diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/composer/rich-editor.ts b/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/composer/rich-editor.ts
index 71491b87496d..21f0286c9f82 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/composer/rich-editor.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/composer/rich-editor.ts
@@ -15,6 +15,7 @@ import {
   type SlashChipKind,
   slashIconElement
 } from '@/components/assistant-ui/directive-text'
+import { sessionRefFallbackLabel } from '@/lib/session-refs'
 
 export const RICH_INPUT_SLOT = 'composer-rich-input'
 
@@ -59,7 +60,9 @@ export function refChipHtml(kind: string, rawValue: string, displayLabel?: strin
   const id = unquoteRef(rawValue)
   const text = `@${kind}:${quoteRefValue(id)}`
 
-  return `<span contenteditable="false" data-ref-text="${escapeHtml(text)}" data-ref-id="${escapeHtml(id)}" data-ref-kind="${escapeHtml(kind)}" class="${DIRECTIVE_CHIP_CLASS}">${directiveIconSvg(kind)}<span class="truncate">${escapeHtml(displayLabel || refLabel(id))}</span></span>`
+  const label = displayLabel || (kind === 'session' ? sessionRefFallbackLabel(id) : refLabel(id))
+
+  return `<span contenteditable="false" data-ref-text="${escapeHtml(text)}" data-ref-id="${escapeHtml(id)}" data-ref-kind="${escapeHtml(kind)}" class="${DIRECTIVE_CHIP_CLASS}">${directiveIconSvg(kind)}<span class="truncate">${escapeHtml(label)}</span></span>`
 }
 
 export function refChipElement(kind: string, rawValue: string, displayLabel?: string) {
@@ -74,7 +77,7 @@ export function refChipElement(kind: string, rawValue: string, displayLabel?: st
   chip.dataset.refKind = kind
   chip.className = DIRECTIVE_CHIP_CLASS
   label.className = 'truncate'
-  label.textContent = displayLabel || refLabel(id)
+  label.textContent = displayLabel || (kind === 'session' ? sessionRefFallbackLabel(id) : refLabel(id))
   chip.append(directiveIconElement(kind), label)
 
   return chip
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/directive-text.test.ts b/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/directive-text.test.ts
index 60c89f18b1e4..36ab54d743e7 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/directive-text.test.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/directive-text.test.ts
@@ -36,4 +36,14 @@ describe('hermesDirectiveFormatter.parse', () => {
       { kind: 'text', text: ' the entry point' }
     ])
   })
+
+  it('parses session links with profile/id values', () => {
+    const segments = hermesDirectiveFormatter.parse('see @session:work/20260101_abc123 next')
+
+    expect(segments).toEqual([
+      { kind: 'text', text: 'see ' },
+      { kind: 'mention', type: 'session', label: '20260101…', id: 'work/20260101_abc123' },
+      { kind: 'text', text: ' next' }
+    ])
+  })
 })
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/directive-text.tsx b/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/directive-text.tsx
index ffa63a7b8877..6ea2580f16b8 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/directive-text.tsx
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/directive-text.tsx
@@ -7,7 +7,11 @@ import { Fragment, useEffect, useMemo, useState } from 'react'
 
 import { ZoomableImage } from '@/components/chat/zoomable-image'
 import { extractEmbeddedImages } from '@/lib/embedded-images'
+import { triggerHaptic } from '@/lib/haptics'
 import { gatewayMediaDataUrl, isRemoteGateway } from '@/lib/media'
+import { useSessionLinkTitle } from '@/lib/session-link-title'
+import { parseSessionRefValue, sessionRefFallbackLabel } from '@/lib/session-refs'
+import { cn } from '@/lib/utils'
 
 const HERMES_REF_TYPES = ['file', 'folder', 'url', 'image', 'tool', 'line', 'terminal', 'session'] as const
 type HermesRefType = (typeof HERMES_REF_TYPES)[number]
@@ -40,11 +44,7 @@ const ICON_PATHS: Record<HermesRefType, string[]> = {
   tool: ['M7 10h3v-3l-3.5 -3.5a6 6 0 0 1 8 8l6 6a2 2 0 0 1 -3 3l-6 -6a6 6 0 0 1 -8 -8l3.5 3.5'],
   line: ['M5 9l14 0', 'M5 15l14 0', 'M11 4l-4 16', 'M17 4l-4 16'],
   terminal: ['M5 7l5 5l-5 5', 'M12 19l7 0'],
-  session: [
-    'M8 9h8',
-    'M8 13h6',
-    'M18 4a3 3 0 0 1 3 3v8a3 3 0 0 1 -3 3h-5l-5 3v-3h-2a3 3 0 0 1 -3 -3v-8a3 3 0 0 1 3 -3z'
-  ]
+  session: ['M4 4h16v2.172a2 2 0 0 1 -.586 1.414l-4.414 4.414v7l-6 2v-8.5l-4.48 -4.928a2 2 0 0 1 -.52 -1.345v-2.227']
 }
 
 const ICON_FALLBACK = ['M8 12a4 4 0 1 0 8 0a4 4 0 1 0 -8 0', 'M16 12v1.5a2.5 2.5 0 0 0 5 0v-1.5a9 9 0 1 0 -5.5 8.28']
@@ -123,9 +123,12 @@ export function slashIconElement(kind: SlashChipKind) {
   return iconElementFromPaths(SLASH_ICON_PATHS[kind])
 }
 
-const DirectiveIcon: FC<{ type: string }> = ({ type }) => (
+const DirectiveIcon: FC<{ type: string; className?: string }> = ({
+  type,
+  className = 'size-3 shrink-0 opacity-80'
+}) => (
   <svg
-    className="size-3 shrink-0 opacity-80"
+    className={className}
     fill="none"
     stroke="currentColor"
     strokeLinecap="round"
@@ -314,12 +317,8 @@ function shortLabel(type: HermesRefType, id: string): string {
     }
   }
 
