diff --git a/frontend/packages/dashboard/src/matrix-accounts.css b/frontend/packages/dashboard/src/matrix-accounts.css
index ddcf8580..090537ea 100644
--- a/frontend/packages/dashboard/src/matrix-accounts.css
+++ b/frontend/packages/dashboard/src/matrix-accounts.css
@@ -65,6 +65,15 @@
 .ma-dot.offline,
 .ma-dot.stale { background: var(--amber); }
 .ma-dot.absent { background: var(--muted); }
+/* `live stale-age`: snapshot still says live but the daemon heartbeat stalled
+   (> ~90s). Keep the green hue but dim + desaturate so it reads "was online,
+   now uncertain" — visually distinct from the solid amber container-down
+   `stale`. More-specific (3 classes) so it overrides `.ma-dot.live`. */
+.ma-dot.live.stale-age {
+  background: var(--green);
+  opacity: 0.4;
+  filter: saturate(0.45);
+}
 .ma-name { font-weight: 600; color: var(--fg); }
 .ma-uid { color: var(--muted); font-size: 0.8rem; margin-left: 0.4em; }
 .ma-hs { color: var(--muted); font-size: 0.85rem; }
@@ -74,6 +83,7 @@
 .ma-status.offline,
 .ma-status.stale { color: var(--amber); }
 .ma-status.absent { color: var(--muted); }
+.ma-status.live.stale-age { color: var(--green); opacity: 0.6; }
 
 .ma-result {
   margin-top: 0.7rem;
diff --git a/frontend/packages/dashboard/src/matrix-accounts.js b/frontend/packages/dashboard/src/matrix-accounts.js
index 26db0a9a..b0d5fed6 100644
--- a/frontend/packages/dashboard/src/matrix-accounts.js
+++ b/frontend/packages/dashboard/src/matrix-accounts.js
@@ -21,20 +21,22 @@
 //   The token is NEVER echoed back in any response, and this page never
 //   re-renders a submitted secret.
 //
-// Live status dot (coordinated with the BE-4 snapshot): the daemon publishes a
-// host-visible snapshot rewritten on each (re)start, so `live` means "restored
-// as of `as_of_unix`", not a real-time heartbeat. We render 3 states —
-//   green  (live + container running)   = online
-//   amber  (live + container DOWN)       = stale (container down ⟹ daemon down)
-//   amber  (token_present + !live)       = provisioned but offline
-//   grey   (no token)                    = not provisioned
-// `as_of_unix` is tooltipped ("live as of N ago") so a green isn't read as a
-// real-time guarantee. We deliberately do NOT dim a green purely on snapshot
-// age: an old `as_of` is ambiguous (stable long uptime vs dead daemon), and the
-// container cross-ref already catches the definitive "down" case; true
-// daemon-up-but-client-dead detection is a daemon-heartbeat follow-up. When
-// `live` is absent (v1 backend not yet deployed) the dot falls back to the
-// token-present rendering.
+// Live status dot (coordinated with the BE snapshot + heartbeat): the daemon
+// force-rewrites its host-visible snapshot every ~30s (heartbeat, BE), so
+// `as_of_unix` advances while the daemon is alive — a stalled `as_of` is now an
+// honest "daemon stopped publishing" signal, not just "snapshot is old". We
+// render —
+//   green        (live + running + fresh)     = online
+//   dim green    (live but as_of stale > ~90s) = heartbeat stopped, likely dead
+//   amber        (live + container DOWN)        = stale (container down ⟹ down)
+//   amber        (token_present + !live)        = provisioned but offline
+//   grey         (no token)                     = not provisioned
+// The dim-green age case is meaningful only because of the heartbeat: 3 missed
+// ~30s beats (>90s) without the container being explicitly down means the
+// daemon is up-but-dead or wedged. The container cross-ref still takes
+// precedence (a stopped container is definitively stale regardless of age).
+// `as_of_unix` is tooltipped throughout so freshness is always legible. When
+// `live` is absent (v1 backend) the dot falls back to token-present rendering.
 
 import { $, el, esc, fmtAgeSecs, renderServerWarnings } from './common.js';
 
@@ -102,13 +104,18 @@ async function loadAccounts(agent) {
   // e.g. a failed /api/state read) is treated as not-down so we never flag a
   // false stale.
   const running = containerRunning.get(agent);
-  // The daemon rewrites its snapshot only on (re)start, so this is "live as of"
-  // the last publish, not a heartbeat — surface it so a green isn't read as a
-  // real-time guarantee.
+  // The daemon force-rewrites its snapshot every ~30s, so `as_of_unix` advances
+  // while it's alive — this is a heartbeat, and a stalled value is meaningful.
+  const ageSecs = asOf != null
+    ? Math.max(0, Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000) - asOf)
+    : null;
   const asOfText = asOf != null
-    ? 'matrix snapshot · live as of '
-      + fmtAgeSecs(Math.max(0, Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000) - asOf)) + ' ago'
+    ? 'matrix snapshot · live as of ' + fmtAgeSecs(ageSecs) + ' ago'
     : 'no daemon snapshot yet';
+  // 3 missed ~30s heartbeats. Past this a `live` snapshot whose container is
+  // NOT down means the daemon stopped publishing (dead/wedged) — dim its dot.
+  const STALE_AGE_SECS = 90;
+  const staleByAge = ageSecs != null && ageSecs > STALE_AGE_SECS;
   list.replaceChildren();
   if (!accounts.length) {
     list.append(el('p', { class: 'meta' }, 'no matrix accounts configured for this agent.'));
@@ -130,6 +137,16 @@ async function loadAccounts(agent) {
       cls = 'stale';
       statusText = 'container stopped';
       dotTitle = 'container is stopped — live status is stale. ' + asOfText;
+    } else if (acc.live && staleByAge) {
+      // Snapshot says live, but the heartbeat (snapshot mtime = as_of) hasn't
+      // advanced in > ~90s while the container is NOT down — the daemon stopped
+      // publishing, so the "live" is no longer trustworthy. Keep the green
+      // family but dim it (distinct from the amber container-down 'stale').
+      cls = 'live stale-age';
+      statusText = 'online · no heartbeat';
+      dotTitle = 'snapshot says live but the daemon heartbeat stalled '
+        + fmtAgeSecs(ageSecs) + ' ago (publishes every ~30s) — likely dead or wedged. '
+        + asOfText;
     } else if (acc.live) {
       cls = 'live';
       statusText = 'online ✓';