diff --git a/src/App.jsx b/src/App.jsx
index 5dbca6c..92e2f44 100644
--- a/src/App.jsx
+++ b/src/App.jsx
@@ -427,6 +427,20 @@ export default function App() {
     return expectBackendJson(response)
   }
 
+  function syncAudioInputRuntimeFromStartupStatus(status) {
+    const whisperReady = Boolean(status?.whisper_model_available)
+    if (whisperReady) {
+      setAudioInputRuntimeReady(true)
+      setAudioInputRuntimeMessage('')
+      return
+    }
+
+    const modelName = status?.whisper_model || 'base'
+    const reason = String(status?.whisper_error || '').trim()
+    setAudioInputRuntimeReady(false)
+    setAudioInputRuntimeMessage(reason || `Whisper ${modelName} is not available.`)
+  }
+
   async function fetchLocalLibraryContext(slug, prompt, signal) {
     if (!slug) return { contextBlock: null, sources: [] }