-  // `@session:<profile>/<id>` — show a short id; the composer chip carries the
-  // friendly title, but once sent the wire form only has the id.
   if (type === 'session') {
-    const sid = id.split('/').filter(Boolean).pop() || id
-
-    return sid.length > 10 ? `${sid.slice(0, 8)}…` : sid
+    return sessionRefFallbackLabel(id)
   }
 
   const tail = id.split(/[\\/]/).filter(Boolean).pop()
@@ -368,7 +367,9 @@ export function DirectiveContent({ text }: { text: string }) {
       {segments.map((segment, index) =>
         segment.kind === 'text' ? (
           <Fragment key={`t-${index}`}>{segment.text}</Fragment>
-        ) : segment.type === 'image' ? null : (
+        ) : segment.type === 'image' ? null : segment.type === 'session' ? (
+          <SessionRefChip key={`m-${index}-${segment.id}`} label={segment.label} value={segment.id} />
+        ) : (
           <DirectiveChip id={segment.id} key={`m-${index}-${segment.id}`} label={segment.label} type={segment.type} />
         )
       )}
@@ -451,19 +452,87 @@ const DirectiveImage: FC<{ id: string; label: string }> = ({ id, label }) => {
   )
 }
 
+/** Opens the referenced session as a tab — same as middle-clicking its sidebar
+ *  row. The tile store loads on click, not at import: the composer's rich
+ *  editor pulls this module in, and a static import would boot the profile
+ *  store (and its REST routing) along with it. */
+function openSessionRef(value: string) {
+  const { sessionId } = parseSessionRefValue(value)
+
+  if (!sessionId) {
+    return
+  }
+
+  triggerHaptic('selection')
+  void import('@/store/session-states').then(({ openSessionTile }) => openSessionTile(sessionId, 'center'))
+}
+
+/** A `@session:<profile>/<id>` reference in the user transcript (directive
+ *  segments), rendered as a chip like the other composer refs. Clicking it
+ *  opens the session as a tab. */
+export const SessionRefChip: FC<{
+  label?: string
+  value: string
+}> = ({ label, value }) => {
+  const resolved = useSessionLinkTitle(value, label)
+
+  return <DirectiveChip id={value} label={resolved} onClick={() => openSessionRef(value)} type="session" />
+}
+
+/** A `@session:` reference in assistant markdown (`#session/` links rewritten
+ *  in `preprocessMarkdown`). Reads as an ordinary inline link — the agent wrote
+ *  it mid-sentence — with the funnel icon leading the resolved title. */
+export const SessionRefLink: FC<{
+  label?: string
+  value: string
+}> = ({ label, value }) => {
+  const resolved = useSessionLinkTitle(value, label)
+
+  return (
+    <a
+      className="font-semibold text-foreground underline underline-offset-4 decoration-current/20 wrap-anywhere"
+      href="#"
+      onClick={event => {
+        event.preventDefault()
+        event.stopPropagation()
+        openSessionRef(value)
+      }}
+      title={value}
+    >
+      <DirectiveIcon className="mr-1 inline size-[0.82em] align-[-0.08em] opacity-70" type="session" />
+      {resolved}
+    </a>
+  )
+}
+
+/** Inert by default; `onClick` promotes the chip to a real button (session
+ *  refs, which open the session they name). */
 const DirectiveChip: FC<{
   type: string
   label: string
   id: string
-}> = ({ type, label, id }) => (
-  <span
-    className={DIRECTIVE_CHIP_CLASS}
-    data-directive-id={id}
-    data-directive-type={type}
-    data-slot="aui_directive-chip"
-    title={id}
-  >
-    <DirectiveIcon type={type} />
-    <span className="truncate">{label}</span>
-  </span>
-)
+  onClick?: () => void
+}> = ({ type, label, id, onClick }) => {
+  const body = (
+    <>
+      <DirectiveIcon type={type} />
+      <span className="truncate">{label}</span>
+    </>
+  )
+
+  const props = {
+    className: cn(DIRECTIVE_CHIP_CLASS, onClick && 'cursor-pointer transition-colors hover:text-foreground'),
+    'data-directive-id': id,
+    'data-directive-type': type,
+    'data-slot': 'aui_directive-chip',
+    title: id
+  }
+
+  return onClick ? (
+    <button {...props} onClick={onClick} type="button">
+      {body}
+    </button>
+  ) : (
+    <span {...props}>{body}</span>
+  )
+}
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/markdown-text.session.test.tsx b/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/markdown-text.session.test.tsx
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..6c7b02cf7af2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/markdown-text.session.test.tsx
@@ -0,0 +1,66 @@
+import { cleanup, render, screen } from '@testing-library/react'
+import { afterEach, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest'
+
+import { __resetSessionLinkTitleCache } from '@/lib/session-link-title'
+import { $sessions } from '@/store/session'
+import type { SessionInfo } from '@/types/hermes'
+
+import { MarkdownTextContent } from './markdown-text'
+
+function makeSession(overrides: Partial<SessionInfo> = {}): SessionInfo {
+  return {
+    ended_at: null,
+    id: '20260101_abc123',
+    input_tokens: 0,
+    is_active: false,
+    last_active: 1_000,
+    message_count: 1,
+    model: null,
+    output_tokens: 0,
+    preview: null,
+    profile: 'work',
+    source: 'cli',
+    started_at: 1_000,
+    title: 'Branch plan',
+    tool_call_count: 0,
+    ...overrides
+  }
+}
+
+afterEach(() => {
+  cleanup()
+  $sessions.set([])
+  __resetSessionLinkTitleCache()
+})
+
+// End-to-end for the agent-authored path: a bare ref in assistant markdown has
+// to survive preprocessMarkdown -> Streamdown -> MarkdownLink and come out as
+// an inline link titled after the session, not as literal text.
+describe('MarkdownTextContent session refs', () => {
+  it('renders an agent-written @session ref as a link showing the session title', async () => {
+    $sessions.set([makeSession()])
+
+    render(<MarkdownTextContent isRunning={false} text="Context lives in @session:work/20260101_abc123 today." />)
+
+    const link = await screen.findByTitle('work/20260101_abc123')
+
+    expect(link.tagName).toBe('A')
+    expect(link.textContent).toBe('Branch plan')
+    expect(screen.queryByText(/@session:/)).toBeNull()
+  })
+
+  it('falls back to a short id when the session is unknown', async () => {
+    render(<MarkdownTextContent isRunning={false} text="See @session:work/20260101_abc123 for context." />)
+
+    const link = await screen.findByTitle('work/20260101_abc123')
+
+    expect(link.textContent).toBe('20260101…')
+  })
+
+  it('leaves a ref inside inline code as literal text', () => {
+    render(<MarkdownTextContent isRunning={false} text="Write `@session:work/20260101_abc123` to link a chat." />)
+
+    expect(screen.getByText('@session:work/20260101_abc123')).toBeTruthy()
+    expect(screen.queryByTitle('work/20260101_abc123')).toBeNull()
+  })
+})
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/markdown-text.tsx b/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/markdown-text.tsx
index f5d78f531334..7684a4c4240c 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/markdown-text.tsx
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/markdown-text.tsx
@@ -30,8 +30,10 @@ import {
   resolveMediaDisplaySrc
 } from '@/lib/media'
 import { previewTargetFromMarkdownHref } from '@/lib/preview-targets'
+import { sessionRefFromMarkdownHref } from '@/lib/session-refs'
 import { cn } from '@/lib/utils'
 
