextMenu
       onArchive={onArchive}
@@ -197,51 +277,10 @@ function SidebarSessionRowImpl({
       title={title}
     >
       <SidebarRowShell
-        actions={
-          // The trailing metadata sits in normal flow and the kebab lifts out
-          // of it, so this slot's intrinsic width IS the metadata's — the row's
-          // `auto` actions column measures it and the title truncates against
-          // whatever is switched on, with no width to hand-maintain. Nothing
-          // switched on leaves the slot to the kebab alone; hover changes what
-          // you can see in it, never how wide it is.
-          <div className="relative z-2 flex items-center justify-end gap-1" data-row-actions>
-            {trailing.map(({ key, node }, index) => (
-              <span
-                className={
-                  chipEndsSlot && index === trailing.length - 1 ? cn('inline-flex justify-end', TAIL_HIDES) : undefined
-                }
-                key={key}
-              >
-                {node}
-              </span>
-            ))}
-            <SessionActionsMenu
-              onArchive={onArchive}
-              onBranch={onBranch}
-              onDelete={onDelete}
-              onPin={onPin}
-              pinned={isPinned}
-              profile={session.profile}
-              sessionId={session.id}
-              title={title}
-            >
-              <Button
-                aria-label={r.sessionActions}
-                className={cn(
-                  'size-5 rounded-[4px] bg-transparent text-transparent transition-colors duration-100 hover:bg-(--ui-control-active-background) hover:text-foreground focus-visible:bg-(--ui-control-active-background) focus-visible:text-foreground focus-visible:ring-0 data-[state=open]:bg-(--ui-control-active-background) data-[state=open]:text-foreground group-hover:text-(--ui-text-tertiary) [&_svg]:size-3.5!',
-                  trailing.length > 0 && 'absolute right-0',
-                  pr && KEBAB_YIELDS
-                )}
-                size="icon"
-                variant="ghost"
-              >
-                <Codicon name="kebab-vertical" size="0.875rem" />
-              </Button>
-            </SessionActionsMenu>
-          </div>
-        }
+        actions={card ? undefined : actionsNode}
         className={cn(
           'group row-hover relative',
+          card && SIDEBAR_ROW_CARD_MIN_H,
           isSelected && 'bg-(--ui-row-active-background)',
           liveTurn && 'text-foreground',
           // Opaque surface while lifted so the dragged row erases what's under
@@ -286,7 +325,14 @@ function SidebarSessionRowImpl({
           // Every trailing figure lives in the actions slot, which the row
           // measures — so the title needs a gap from it and nothing else. Hover
           // changes what you can see in that slot, never how wide it is.
-          className={cn('z-0 pr-2', branchStem && 'pl-3.5')}
+          className={cn(
+            'z-0 pr-2',
+            branchStem && 'pl-3.5',
+            // The card is a grid with ONE spacing knob: --card-gap. Every row
+            // gap is gap-y-(--card-gap); the title/preview group opts out
+            // with its own tighter internal flex gap.
+            card && 'flex-col items-stretch justify-center py-1.5 [--card-gap:0.6rem] gap-(--card-gap)'
+          )}
           // Middle-click = open in a new tab (browser muscle memory).
           {...middleClickHandlers(() => {
             triggerHaptic('selection')
@@ -383,6 +429,7 @@ function rowPropsEqual(a: SidebarSessionRowProps, b: SidebarSessionRowProps): bo
     a.reorderable === b.reorderable &&
     a.dragging === b.dragging &&
     a.showProfile === b.showProfile &&
+    a.card === b.card &&
     a.dragHandleProps === b.dragHandleProps &&
     a.className === b.className &&
     a.style === b.style
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/sessions-section.tsx b/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/sessions-section.tsx
index 5470b8ec408a1..f95d40a8df6c0 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/sessions-section.tsx
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/sessions-section.tsx
@@ -163,6 +163,11 @@ interface SidebarSessionsSectionProps {
   // pinned, messaging groups, and the project overview, where the order isn't
   // strictly by recency so a bucket would be misleading.
   grouping?: 'date' | 'none' | 'status'
+  // Inbox style: render every flat session row as a three-line card (project ·
+  // age / title / model · size). A render variant that composes with whichever
+  // grouping is active — the flat recents list opts in; dense tree surfaces
+  // (pinned, projects, messaging) keep the one-line row.
+  card?: boolean
 }
 
