diff --git a/apps/client/src/features/ai-chat/components/message-list.tsx b/apps/client/src/features/ai-chat/components/message-list.tsx
index 1c732932..fb9d137e 100644
--- a/apps/client/src/features/ai-chat/components/message-list.tsx
+++ b/apps/client/src/features/ai-chat/components/message-list.tsx
@@ -16,6 +16,10 @@ function isToolPart(type: string): boolean {
   return type.startsWith("tool-") || type === "dynamic-tool";
 }
 
+// Distance (px) from the bottom within which the viewport still counts as
+// "pinned" — absorbs sub-pixel rounding and small content jitter.
+const BOTTOM_THRESHOLD = 40;
+
 /**
  * Whether to show the standalone "AI agent is typing…" indicator. It bridges the
  * gap between sending and the first streamed content, so it shows only while a
@@ -37,18 +41,68 @@ function showTypingIndicator(messages: UIMessage[], isStreaming: boolean): boole
 }
 
 /**
- * Scrollable transcript. Auto-scrolls to the newest message as it streams in
- * (re-runs whenever the message count, the streaming flag, or the messages array
- * identity changes — the latter updates on every streamed delta).
+ * Scrollable transcript. Auto-scrolls to the newest message as it streams in,
+ * but only while the user is pinned to the bottom — if they scrolled up to read
+ * earlier messages, streamed deltas no longer yank them back down.
  */
 export default function MessageList({ messages, isStreaming }: MessageListProps) {
   const { t } = useTranslation();
   const viewportRef = useRef<HTMLDivElement>(null);
+  // Whether the viewport is currently pinned to the bottom. Starts true so the
+  // first render scrolls down; flips to false as soon as the user scrolls up,
+  // which suppresses the streaming auto-scroll until they return to the bottom.
+  const pinnedToBottomRef = useRef(true);
+  // Guards the auto-scroll effect's own scrollTop write from being misread as a
+  // user scroll by the listener below. Armed only when we actually move the
+  // viewport, so it always pairs with exactly one resulting scroll event.
+  const programmaticScrollRef = useRef(false);
   const typing = showTypingIndicator(messages, isStreaming);
+  // The ScrollArea is only mounted once there is something to show; track that so
+  // the scroll listener below re-attaches when the viewport first appears. Without
+  // this dependency, a brand-new chat that starts empty would never wire up the
+  // listener (the empty-state branch renders no ScrollArea, so viewportRef is null
+  // on first mount and the [] effect never re-runs).
+  const hasScrollArea = messages.length > 0 || typing;
 
+  // Track the user's scroll position so streaming updates only follow the newest
+  // content while the user is at the bottom. Mantine's ScrollArea exposes the
+  // inner viewport via viewportRef; listen to its scroll events directly.
   useEffect(() => {
     const el = viewportRef.current;
-    if (el) el.scrollTop = el.scrollHeight;
+    if (!el) return;
+    const onScroll = () => {
+      // Ignore the single scroll event our own auto-scroll write triggers, so it
+      // can't be misread as the user leaving the bottom.
+      if (programmaticScrollRef.current) {
+        programmaticScrollRef.current = false;
+        return;
+      }
+      const distanceFromBottom =
+        el.scrollHeight - el.scrollTop - el.clientHeight;
+      pinnedToBottomRef.current = distanceFromBottom <= BOTTOM_THRESHOLD;
+    };
+    el.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll, { passive: true });
+    return () => el.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll);
+  }, [hasScrollArea]);
+
+  // Auto-scroll to the newest content as it streams in, but ONLY while pinned to
+  // the bottom. If the user scrolled up to read earlier messages, leave their
+  // position untouched so streamed deltas don't yank them back down. A freshly
+  // sent user message always re-pins, so sending always brings the view down.
+  useEffect(() => {
+    const el = viewportRef.current;
+    if (!el) return;
+    const last = messages[messages.length - 1];
+    if (last?.role === "user") pinnedToBottomRef.current = true;
+    if (!pinnedToBottomRef.current) return;
+    const target = el.scrollHeight - el.clientHeight;
+    // Only write (and arm the guard) when we'd actually move; assigning the same
+    // value fires no scroll event and would otherwise leave the guard armed and
+    // swallow the user's next real scroll.
+    if (el.scrollTop < target) {
+      programmaticScrollRef.current = true;
+      el.scrollTop = target;
+    }
   }, [messages.length, isStreaming, messages, typing]);
 
   if (messages.length === 0 && !typing) {