+import { SessionRefLink } from './directive-text'
 import { detectEmbed, extractAlert, MarkdownAlert, RichCodeBlock, UrlEmbed } from './embeds'
 
 // Math rendering plugin (KaTeX). Configured once at module scope — the
@@ -233,6 +235,12 @@ function MarkdownLink({ children, className, href, ...props }: ComponentProps<'a
     return <PreviewAttachment source="explicit-link" target={previewTarget} />
   }
 
+  const sessionRef = sessionRefFromMarkdownHref(href)
+
+  if (sessionRef) {
+    return <SessionRefLink value={sessionRef} />
+  }
+
   const target = href ? normalizeExternalUrl(href) : href
 
   if (!target || !/^https?:\/\//i.test(target)) {
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/session-ref-open.test.tsx b/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/session-ref-open.test.tsx
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..de3674f529ca
--- /dev/null
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/session-ref-open.test.tsx
@@ -0,0 +1,43 @@
+import { cleanup, fireEvent, render, screen } from '@testing-library/react'
+import { afterEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from 'vitest'
+
+import { __resetSessionLinkTitleCache } from '@/lib/session-link-title'
+
+import { DirectiveContent } from './directive-text'
+import { MarkdownTextContent } from './markdown-text'
+
+const openSessionTile = vi.fn()
+
+vi.mock('@/store/session-states', () => ({
+  openSessionTile: (...args: unknown[]) => openSessionTile(...args)
+}))
+
+afterEach(() => {
+  cleanup()
+  openSessionTile.mockClear()
+  __resetSessionLinkTitleCache()
+})
+
+// Both surfaces render a session ref differently — an inline link in agent
+// prose, a chip in the user's own message — but either one opens the session
+// it names, the way its sidebar row would.
+describe('session refs open the session', () => {
+  it('opens the session from an agent-written link', async () => {
+    render(<MarkdownTextContent isRunning={false} text="Picked up in @session:work/20260101_abc123 last night." />)
+
+    fireEvent.click(await screen.findByTitle('work/20260101_abc123'))
+
+    await vi.waitFor(() => expect(openSessionTile).toHaveBeenCalledWith('20260101_abc123', 'center'))
+  })
+
+  it('opens the session from a chip in the user transcript', async () => {
+    render(<DirectiveContent text="pick up @session:work/20260101_abc123 please" />)
+
+    const chip = screen.getByTitle('work/20260101_abc123')
+
+    expect(chip.tagName).toBe('BUTTON')
+    fireEvent.click(chip)
+
+    await vi.waitFor(() => expect(openSessionTile).toHaveBeenCalledWith('20260101_abc123', 'center'))
+  })
+})
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/lib/markdown-preprocess.ts b/apps/desktop/src/lib/markdown-preprocess.ts
index 25213e7ab305..c4a8731f4782 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/lib/markdown-preprocess.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/lib/markdown-preprocess.ts
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@ import { normalizeMathDelimiters } from '@assistant-ui/react-streamdown'
 
 import { isLikelyProseFence, sanitizeLanguageTag } from '@/lib/markdown-code'
 import { stripPreviewTargets } from '@/lib/preview-targets'
+import { linkifySessionRefs } from '@/lib/session-refs'
 