 export function SidebarSessionsSection({
@@ -204,7 +209,8 @@ export function SidebarSessionsSection({
   projectBackRow,
   dndSensors,
   showProfileTags = false,
-  grouping = 'none'
+  grouping = 'none',
+  card = false
 }: SidebarSessionsSectionProps) {
   const { t } = useI18n()
   const dividerLabels = t.sidebar.dateDivider
@@ -243,6 +249,7 @@ export function SidebarSessionsSection({
     (session: SessionInfo, draggable: boolean, branchStem?: string) => {
       const rowProps = {
         branchStem,
+        card,
         isPinned: pinned,
         isSelected: session.id === activeSessionId,
         onArchive: () => onArchiveSession(session.id),
@@ -263,6 +270,7 @@ export function SidebarSessionsSection({
     },
     [
       activeSessionId,
+      card,
       onArchiveSession,
       onBranchSession,
       onDeleteSession,
@@ -444,6 +452,7 @@ export function SidebarSessionsSection({
     const virtual = (
       <VirtualSessionList
         activeSessionId={activeSessionId}
+        card={card}
         className={contentClassName}
         dividerAction={dividerAction}
         onArchiveSession={onArchiveSession}
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/virtual-session-list.tsx b/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/virtual-session-list.tsx
index b9f640b855fd0..cb9f99714d552 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/virtual-session-list.tsx
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/sidebar/virtual-session-list.tsx
@@ -16,6 +16,7 @@ import { SidebarSessionRow } from './session-row'
 
 interface SessionRowCommonProps {
   branchStem?: string
+  card?: boolean
   isPinned: boolean
   isSelected: boolean
   onArchive: () => void
@@ -29,6 +30,8 @@ interface SessionRowCommonProps {
 
 export interface VirtualSessionListProps {
   activeSessionId: null | string
+  /** Render every session row as the three-line inbox card. */
+  card?: boolean
   className?: string
   /** Hover-revealed control for date dividers (the group-level "+"). */
   dividerAction?: React.ReactNode
@@ -44,10 +47,15 @@ export interface VirtualSessionListProps {
 }
 
 const ROW_ESTIMATE_PX = 28
+// Matches the card's typical rendered height (four lines when a preview
+// exists) so long card lists don't jump under the scroll thumb before
+// self-measurement catches up.
+const CARD_ROW_ESTIMATE_PX = 66
 const OVERSCAN_ROWS = 12
 
 export const VirtualSessionList: FC<VirtualSessionListProps> = ({
   activeSessionId,
+  card = false,
   className,
   dividerAction,
   rows: listRows,
@@ -66,7 +74,7 @@ export const VirtualSessionList: FC<VirtualSessionListProps> = ({
 
   const virtualizer = useVirtualizer({
     count: listRows.length,
-    estimateSize: () => ROW_ESTIMATE_PX,
+    estimateSize: () => (card ? CARD_ROW_ESTIMATE_PX : ROW_ESTIMATE_PX),
     getItemKey: index => {
       const row = listRows[index]
 
@@ -108,6 +116,7 @@ export const VirtualSessionList: FC<VirtualSessionListProps> = ({
 
