diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/app/session/hooks/use-message-stream/gateway-event.ts b/apps/desktop/src/app/session/hooks/use-message-stream/gateway-event.ts
index 801678c26644..432258d16ae4 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/app/session/hooks/use-message-stream/gateway-event.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/app/session/hooks/use-message-stream/gateway-event.ts
@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ import { modelOptionsQueryKey } from '@/lib/model-options'
 import { isProviderSetupErrorMessage } from '@/lib/provider-setup-errors'
 import { reconcileApprovalModeForProfile } from '@/store/approval-mode'
 import { billingCtaLabel, clearBillingBlock, runBillingRecovery, setBillingBlock } from '@/store/billing-block'
-import { clearClarifyRequest, setClarifyRequest } from '@/store/clarify'
+import { clearClarifyRequest, normalizeChoices, setClarifyRequest, warnDroppedChoices } from '@/store/clarify'
 import { setSessionCompacting } from '@/store/compaction'
 import { refreshBackgroundProcesses } from '@/store/composer-status'
 import { $gateway } from '@/store/gateway'
@@ -677,14 +677,18 @@ export function useGatewayEventHandler(deps: GatewayEventDeps) {
         // over; the inline ClarifyTool reads the active session's entry.
         const requestId = typeof payload?.request_id === 'string' ? payload.request_id : ''
         const question = typeof payload?.question === 'string' ? payload.question : ''
+        const rawChoices = payload?.choices
+        const choices = normalizeChoices(rawChoices)
 
         if (requestId && question) {
-          const choices = Array.isArray(payload?.choices) ? payload!.choices!.filter(c => typeof c === 'string') : null
+          if (rawChoices != null && choices.length === 0) {
+            warnDroppedChoices('gateway', question, rawChoices)
+          }
 
           setClarifyRequest({
             requestId,
             question,
-            choices,
+            choices: choices.length > 0 ? choices : null,
             sessionId: sessionId ?? null
           })
 
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/clarify-tool.tsx b/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/clarify-tool.tsx
index d5c04d7acdc4..23cfe9ad52e1 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/clarify-tool.tsx
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/clarify-tool.tsx
@@ -24,7 +24,7 @@ import { useI18n } from '@/i18n'
 import { triggerHaptic } from '@/lib/haptics'
 import { CircleLetterA, Loader2, MessageQuestion } from '@/lib/icons'
 import { cn } from '@/lib/utils'
-import { clearClarifyRequest, sessionClarifyRequest } from '@/store/clarify'
+import { clearClarifyRequest, normalizeChoices, sessionClarifyRequest, warnDroppedChoices } from '@/store/clarify'
 import { $gateway } from '@/store/gateway'
 import { notifyError } from '@/store/notifications'
 
@@ -54,11 +54,18 @@ function stringField(row: Record<string, unknown>, ...keys: string[]): string |
 
 function readClarifyArgs(args: unknown): ClarifyArgs {
   const row = parseMaybeObject(args)
-  const choices = Array.isArray(row.choices) ? row.choices.filter((c): c is string => typeof c === 'string') : null
+  const rawChoices = row.choices
+  const choices = normalizeChoices(rawChoices)
+
+  const question = stringField(row, 'question')
+
+  if (rawChoices != null && choices.length === 0 && question) {
+    warnDroppedChoices('tool_args', question, rawChoices)
+  }
 
   return {
-    question: stringField(row, 'question'),
-    choices: choices && choices.length > 0 ? choices : null
+    question,
+    choices: choices.length > 0 ? choices : null
   }
 }
 
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/store/clarify.test.ts b/apps/desktop/src/store/clarify.test.ts
index 269004b49f1a..ed995a7a52a6 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/store/clarify.test.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/store/clarify.test.ts
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ import {
   $clarifyRequests,
   type ClarifyRequest,
   clearClarifyRequest,
+  normalizeChoices,
   setClarifyRequest
 } from './clarify'
 import { $activeSessionId } from './session'
@@ -79,3 +80,43 @@ describe('clarify store', () => {
     expect($clarifyRequests.get()['session-b']?.requestId).toBe('other')
   })
 })
+
+describe('normalizeChoices', () => {
+  it('returns empty array for null/undefined', () => {
+    expect(normalizeChoices(null)).toEqual([])
+    expect(normalizeChoices(undefined)).toEqual([])
+  })
+
+  it('returns empty array for non-array input', () => {
+    expect(normalizeChoices('hello')).toEqual([])
+    expect(normalizeChoices(42)).toEqual([])
+    expect(normalizeChoices({})).toEqual([])
+  })
+
+  it('filters out non-string items', () => {
+    expect(normalizeChoices(['a', 42, 'b', null, 'c'])).toEqual(['a', 'b', 'c'])
+  })
+
+  it('drops blank and whitespace-only strings', () => {
+    expect(normalizeChoices(['a', '', 'b', '   ', 'c'])).toEqual(['a', 'b', 'c'])
+  })
+
+  it('drops strings with newlines', () => {
+    expect(normalizeChoices(['a', 'b\nc', 'd'])).toEqual(['a', 'd'])
+  })
+
+  it('drops strings over 200 chars', () => {
+    const long = 'x'.repeat(201)
+    const ok = 'y'.repeat(200)
+    expect(normalizeChoices(['a', long, ok])).toEqual(['a', ok])
+  })
+
+  it('drops empty items and keeps valid ones', () => {
+    expect(normalizeChoices(['valid', '  ', '', 'also valid'])).toEqual(['valid', 'also valid'])
+  })
+
+  it('returns empty array when nothing survives', () => {
+    expect(normalizeChoices(['', '  ', null, undefined])).toEqual([])
+    expect(normalizeChoices([])).toEqual([])
+  })
+})
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/store/clarify.ts b/apps/desktop/src/store/clarify.ts
index 59449a946887..f90dcd13174b 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/store/clarify.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/store/clarify.ts
@@ -9,6 +9,36 @@ export interface ClarifyRequest {
   sessionId: string | null
 }
 
+/**
+ * Validate and normalize a choices array.
+ *
+ * Keeps non-blank, newline-free strings of length ≤ 200; drops everything else
+ * and returns an empty array when nothing usable survives — the caller then
+ * falls back to a free-text answer instead of dead buttons.
+ */
+export function normalizeChoices(choices: unknown): string[] {
+  if (!Array.isArray(choices)) {
+    return []
+  }
+
+  return choices.filter(
+    (c): c is string => typeof c === 'string' && c.trim().length > 0 && c.length <= 200 && !c.includes('\n')
+  )
+}
+
+/**
+ * Structured warning for a clarify payload that arrived with choices but had
+ * them all normalized away — keeps the remaining #69122 "no selectable choices"
+ * triggers diagnosable in the field without dead constant fields.
+ */
+export function warnDroppedChoices(source: 'gateway' | 'tool_args', question: string, rawChoices: unknown): void {
+  console.warn('[clarify] choices dropped after normalization', {
+    choices_count: Array.isArray(rawChoices) ? rawChoices.length : 0,
+    question_length: question.length,
+    source
+  })
+}
+
 // Pending clarify requests keyed by the runtime session id that raised them.
 // Storing per-session (instead of one shared slot) lets a *background* session
 // park its clarify request while the user is looking at a different chat, then