 const REASONING_BLOCK_RE = /<(think|thinking|reasoning|scratchpad|analysis)>[\s\S]*?<\/\1>\s*/gi
 const PREVIEW_MARKER_RE = /\[Preview:[^\]]+\]\(#preview[:/][^)]+\)/gi
@@ -149,8 +150,10 @@ function normalizeVisibleProse(text: string): string {
     .map(part =>
       part.startsWith('`')
         ? part
-        : autoLinkRawUrls(
-            part.replace(/`{3,}/g, '').replace(LOCAL_PREVIEW_URL_RE, '$1').replace(CITATION_MARKER_RE, '')
+        : linkifySessionRefs(
+            autoLinkRawUrls(
+              part.replace(/`{3,}/g, '').replace(LOCAL_PREVIEW_URL_RE, '$1').replace(CITATION_MARKER_RE, '')
+            )
           )
     )
     .join('')
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/lib/session-link-title.test.ts b/apps/desktop/src/lib/session-link-title.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..f04daeca3301
--- /dev/null
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/lib/session-link-title.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,119 @@
+import { afterEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from 'vitest'
+
+import { getSession } from '@/hermes'
+import { $sessions } from '@/store/session'
+import type { SessionInfo } from '@/types/hermes'
+
+import {
+  __resetSessionLinkTitleCache,
+  fetchSessionLinkTitle,
+  lookupLocalSessionTitle
+} from './session-link-title'
+import { sessionRefCacheKey } from './session-refs'
+
+vi.mock('@/hermes', () => ({
+  getSession: vi.fn()
+}))
+
+function makeSession(overrides: Partial<SessionInfo> = {}): SessionInfo {
+  return {
+    ended_at: null,
+    id: '20260101_abc123',
+    input_tokens: 0,
+    is_active: false,
+    last_active: 1_000,
+    message_count: 1,
+    model: null,
+    output_tokens: 0,
+    preview: null,
+    profile: 'default',
+    source: 'cli',
+    started_at: 1_000,
+    title: 'Research notes',
+    tool_call_count: 0,
+    ...overrides
+  }
+}
+
+afterEach(() => {
+  __resetSessionLinkTitleCache()
+  $sessions.set([])
+  vi.mocked(getSession).mockReset()
+})
+
+describe('lookupLocalSessionTitle', () => {
+  it('reads from the in-memory session list', () => {
+    $sessions.set([makeSession({ profile: 'work', title: 'Branch plan' })])
+
+    expect(lookupLocalSessionTitle('work/20260101_abc123')).toBe('Branch plan')
+  })
+
+  it('matches the lineage root so a compressed chat still resolves', () => {
+    $sessions.set([makeSession({ _lineage_root_id: '20260101_abc123', id: '20260102_tip', title: 'Compressed chat' })])
+
+    expect(lookupLocalSessionTitle('20260101_abc123')).toBe('Compressed chat')
+  })
+
+  it('ignores a same-id row owned by another profile', () => {
+    $sessions.set([makeSession({ profile: 'work', title: 'Work chat' })])
+
+    expect(lookupLocalSessionTitle('personal/20260101_abc123')).toBe('')
+  })
+
+  it('returns empty for an untitled row so the caller can fall back to the id', () => {
+    $sessions.set([makeSession({ preview: null, title: null })])
+
+    expect(lookupLocalSessionTitle('default/20260101_abc123')).toBe('')
+  })
+})
+
+describe('fetchSessionLinkTitle', () => {
+  it('dedupes concurrent lookups', async () => {
+    vi.mocked(getSession).mockResolvedValue(makeSession({ title: 'From API' }))
+
+    const value = 'default/20260101_abc123'
+    const [first, second] = await Promise.all([fetchSessionLinkTitle(value), fetchSessionLinkTitle(value)])
+
+    expect(first).toBe('From API')
+    expect(second).toBe('From API')
+    expect(getSession).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1)
+    expect(getSession).toHaveBeenCalledWith('20260101_abc123', 'default')
+  })
+
+  it('uses the local sidebar row before calling the API', async () => {
+    $sessions.set([makeSession({ title: 'Cached title' })])
+
+    await expect(fetchSessionLinkTitle('default/20260101_abc123')).resolves.toBe('Cached title')
+    expect(getSession).not.toHaveBeenCalled()
+  })
+
+  it('keeps separate cache entries per profile', async () => {
+    vi.mocked(getSession).mockImplementation(async (id, profile) =>
+      makeSession({ id, profile: profile ?? 'default', title: profile === 'work' ? 'Work chat' : 'Home chat' })
+    )
+
+    await expect(fetchSessionLinkTitle('default/20260101_abc123')).resolves.toBe('Home chat')
+    await expect(fetchSessionLinkTitle('work/20260101_abc123')).resolves.toBe('Work chat')
+    expect(sessionRefCacheKey('default/20260101_abc123')).not.toBe(sessionRefCacheKey('work/20260101_abc123'))
+  })
+
+  it('falls back to the preview when the session has no title', async () => {
+    vi.mocked(getSession).mockResolvedValue(makeSession({ preview: 'Summarize this repo', title: null }))
+
+    await expect(fetchSessionLinkTitle('20260101_abc123')).resolves.toBe('Summarize this repo')
+  })
+
+  it('resolves empty when the id is not on this backend', async () => {
+    vi.mocked(getSession).mockRejectedValue(new Error('Session not found'))
+
+    await expect(fetchSessionLinkTitle('default/missing')).resolves.toBe('')
+  })
+
+  it('resolves empty when the desktop bridge is unavailable', async () => {
+    vi.mocked(getSession).mockImplementation(() => {
+      throw new TypeError("Cannot read properties of undefined (reading 'api')")
+    })
+
+    await expect(fetchSessionLinkTitle('default/20260101_abc123')).resolves.toBe('')
+  })
+})
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/lib/session-link-title.ts b/apps/desktop/src/lib/session-link-title.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..27aff91002fb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/lib/session-link-title.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,143 @@
+/**
+ * Resolves `@session:<profile>/<id>` reference values to the session's title.
+ *
+ * Same shape as the external-link title resolver (`external-link.tsx`): a
+ * process-lifetime cache, in-flight dedupe, and subscribers so every chip for
+ * the same session repaints off one lookup. The sidebar list answers most
+ * lookups for free; only an unknown id costs a REST round-trip.
+ */
+import { useEffect, useMemo, useState } from 'react'
+
+import { getSession } from '@/hermes'
+import { parseSessionRefValue, sessionRefCacheKey, sessionRefFallbackLabel } from '@/lib/session-refs'
+import { $sessions, sessionMatchesStoredId } from '@/store/session'
+import type { SessionInfo } from '@/types/hermes'
+
