diff --git a/frontend/src/components/AgentMode.tsx b/frontend/src/components/AgentMode.tsx
index 9c2eae5aa..a4f3eb03c 100644
--- a/frontend/src/components/AgentMode.tsx
+++ b/frontend/src/components/AgentMode.tsx
@@ -25,6 +25,7 @@ import { Textarea } from "@/components/ui/textarea";
 import { Markdown, ThinkingBlock } from "@/components/markdown";
 import {
   CHAT_COMPOSER_TEXTAREA_CLASS,
+  ChatAssistantPendingTurn,
   ChatAssistantTurn,
   ChatComposerSurface,
   ChatDesktopConversationHeader,
@@ -70,7 +71,8 @@ import {
   coalesceAdjacentThinkingItems,
   groupAgentTimelineItems,
   hasAgentUserMessage,
-  hasRenderableThinkingText
+  hasRenderableThinkingText,
+  shouldShowAgentAssistantLoader
 } from "@/services/agentTimeline";
 import {
   DEFAULT_AGENT_MODEL,
@@ -1589,6 +1591,7 @@ export function AgentMode({ userId }: { userId: string }) {
               ) : (
                 <AgentTimeline
                   items={timelineItems}
+                  isResponsePending={isSending}
                   isRunActive={Boolean(activeRunId) && !isSubmitting}
                   onPermissionDecision={respondToPermission}
                 />
@@ -2599,16 +2602,19 @@ function AgentModelSelector({
 
 function AgentTimeline({
   items,
+  isResponsePending,
   isRunActive,
   onPermissionDecision
 }: {
   items: AgentTimelineItem[];
+  isResponsePending: boolean;
   isRunActive: boolean;
   onPermissionDecision: (item: AgentTimelineItem, decision: AgentPermissionDecision) => void;
 }) {
   const visibleItems = coalesceAdjacentThinkingItems(items).filter(isRenderableTimelineItem);
   const turns = groupAgentTimelineItems(visibleItems);
   const activeThinkingItemId = activeAgentThinkingItemId(visibleItems, isRunActive);
+  const showAssistantLoader = shouldShowAgentAssistantLoader(turns, isResponsePending);
 
   return (
     <div className="space-y-1">
@@ -2634,6 +2640,7 @@ function AgentTimeline({
           </ChatAssistantTurn>
         );
       })}
+      {showAssistantLoader ? <ChatAssistantPendingTurn /> : null}
     </div>
   );
 }
diff --git a/frontend/src/components/UnifiedChat.tsx b/frontend/src/components/UnifiedChat.tsx
index ac797fe67..7e875eb1e 100644
--- a/frontend/src/components/UnifiedChat.tsx
+++ b/frontend/src/components/UnifiedChat.tsx
@@ -34,6 +34,7 @@ import { DEFAULT_MODEL_ID, getInitialWebSearchEnabled } from "@/state/LocalState
 import { Markdown, ThinkingBlock } from "@/components/markdown";
 import {
   CHAT_COMPOSER_TEXTAREA_CLASS,
+  ChatAssistantPendingTurn,
   ChatAssistantTurn,
   ChatComposerSurface,
   ChatDesktopConversationHeader,
@@ -1387,15 +1388,7 @@ const MessageList = memo(
         })}
 
         {/* Loading indicator - only show while waiting for the first assistant item (TTFT) */}
-        {shouldShowInitialAssistantLoader && (
-          <ChatAssistantTurn>
-            <div className="flex items-center gap-1">
-              <div className="h-2 w-2 animate-pulse rounded-full bg-foreground/60" />
-              <div className="h-2 w-2 animate-pulse rounded-full bg-foreground/60 delay-75" />
-              <div className="h-2 w-2 animate-pulse rounded-full bg-foreground/60 delay-150" />
-            </div>
-          </ChatAssistantTurn>
-        )}
+        {shouldShowInitialAssistantLoader && <ChatAssistantPendingTurn />}
       </>
     );
   }
diff --git a/frontend/src/components/chat/ChatTurn.tsx b/frontend/src/components/chat/ChatTurn.tsx
index f58fd5b23..cbf575d8d 100644
--- a/frontend/src/components/chat/ChatTurn.tsx
+++ b/frontend/src/components/chat/ChatTurn.tsx
@@ -77,6 +77,18 @@ export function ChatAssistantTurn({ children, actions, containerRef, className }
   );
 }
 