     const commonProps: SessionRowCommonProps = {
       branchStem,
+      card,
       isPinned: pinned,
       isSelected: session.id === activeSessionId,
       onArchive: () => onArchiveSession(session.id),
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/i18n/en.ts b/apps/desktop/src/i18n/en.ts
index 1d7c819f275ee..ae4837711515f 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/i18n/en.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/i18n/en.ts
@@ -1985,6 +1985,7 @@ export const en: Translations = {
       renameDesc: 'Leave empty to clear.',
       untitledPlaceholder: 'Untitled session',
       untitledChat: id => `Chat ${id}`,
+      messageCount: count => `${count} ${count === 1 ? 'message' : 'messages'}`,
       ageNow: 'now',
       ageDay: 'd',
       ageHour: 'h',
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/i18n/types.ts b/apps/desktop/src/i18n/types.ts
index 3c7499ce5bcc2..37bf953982053 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/i18n/types.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/i18n/types.ts
@@ -1674,6 +1674,7 @@ export interface Translations {
       renameDesc: string
       untitledPlaceholder: string
       untitledChat: (id: string) => string
+      messageCount: (count: number) => string
       ageNow: string
       ageDay: string
       ageHour: string
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/i18n/zh.ts b/apps/desktop/src/i18n/zh.ts
index 0108834f3a74d..701d7bff689c3 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/i18n/zh.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/i18n/zh.ts
@@ -2176,6 +2176,7 @@ export const zh: Translations = {
       renameDesc: '留空则清除。',
       untitledPlaceholder: '无标题会话',
       untitledChat: id => `会话 ${id}`,
+      messageCount: count => `${count} 条消息`,
       ageNow: '刚刚',
       ageDay: '天',
       ageHour: '时',
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/lib/session-project-label.ts b/apps/desktop/src/lib/session-project-label.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000..aa64f5236606d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/lib/session-project-label.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,40 @@
+import { liveSessionProjectId } from '@/app/chat/sidebar/projects/workspace-groups'
+import { pathLeaf } from '@/lib/display-path'
+import type { ProjectInfo, SessionInfo } from '@/types/hermes'
+
+/**
+ * The PROJECT a session belongs to, as a label for the sidebar card.
+ *
+ * Resolution order:
+ *   1. `liveSessionProjectId` — the same resolver the session COLOR reads, so
+ *      an explicitly-projected row's name and its inherited tint always agree.
+ *      Returns an explicit project id, or a repo root for an auto-project.
+ *   2. the recorded `git_repo_root` leaf.
+ *   3. null (a chat with no workspace at all).
+ *
+ * Why step 2 exists: `liveSessionProjectId` deliberately refuses to place a
+ * worktree that lives OUTSIDE its repo root (`bb/<slug>` beside the checkout
+ * rather than in-tree `.worktrees/`), because for LANE MEMBERSHIP a sibling
+ * directory genuinely can't be assigned from the row alone. A label has no
+ * such ambiguity: the backend already recorded which repo the session belongs
+ * to, so we can name it. Without this, most of a sibling-worktree workflow's
+ * rows would paint a blank line — and naming the repo is exactly the point of
+ * showing the project instead of the cwd (`hermes-agent`, not
+ * `hermes-agent-cwd-copy`).
+ *
+ * This never widens membership — it only names a row that placement leaves
+ * unplaced.
+ */
+export function sessionProjectLabel(session: SessionInfo, projects: ProjectInfo[]): null | string {
+  const projectId = liveSessionProjectId(session, projects)
+
+  if (projectId) {
+    const explicit = projects.find(project => project.id === projectId)
+
+    // An explicit project shows its user-given name; an auto-project's id IS
+    // its repo root path, so it shows that folder's leaf.
+    return (explicit ? explicit.name.trim() : pathLeaf(projectId)) || null
+  }
+
+  return pathLeaf(session.git_repo_root) || null
+}
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/store/layout.ts b/apps/desktop/src/store/layout.ts
index d47ac8b4b73dd..0cd1a63adeba6 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/store/layout.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/store/layout.ts
@@ -37,6 +37,7 @@ const SIDEBAR_GROUPING_STORAGE_KEY = 'hermes.desktop.sidebarGrouping'
 const SIDEBAR_ALL_PROFILES_GROUPING_STORAGE_KEY = 'hermes.desktop.sidebarGrouping.allProfiles'
 const SIDEBAR_SORT_KEY_STORAGE_KEY = 'hermes.desktop.sidebarSortKey'
 const SIDEBAR_ROW_META_STORAGE_KEY = 'hermes.desktop.sidebarRowMeta'
+const SIDEBAR_CARD_ROWS_STORAGE_KEY = 'hermes.desktop.sidebarCardRows'
 const SIDEBAR_STATUS_FILTER_STORAGE_KEY = 'hermes.desktop.sidebarStatusFilter'
 const SIDEBAR_SHOW_ARCHIVED_STORAGE_KEY = 'hermes.desktop.sidebarShowArchived'
 const SIDEBAR_PROJECT_FILTER_STORAGE_KEY = 'hermes.desktop.sidebarProjectFilter'
@@ -211,8 +212,9 @@ export type SidebarGrouping = 'date' | 'profile' | 'project' | 'status'
 export type SidebarOrdering = 'cost' | 'created' | 'manual' | 'status' | 'tokens' | 'updated'
 /** The sort keys the menu offers; `manual` is entered by dragging, not picked. */
 export type SidebarSortKey = Exclude<SidebarOrdering, 'manual'>
-/** Optional per-row metadata the user can switch on. */
-export type SidebarRowMeta = 'cost' | 'pr' | 'profile' | 'tokens' | 'updated'
+/** Optional per-row metadata the user can switch on. `preview` is card-only:
+ *  the one-line row has nowhere to put a second line. */
+export type SidebarRowMeta = 'cost' | 'pr' | 'preview' | 'profile' | 'tokens' | 'updated'
 
 function oneOf<T extends string>(values: readonly T[], fallback: T): Codec<T> {
   return {
@@ -228,7 +230,7 @@ function listOf<T extends string>(values: readonly T[]): Codec<T[]> {
   }
 }
 