+const titleCache = new Map<string, string>()
+const titleInflight = new Map<string, Promise<string>>()
+const titleSubs = new Map<string, Set<(value: string) => void>>()
+
+/** Deliberately not `sessionTitle()` from chat-runtime: its "Untitled session"
+ *  fallback is a worse chip label than the short id, so an untitled row
+ *  resolves to empty and the caller's fallback wins. */
+function sessionRowTitle(row: SessionInfo): string {
+  return row.title?.trim() || row.preview?.trim() || ''
+}
+
+function profileMatches(sessionProfile: null | string | undefined, target?: string): boolean {
+  if (!target) {
+    return true
+  }
+
+  return ((sessionProfile ?? '').trim() || 'default') === (target.trim() || 'default')
+}
+
+export function lookupLocalSessionTitle(value: string): string {
+  const { profile, sessionId } = parseSessionRefValue(value)
+
+  if (!sessionId) {
+    return ''
+  }
+
+  const row = $sessions
+    .get()
+    .find(session => sessionMatchesStoredId(session, sessionId) && profileMatches(session.profile, profile))
+
+  return row ? sessionRowTitle(row) : ''
+}
+
+/** REST lookup that can't throw: the bridge is absent outside Electron, and a
+ *  session id that isn't on this backend 404s. Both mean "no title". */
+function requestSessionRow(sessionId: string, profile?: string): Promise<null | SessionInfo> {
+  try {
+    return Promise.resolve(getSession(sessionId, profile ?? null)).catch(() => null)
+  } catch {
+    return Promise.resolve(null)
+  }
+}
+
+export function fetchSessionLinkTitle(value: string): Promise<string> {
+  const key = sessionRefCacheKey(value)
+
+  if (!key) {
+    return Promise.resolve('')
+  }
+
+  const cached = titleCache.get(key)
+
+  if (cached !== undefined) {
+    return Promise.resolve(cached)
+  }
+
+  const inflight = titleInflight.get(key)
+
+  if (inflight) {
+    return inflight
+  }
+
+  const local = lookupLocalSessionTitle(value)
+
+  if (local) {
+    titleCache.set(key, local)
+
+    return Promise.resolve(local)
+  }
+
+  const { profile, sessionId } = parseSessionRefValue(value)
+
+  const promise = requestSessionRow(sessionId, profile)
+    .then(row => (row ? sessionRowTitle(row) : ''))
+    .then(title => {
+      titleCache.set(key, title)
+      titleInflight.delete(key)
+      titleSubs.get(key)?.forEach(notify => notify(title))
+
+      return title
+    })
+
+  titleInflight.set(key, promise)
+
+  return promise
+}
+
+export function useSessionLinkTitle(value: string, fallbackLabel?: string): string {
+  const key = useMemo(() => sessionRefCacheKey(value), [value])
+  const fallback = fallbackLabel?.trim() || sessionRefFallbackLabel(value)
+  const [title, setTitle] = useState(() => (key ? titleCache.get(key) || lookupLocalSessionTitle(value) : ''))
+
+  useEffect(() => {
+    if (!key) {
+      return
+    }
+
+    const known = titleCache.get(key) || lookupLocalSessionTitle(value)
+
+    setTitle(known)
+
+    if (known) {
+      return
+    }
+
+    const subs = titleSubs.get(key) ?? new Set<(resolved: string) => void>()
+
+    subs.add(setTitle)
+    titleSubs.set(key, subs)
+    void fetchSessionLinkTitle(value)
+
+    return () => {
+      subs.delete(setTitle)
+
+      if (!subs.size) {
+        titleSubs.delete(key)
+      }
+    }
+  }, [key, value])
+
+  return title || fallback
+}
+
+export function __resetSessionLinkTitleCache(): void {
+  titleCache.clear()
+  titleInflight.clear()
+  titleSubs.clear()
+}
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/lib/session-refs.test.ts b/apps/desktop/src/lib/session-refs.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..5d4b1371a646
--- /dev/null
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/lib/session-refs.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,124 @@
+import { describe, expect, it } from 'vitest'
+
+import { preprocessMarkdown } from './markdown-preprocess'
+import {
+  linkifySessionRefs,
+  parseSessionRefValue,
+  sessionMarkdownHref,
+  sessionRefCacheKey,
+  sessionRefFallbackLabel,
+  sessionRefFromMarkdownHref,
+  splitSessionRefValue
+} from './session-refs'
+
+describe('parseSessionRefValue', () => {
+  it('splits profile and session id', () => {
+    expect(parseSessionRefValue('work/20260101_abc123')).toEqual({
+      profile: 'work',
+      sessionId: '20260101_abc123'
+    })
+  })
+
+  it('treats bare values as session ids', () => {
+    expect(parseSessionRefValue('20260101_abc123')).toEqual({ sessionId: '20260101_abc123' })
+  })
+})
+
+describe('sessionRefFallbackLabel', () => {
+  it('truncates long ids', () => {
+    expect(sessionRefFallbackLabel('default/20260610_120000_abcdef')).toBe('20260610…')
+  })
+
+  it('leaves short ids alone', () => {
+    expect(sessionRefFallbackLabel('work/abc123')).toBe('abc123')
+  })
+})
+
+describe('sessionRefCacheKey', () => {
+  it('separates the same id across profiles', () => {
+    expect(sessionRefCacheKey('work/abc')).not.toBe(sessionRefCacheKey('home/abc'))
+  })
+
+  it('is empty for a valueless ref', () => {
+    expect(sessionRefCacheKey('  ')).toBe('')
+  })
+})
+
+describe('splitSessionRefValue', () => {
+  it('peels prose punctuation off a bare value', () => {
+    expect(splitSessionRefValue('default/abc123.')).toEqual({ trailing: '.', value: 'default/abc123' })
+  })
+
+  it('leaves a quoted value fenced', () => {
+    expect(splitSessionRefValue('`my session`')).toEqual({ trailing: '', value: 'my session' })
+  })
+})
+
+describe('session markdown hrefs', () => {
+  it('round-trips a value through the fragment href', () => {
+    const href = sessionMarkdownHref('work/20260101_abc123')
+
+    expect(href).toBe('#session/work%2F20260101_abc123')
+    expect(sessionRefFromMarkdownHref(href)).toBe('work/20260101_abc123')
+  })
+
+  it('ignores hrefs that are not session fragments', () => {
+    expect(sessionRefFromMarkdownHref('#preview/foo')).toBeNull()
+    expect(sessionRefFromMarkdownHref('https://example.com')).toBeNull()
+    expect(sessionRefFromMarkdownHref(undefined)).toBeNull()
+  })
+})
+
+describe('linkifySessionRefs', () => {
+  it('rewrites a bare ref into a session link', () => {
+    expect(linkifySessionRefs('see @session:work/20260101_abc123 next')).toBe(
+      'see [20260101…](#session/work%2F20260101_abc123) next'
+    )
+  })
+
+  it('keeps trailing prose punctuation outside the link', () => {