+export function ChatAssistantPendingTurn() {
+  return (
+    <ChatAssistantTurn>
+      <div className="flex items-center gap-1" role="status" aria-label="Maple is responding">
+        <div className="h-2 w-2 animate-pulse rounded-full bg-foreground/60" />
+        <div className="h-2 w-2 animate-pulse rounded-full bg-foreground/60 delay-75" />
+        <div className="h-2 w-2 animate-pulse rounded-full bg-foreground/60 delay-150" />
+      </div>
+    </ChatAssistantTurn>
+  );
+}
+
 export function ChatDesktopConversationHeader({
   title,
   isSidebarOpen,
diff --git a/frontend/src/services/agentTimeline.test.ts b/frontend/src/services/agentTimeline.test.ts
index 0cf32a362..12766a60f 100644
--- a/frontend/src/services/agentTimeline.test.ts
+++ b/frontend/src/services/agentTimeline.test.ts
@@ -5,7 +5,8 @@ import {
   coalesceAdjacentThinkingItems,
   groupAgentTimelineItems,
   hasAgentUserMessage,
-  hasRenderableThinkingText
+  hasRenderableThinkingText,
+  shouldShowAgentAssistantLoader
 } from "./agentTimeline";
 
 function thinking(id: string, text: string): AgentTimelineItem {
@@ -182,3 +183,36 @@ describe("groupAgentTimelineItems", () => {
     expect(after[1].id).toBe(before[1].id);
   });
 });
+
+describe("shouldShowAgentAssistantLoader", () => {
+  const userTurn = {
+    type: "user" as const,
+    id: "user",
+    item: {
+      id: "user",
+      itemType: "message" as const,
+      role: "user" as const,
+      createdMs: 0,
+      merge: "replace" as const
+    }
+  };
+  const assistantTurn = {
+    type: "assistant" as const,
+    id: "assistant-after-user",
+    items: [thinking("thought", "Working")]
+  };
+
+  test("shows while a sent user turn is waiting for its first assistant activity", () => {
+    expect(shouldShowAgentAssistantLoader([userTurn], true)).toBe(true);
+  });
+
+  test("hides when the response is no longer pending or assistant activity has arrived", () => {
+    expect(shouldShowAgentAssistantLoader([userTurn], false)).toBe(false);
+    expect(shouldShowAgentAssistantLoader([userTurn, assistantTurn], true)).toBe(false);
+  });
+
+  test("does not invent an assistant turn without a user message", () => {
+    expect(shouldShowAgentAssistantLoader([], true)).toBe(false);
+    expect(shouldShowAgentAssistantLoader([assistantTurn], true)).toBe(false);
+  });
+});
diff --git a/frontend/src/services/agentTimeline.ts b/frontend/src/services/agentTimeline.ts
index d5ca4c8f8..cd9e203ba 100644
--- a/frontend/src/services/agentTimeline.ts
+++ b/frontend/src/services/agentTimeline.ts
@@ -64,3 +64,10 @@ export function groupAgentTimelineItems(items: AgentTimelineItem[]): AgentTimeli
   flushAssistantItems();
   return turns;
 }
+
+export function shouldShowAgentAssistantLoader(
+  turns: AgentTimelineTurn[],
+  isResponsePending: boolean
+): boolean {
+  return isResponsePending && turns[turns.length - 1]?.type === "user";
+}