diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/app/shell/model-menu-panel.test.tsx b/apps/desktop/src/app/shell/model-menu-panel.test.tsx
index 7ae098d0f673..64532b2541a0 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/app/shell/model-menu-panel.test.tsx
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/app/shell/model-menu-panel.test.tsx
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ import { afterEach, beforeAll, beforeEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from 'vite
 
 import { DropdownMenu, DropdownMenuContent } from '@/components/ui/dropdown-menu'
 import { $activeSessionId, $currentModel, $currentProvider } from '@/store/session'
-import { $collapsedProviders } from '@/store/provider-collapse'
+import { $collapsedProviders, toggleCollapsedProvider } from '@/store/provider-collapse'
 
 import { ModelMenuPanel } from './model-menu-panel'
 
@@ -197,4 +197,55 @@ describe('ModelMenuPanel provider collapse', () => {
 
     expect(content.queryByText('Deepseek V4 Pro')).toBeNull()
   })
+
+  // The collapsed-providers set is a global presentation preference
+  // (`hermes.desktop.collapsed-providers`), but the catalog the picker renders
+  // is profile-scoped (`getGlobalModelOptions` routes through
+  // `profileScoped()`). Pruning the global set against only the active catalog
+  // would silently delete a user's collapse preference on every profile switch
+  // whose configured providers don't include the slug — the bug the maintainer
+  // flagged. The set must survive catalog changes; if the same provider shows
+  // up again later, the previous collapse is preserved.
+  it('preserves the collapsed set across a profile switch whose catalog lacks the slug', async () => {
+    toggleCollapsedProvider('deepseek')
+    toggleCollapsedProvider('google')
+    expect($collapsedProviders.get()).toEqual(['deepseek', 'google'])
+
+    // Profile A: both providers present, render + unmount.
+    getGlobalModelOptions.mockResolvedValueOnce({ providers: MOCK_PROVIDERS })
+    const a = renderPanel()
+    await a.content.findByText('DeepSeek')
+    a.content.unmount()
+
+    // Profile B: google is not in the catalog (simulates a profile whose
+    // configured providers differ). The previously-collapsed 'google' slug
+    // must survive — pruning it would lose state across a profile switch.
+    getGlobalModelOptions.mockResolvedValueOnce({ providers: [DEEPSEEK_PROVIDER, MOA_PROVIDER] })
+    const b = renderPanel()
+    await b.content.findByText('DeepSeek')
+
+    expect($collapsedProviders.get()).toEqual(['deepseek', 'google'])
+  })
+
+  it('preserves the collapsed set when Refresh Models drops a provider', async () => {
+    toggleCollapsedProvider('deepseek')
+    toggleCollapsedProvider('google')
+
+    // First load: both providers present.
+    getGlobalModelOptions.mockResolvedValueOnce({ providers: MOCK_PROVIDERS })
+    const a = renderPanel()
+    await a.content.findByText('DeepSeek')
+    a.content.unmount()
+
+    // Refresh Models returns a catalog that drops google (revoked key,
+    // plugin disabled, backend policy change). 'google' must survive — the
+    // user explicitly collapsed it, and the global set is not tied to any
+    // single refresh.
+    getGlobalModelOptions.mockResolvedValueOnce({ providers: [DEEPSEEK_PROVIDER, MOA_PROVIDER] })
+    const b = renderPanel()
+    await b.content.findByText('DeepSeek')
+
+    expect($collapsedProviders.get()).toContain('google')
+    expect($collapsedProviders.get()).toContain('deepseek')
+  })
 })
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/app/shell/model-menu-panel.tsx b/apps/desktop/src/app/shell/model-menu-panel.tsx
index 6dd816191ffa..6a600f7b8c38 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/app/shell/model-menu-panel.tsx
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/app/shell/model-menu-panel.tsx
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 import { useStore } from '@nanostores/react'
 import { useQuery, useQueryClient } from '@tanstack/react-query'
-import { createContext, useContext, useEffect, useMemo, useState } from 'react'
+import { createContext, useContext, useMemo, useState } from 'react'
 
 import { useSessionView } from '@/app/chat/session-view'
 import { Codicon } from '@/components/ui/codicon'
@@ -38,7 +38,7 @@ import {
   modelVisibilityKey,
   setModelVisibilityOpen
 } from '@/store/model-visibility'
-import { $collapsedProviders, pruneStaleCollapsed, toggleCollapsedProvider } from '@/store/provider-collapse'
+import { $collapsedProviders, toggleCollapsedProvider } from '@/store/provider-collapse'
 import type { ModelOptionProvider, ModelOptionsResponse } from '@/types/hermes'
 
 import { ModelEditSubmenu, resolveFastControl } from './model-edit-submenu'
@@ -123,14 +123,6 @@ export function ModelMenuPanel({ gateway, onSelectModel, requestGateway }: Model
     [providers]
   )
 
-  // Drop stale collapsed provider slugs when the provider list changes
-  // (e.g. after Refresh Models, plugin install/uninstall).
-  useEffect(() => {
-    if (pickerProviders.length > 0) {
-      pruneStaleCollapsed(pickerProviders.map(p => p.slug))
-    }
-  }, [pickerProviders])
-
   const effectiveVisibleModels = useMemo(
     () => effectiveVisibleKeys(visibleModels, pickerProviders),
     [visibleModels, pickerProviders]
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/store/provider-collapse.ts b/apps/desktop/src/store/provider-collapse.ts
index a139003c77f3..bd484ac008a7 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/store/provider-collapse.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/store/provider-collapse.ts
@@ -4,7 +4,21 @@ const STORAGE_KEY = 'hermes.desktop.collapsed-providers'
 
 /** Set of provider slugs whose model groups are currently collapsed in the
  *  model picker dropdown. Persisted to localStorage globally — this is a
- *  presentation-layer preference, not a per-profile setting. */
+ *  presentation-layer preference, not a per-profile setting.
+ *
+ *  We deliberately do NOT prune this set when the active provider catalog
+ *  changes (e.g. profile switch, Refresh Models, API key revoked). The catalog
+ *  the picker renders is profile-scoped (`getGlobalModelOptions` routes through
+ *  `profileScoped()`), so pruning against only the active catalog would delete
+ *  a user's collapse preference every time they switch to a profile whose
+ *  configured providers don't include it — silently losing state across what
+ *  is otherwise a pure presentational toggle.
+ *
+ *  Provider slugs come from a small bounded configured set (not user input),
+ *  so dead entries in the array cost a few bytes and have no observable effect:
+ *  the render loop only visits providers present in the active `groups`, and
+ *  `collapsedProviders.includes(slug)` against an absent slug is a no-op.
+ */
 export const $collapsedProviders = persistentAtom<string[]>(
   STORAGE_KEY,
   [],
@@ -20,15 +34,3 @@ export function toggleCollapsedProvider(slug: string): void {
       : [...current, slug]
   )
 }
-
-/** Remove slugs from the collapsed set that no longer match any current
- *  provider. Call this after provider list changes (e.g. Refresh Models,
- *  plugin install/uninstall) to prevent unbounded growth. */
-export function pruneStaleCollapsed(slugs: string[]): void {
-  const valid = new Set(slugs)
-  const next = $collapsedProviders.get().filter(s => valid.has(s))
-
-  if (next.length !== $collapsedProviders.get().length) {
-    $collapsedProviders.set(next)
-  }
-}