+    expect(linkifySessionRefs('see @session:default/abc123.')).toBe('see [abc123](#session/default%2Fabc123).')
+  })
+
+  it('leaves text without a ref untouched', () => {
+    const text = 'no references here'
+
+    expect(linkifySessionRefs(text)).toBe(text)
+  })
+
+  it('does not match an email-like or path-embedded @session', () => {
+    expect(linkifySessionRefs('me@session:abc')).toBe('me@session:abc')
+    expect(linkifySessionRefs('a/@session:abc')).toBe('a/@session:abc')
+  })
+
+  it('leaves a ref a model already wrapped in a markdown link alone', () => {
+    const text = '[that chat](@session:work/abc123)'
+
+    expect(linkifySessionRefs(text)).toBe(text)
+  })
+})
+
+// The agent-authored path: assistant markdown runs through preprocessMarkdown
+// before Streamdown, so a bare ref must survive as a link — and must NOT be
+// rewritten inside code, where it is being discussed rather than referenced.
+describe('preprocessMarkdown session refs', () => {
+  it('linkifies a ref in prose', () => {
+    expect(preprocessMarkdown('Context is in @session:work/20260101_abc123 there.')).toContain(
+      '[20260101…](#session/work%2F20260101_abc123)'
+    )
+  })
+
+  it('leaves refs inside inline code alone', () => {
+    const out = preprocessMarkdown('Type `@session:work/20260101_abc123` to link a chat.')
+
+    expect(out).toContain('`@session:work/20260101_abc123`')
+    expect(out).not.toContain('#session/')
+  })
+
+  it('leaves refs inside a fenced block alone', () => {
+    const out = preprocessMarkdown(['```text', '@session:work/20260101_abc123', '```'].join('\n'))
+
+    expect(out).toContain('@session:work/20260101_abc123')
+    expect(out).not.toContain('#session/')
+  })
+})
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/lib/session-refs.ts b/apps/desktop/src/lib/session-refs.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..3ec9fbc62be5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/lib/session-refs.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,118 @@
+/**
+ * Pure helpers for `@session:<profile>/<id>` references.
+ *
+ * Kept free of React/store/API imports so the markdown preprocessor (a hot
+ * per-flush path) can use them without pulling in the resolver; the stateful
+ * title lookup lives in `session-link-title.ts`.
+ */
+
+/** Mirrors the composer/transcript form in `directive-text.tsx`: a bare value,
+ *  or one fenced in backticks/quotes so a value with spaces survives. The
+ *  lookbehinds keep `foo@session:` and URL paths from matching, and skip a ref
+ *  a model already wrapped in a markdown link — rewriting that would nest. */
+export const SESSION_REF_RE = /(?<![\w/])(?<!]\()@session:(`[^`\n]+`|"[^"\n]+"|'[^'\n]+'|\S+)/g
+
+const TRAILING_PUNCTUATION_RE = /[,.;:!?)\]}]+$/
+
+function unwrapQuotes(raw: string): null | string {
+  if (raw.length < 2) {
+    return null
+  }
+
+  const head = raw[0]
+  const tail = raw[raw.length - 1]
+
+  if ((head === '`' && tail === '`') || (head === '"' && tail === '"') || (head === "'" && tail === "'")) {
+    return raw.slice(1, -1)
+  }
+
+  return null
+}
+
+/** Splits a matched value into the reference itself and any prose punctuation
+ *  that the greedy `\S+` branch swallowed. Quoted values are already fenced. */
+export function splitSessionRefValue(raw: string): { trailing: string; value: string } {
+  const quoted = unwrapQuotes(raw)
+
+  if (quoted !== null) {
+    return { trailing: '', value: quoted }
+  }
+
+  const value = raw.replace(TRAILING_PUNCTUATION_RE, '')
+
+  return { trailing: raw.slice(value.length), value }
+}
+
+/** Session ids never contain a slash, so a slash unambiguously means
+ *  `<profile>/<id>` — same split as `tools/session_search_tool.py`. */
+export function parseSessionRefValue(value: string): { profile?: string; sessionId: string } {
+  const trimmed = value.trim()
+  const slash = trimmed.indexOf('/')
+
+  if (slash === -1) {
+    return { sessionId: trimmed }
+  }
+
+  const profile = trimmed.slice(0, slash).trim()
+  const sessionId = trimmed.slice(slash + 1).trim()
+
+  return sessionId ? { profile: profile || undefined, sessionId } : { sessionId: trimmed }
+}
+
+export function sessionRefCacheKey(value: string): string {
+  const { profile, sessionId } = parseSessionRefValue(value)
+
+  return sessionId ? `${profile ?? ''}/${sessionId}` : ''
+}
+
+/** Chip label before (or without) a resolved title — a short, still-identifying id. */
+export function sessionRefFallbackLabel(value: string): string {
+  const { sessionId } = parseSessionRefValue(value)
+
+  if (!sessionId) {
+    return value
+  }
+
+  return sessionId.length > 10 ? `${sessionId.slice(0, 8)}…` : sessionId
+}
+
+/** A fragment href, matching the `#preview/` convention in `preview-targets.ts`
+ *  — no custom URL scheme to survive markdown sanitization. */
+export function sessionMarkdownHref(value: string): string {
+  return `#session/${encodeURIComponent(value)}`
+}
+
+export function sessionRefFromMarkdownHref(href?: string): null | string {
+  if (!href?.startsWith('#session/')) {
+    return null
+  }
+
+  try {
+    return decodeURIComponent(href.slice('#session/'.length)) || null
+  } catch {
+    return null
+  }
+}
+
+/**
+ * Rewrites bare `@session:<profile>/<id>` tokens into markdown links so an
+ * agent-authored reference reaches `MarkdownLink` and renders as a chip.
+ * Callers must exclude code spans/fences — `preprocessMarkdown` already does.
+ */
+export function linkifySessionRefs(text: string): string {
+  if (!text.includes('@session:')) {
+    return text
+  }
+
+  return text.replace(SESSION_REF_RE, (match, raw: string) => {
+    const { trailing, value } = splitSessionRefValue(raw)
+
+    if (!parseSessionRefValue(value).sessionId) {
+      return match
+    }
+
+    const label = sessionRefFallbackLabel(value).replace(/[[\]\\]/g, '\\$&')
+
+    return `[${label}](${sessionMarkdownHref(value)})${trailing}`
+  })
+}
diff --git a/tests/tools/test_session_search.py b/tests/tools/test_session_search.py
index 3509055ecdb8..bd538ebd4cba 100644
--- a/tests/tools/test_session_search.py
+++ b/tests/tools/test_session_search.py
@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@ from tools.session_search_tool import (
     _is_compacted_message,
     _is_compression_ended,
     _resolve_to_parent,
+    _session_link,
     session_search,
 )
 