-const ROW_META: readonly SidebarRowMeta[] = ['cost', 'pr', 'profile', 'tokens', 'updated']
+const ROW_META: readonly SidebarRowMeta[] = ['cost', 'pr', 'preview', 'profile', 'tokens', 'updated']
 const STATUS_FILTERS: readonly SessionStatusBucket[] = ['needs-input', 'working', 'unread', 'draft', 'idle']
 const PR_FILTERS: readonly PullRequestBucket[] = ['open', 'draft', 'merged', 'closed', 'none']
 export const SIDEBAR_SORT_KEYS: readonly SidebarSortKey[] = ['updated', 'created', 'status', 'tokens', 'cost']
@@ -258,7 +260,7 @@ const $sidebarAllProfilesGrouping = persistentAtom<SidebarGrouping>(
 // they used to inline the same literals in three places.
 const SIDEBAR_DEFAULT_GROUPING: SidebarGrouping = 'date'
 const SIDEBAR_DEFAULT_ORDERING: SidebarOrdering = 'updated'
-const SIDEBAR_DEFAULT_ROW_META: SidebarRowMeta[] = ['updated']
+const SIDEBAR_DEFAULT_ROW_META: SidebarRowMeta[] = ['preview', 'updated']
 
 const $sidebarSortKey = persistentAtom<SidebarSortKey>(
   SIDEBAR_SORT_KEY_STORAGE_KEY,
@@ -272,6 +274,16 @@ export const $sidebarRowMeta = persistentAtom<SidebarRowMeta[]>(
   listOf(ROW_META)
 )
 
+/** Inbox style: render the flat list's session rows as three-line cards
+ *  (project · age / title / model · size) instead of the one-line row. A
+ *  RENDER variant, deliberately not a grouping — it composes with whichever
+ *  grouping is active. Off by default; dense tree surfaces never use it. */
+export const $sidebarCardRows = persistentAtom(SIDEBAR_CARD_ROWS_STORAGE_KEY, false, Codecs.bool)
+
+export function setSidebarCardRows(on: boolean) {
+  $sidebarCardRows.set(on)
+}
+
 /** Order-insensitive: the menu appends in click order, so ['tokens','updated']
  *  and ['updated','tokens'] are the same view. */
 function sameRowMeta(a: SidebarRowMeta[], b: SidebarRowMeta[]): boolean {
@@ -335,11 +347,12 @@ export const $sidebarFiltersActive: ReadableAtom<boolean> = computed(
  *  offering. Broader than `$sidebarFiltersActive`, which only knows about what
  *  hides rows, not about how they're grouped, sorted or labelled. */
 export const $sidebarViewCustomized: ReadableAtom<boolean> = computed(
-  [$sidebarGrouping, $sidebarOrdering, $sidebarRowMeta, $sidebarFiltersActive],
-  (grouping, ordering, rowMeta, filtersActive) =>
+  [$sidebarGrouping, $sidebarOrdering, $sidebarRowMeta, $sidebarCardRows, $sidebarFiltersActive],
+  (grouping, ordering, rowMeta, cardRows, filtersActive) =>
     grouping !== SIDEBAR_DEFAULT_GROUPING ||
     ordering !== SIDEBAR_DEFAULT_ORDERING ||
     !sameRowMeta(rowMeta, SIDEBAR_DEFAULT_ROW_META) ||
+    cardRows ||
     filtersActive
 )
 
@@ -622,6 +635,7 @@ export function resetSidebarView() {
   $sidebarAllProfilesGrouping.set(SIDEBAR_DEFAULT_GROUPING)
   setSidebarOrdering(SIDEBAR_DEFAULT_ORDERING)
   $sidebarRowMeta.set(SIDEBAR_DEFAULT_ROW_META)
+  $sidebarCardRows.set(false)
   clearSidebarFilters()
 }