@@ -492,6 +493,69 @@ class TestReadShape:
         assert len(result["messages"]) == 30  # head 20 + tail 10
 
 
+# =========================================================================
+# Session links — the value the agent writes to point the user at a session
+# =========================================================================
+
+def _linked_session_id(link: str) -> str:
+    """Recover the session id from an `@session:[<profile>/]<id>` value."""
+    assert link.startswith("@session:"), link
+    value = link[len("@session:"):]
+
+    return value.rsplit("/", 1)[-1]
+
+
+class TestSessionLink:
+    def test_link_carries_the_named_profile(self):
+        assert _session_link("s_oldest", "work") == "@session:work/s_oldest"
+
+    def test_link_falls_back_to_a_bare_id_when_the_profile_is_unknown(self, monkeypatch):
+        monkeypatch.setattr(
+            "hermes_cli.profiles.get_active_profile_name",
+            lambda: "custom",
+        )
+
+        assert _session_link("s_oldest") == "@session:s_oldest"
+
+    def test_link_survives_a_failure_to_resolve_the_profile(self, monkeypatch):
+        def boom():
+            raise RuntimeError("no profile")
+
+        monkeypatch.setattr("hermes_cli.profiles.get_active_profile_name", boom)
+
+        assert _session_link("s_oldest") == "@session:s_oldest"
+
+    def test_read_result_links_to_the_session_it_read(self, db):
+        _seed_modpack_sessions(db)
+        result = json.loads(session_search(session_id="s_oldest", db=db))
+
+        assert _linked_session_id(result["link"]) == result["session_id"]
+
+    def test_every_discovery_result_links_to_its_own_session(self, db):
+        _seed_modpack_sessions(db)
+        result = json.loads(session_search(query="modpack", limit=5, db=db))
+
+        assert result["results"]
+        for entry in result["results"]:
+            assert _linked_session_id(entry["link"]) == entry["session_id"]
+
+    def test_every_browse_result_links_to_its_own_session(self, db):
+        _seed_modpack_sessions(db)
+        result = json.loads(session_search(db=db))
+
+        assert result["results"]
+        for entry in result["results"]:
+            assert _linked_session_id(entry["link"]) == entry["session_id"]
+
+    def test_link_splits_the_way_the_tool_parses_it_back(self):
+        """The agent hands its own link back as session_id; the value has to
+        survive the profile/id partition in session_search."""
+        value = _session_link("s_middle", "work")[len("@session:"):]
+        profile, _, session_id = value.partition("/")
+
+        assert (profile, session_id) == ("work", "s_middle")
+
+
 # =========================================================================
 # Cross-profile read — `profile` swaps in another profile's DB (read-only)
 # =========================================================================
diff --git a/tools/session_search_tool.py b/tools/session_search_tool.py
index bc09e82511d9..e305467f0542 100644
--- a/tools/session_search_tool.py
+++ b/tools/session_search_tool.py
@@ -291,6 +291,28 @@ def _resolve_profile_db(profile: str):
     return SessionDB(db_path=profiles_mod.get_profile_dir(canon) / "state.db", read_only=True)
 
 
+def _session_link(session_id: str, profile: str = None) -> str:
+    """The reference the agent writes to point the user at a session.
+
+    Same value the desktop composer emits when a session is dragged into a
+    message, so the desktop renders it as a link carrying the session's title.
+    The profile segment is omitted when we can't name it confidently — a bare
+    id still resolves, it just can't disambiguate across profiles.
+    """
+    name = (profile or "").strip()
+    if not name:
+        try:
+            from hermes_cli.profiles import get_active_profile_name
+
+            resolved = get_active_profile_name()
+            name = "" if resolved == "custom" else resolved
+        except Exception:
+            logging.debug("get_active_profile_name failed for session link", exc_info=True)
+            name = ""
+
+    return f"@session:{name}/{session_id}" if name else f"@session:{session_id}"
+
+
 def _locate_session_db(session_id: str):
     """Scan every profile's ``state.db`` (read-only) for a session id.
 
@@ -335,7 +357,7 @@ def _locate_session_db(session_id: str):
     return None, None
 
 
-def _read_session(db, session_id: str, head: int = 20, tail: int = 10) -> str:
+def _read_session(db, session_id: str, head: int = 20, tail: int = 10, link_profile: str = None) -> str:
     """Read shape: dump a whole session by id (head + tail when large).
 
     Serves the linked-session case — the user dropped an @session reference and
@@ -366,6 +388,7 @@ def _read_session(db, session_id: str, head: int = 20, tail: int = 10) -> str:
         "success": True,
         "mode": "read",
         "session_id": session_id,
+        "link": _session_link(session_id, link_profile),
         "session_meta": {
             "when": _format_timestamp(meta.get("started_at")),
             "source": meta.get("source"),
@@ -384,7 +407,7 @@ def _read_session(db, session_id: str, head: int = 20, tail: int = 10) -> str:
     return json.dumps(response, ensure_ascii=False)
 
 
-def _list_recent_sessions(db, limit: int, current_session_id: str = None) -> str:
+def _list_recent_sessions(db, limit: int, current_session_id: str = None, link_profile: str = None) -> str:
     """Return metadata for the most recent sessions (no LLM calls, no FTS5)."""
     try:
         sessions = db.list_sessions_rich(
@@ -405,6 +428,7 @@ def _list_recent_sessions(db, limit: int, current_session_id: str = None) -> str
                 continue
             results.append({
                 "session_id": sid,
+                "link": _session_link(sid, link_profile),
                 "title": s.get("title") or None,
                 "source": s.get("source", ""),
                 "started_at": s.get("started_at", ""),
@@ -630,6 +654,7 @@ def _discover(
     limit: int,
     sort: Optional[str],
     current_session_id: str = None,
+    link_profile: str = None,
 ) -> str:
     """Discovery shape: FTS5 + anchored window + bookends per hit. Single call."""
     role_list = role_filter if role_filter else ["user", "assistant"]
@@ -764,6 +789,9 @@ def _discover(
             entry["parent_session_id"] = lineage_root
         results.append(entry)
 
+    for entry in results:
+        entry["link"] = _session_link(entry["session_id"], link_profile)
+
     _final_payload = {
         "success": True,
         "mode": "discover",
@@ -848,7 +876,7 @@ def session_search(
     # Read shape: a session_id with no anchor → dump the whole session.
     if isinstance(session_id, str) and session_id.strip():
         sid = session_id.strip()
-        result = _read_session(db, sid)
+        result = _read_session(db, sid, link_profile=profile)
         if json.loads(result).get("success"):
             return result
 
@@ -858,7 +886,7 @@ def session_search(
         located, owner = _locate_session_db(sid)
         if located is not None:
             try:
-                found = json.loads(_read_session(located, sid))
+                found = json.loads(_read_session(located, sid, link_profile=owner))
             finally:
                 located.close()
             if found.get("success"):
@@ -876,7 +904,7 @@ def session_search(
 
     # Browse shape: no query → recent sessions.
     if not query or not isinstance(query, str) or not query.strip():
-        return _list_recent_sessions(db, limit, current_session_id)
+        return _list_recent_sessions(db, limit, current_session_id, link_profile=profile)
 
     # Parse role_filter
     role_list: Optional[List[str]] = None
@@ -897,6 +925,7 @@ def session_search(
         limit=limit,
         sort=sort_norm,
         current_session_id=current_session_id,
+        link_profile=profile,
     )
 
 
@@ -962,6 +991,16 @@ SESSION_SEARCH_SCHEMA = {
         "     session_search()\n"
         "     Returns recent sessions chronologically: titles, previews, timestamps. "
         "Use when the user asks \"what was I working on\" without naming a topic.\n\n"
+        "LINKING THE USER TO A SESSION\n\n"
+        "  When you refer the user to a session, write its `link` value inline in "
+        "your reply — every result carries one, e.g. "
+        "`@session:default/20260722_204335_d62c16`. Copy it verbatim; do not "
+        "reformat it as a markdown link or wrap it in backticks. Hermes renders "
+        "it as a link showing the session's title, so the link IS the title: "
+        "use it as a noun mid-sentence (\"that's @session:default/... — want me "
+        "to pick it up?\"), never alone on its own line, and never alongside the "
+        "title, id, or date spelled out — that shows the user the same session "
+        "twice.\n\n"
         "FTS5 SYNTAX\n\n"
         "  AND is the default — multi-word queries require all terms. Use OR explicitly "
         "for broader recall (`alpha OR beta OR gamma`), quoted phrases for exact match "