diff --git a/packages/app/src/postgres/run-query-repository.ts b/packages/app/src/postgres/run-query-repository.ts
index 246fadf..709f3ab 100644
--- a/packages/app/src/postgres/run-query-repository.ts
+++ b/packages/app/src/postgres/run-query-repository.ts
@@ -12,13 +12,13 @@ export class RunQueryRepository {
     if (query.get("contextQuery")) { values.push(`%${query.get("contextQuery")}%`); clauses.push(`i.context::text ILIKE $${values.length}`); }
     if (cursor) { values.push(cursor[0], cursor[1]); clauses.push(`(r.created_at,r.id)<($${values.length - 1}::timestamptz,$${values.length}::uuid)`); }
     values.push(limit + 1);
-    const result = await this.database.pool.query<any>(`SELECT r.id,r.job_id,r.issue_id,r.issue_url,r.issue_title,r.run_name,r.agent_name,r.workspace_name,r.agent_kind,r.state,r.provider,r.execution_backend_kind backend_kind,r.execution_capabilities capabilities,r.destination_url,r.artifact_state,r.artifact_error,r.created_at,r.updated_at
-      FROM app.runs r JOIN app.invocations i ON i.tenant_id=r.tenant_id AND i.id=r.invocation_id WHERE ${clauses.join(" AND ")} ORDER BY r.created_at DESC,r.id DESC LIMIT $${values.length}`, values);
+    const result = await this.database.pool.query<any>(`SELECT r.id,r.job_id,r.issue_id,r.issue_url,r.issue_title,r.run_name,r.agent_name,r.workspace_name,r.agent_kind,r.state,r.provider,r.execution_backend_kind backend_kind,r.execution_capabilities capabilities,r.destination_url,r.artifact_state,r.artifact_error,r.created_at,r.updated_at,jr.started_at
+      FROM app.runs r JOIN app.job_runs jr ON jr.tenant_id=r.tenant_id AND jr.id=r.id JOIN app.invocations i ON i.tenant_id=r.tenant_id AND i.id=r.invocation_id WHERE ${clauses.join(" AND ")} ORDER BY r.created_at DESC,r.id DESC LIMIT $${values.length}`, values);
     const rows = result.rows.slice(0, limit), hasMore = result.rows.length > limit;
     return { items: rows, nextCursor: hasMore && rows.length ? encodeCursor(rows.at(-1).created_at, rows.at(-1).id) : null };
   }
   async get(runId: string) {
-    return (await this.database.pool.query<any>(`SELECT r.*,jr.encrypted_prompt,i.source invocation_source,i.claim_key invocation_claim_key,i.trigger_id invocation_trigger_id,i.context,i.occurrence,i.created_at invocation_created_at
+    return (await this.database.pool.query<any>(`SELECT r.*,jr.started_at,jr.encrypted_prompt,i.source invocation_source,i.claim_key invocation_claim_key,i.trigger_id invocation_trigger_id,i.context,i.occurrence,i.created_at invocation_created_at
       FROM app.runs r JOIN app.job_runs jr ON jr.tenant_id=r.tenant_id AND jr.id=r.id JOIN app.invocations i ON i.tenant_id=r.tenant_id AND i.id=r.invocation_id WHERE r.tenant_id=$1 AND r.id=$2`, [this.tenantId, runId])).rows[0] ?? null;
   }
   async activity(runId: string) { return (await this.database.pool.query("SELECT action,detail,created_at FROM app.run_activity WHERE tenant_id=$1 AND run_id=$2 ORDER BY created_at,id", [this.tenantId, runId])).rows; }
diff --git a/packages/app/src/ui.ts b/packages/app/src/ui.ts
index 8ad6c7d..19be62a 100644
--- a/packages/app/src/ui.ts
+++ b/packages/app/src/ui.ts
@@ -75,7 +75,7 @@ const $=s=>document.querySelector(s),esc=v=>String(v??'').replace(/[&<>"']/g,c=>
 ${ansiToHtmlBrowserSource}
 const request=async(url,options)=>{const requestUrl=String(url).startsWith('/api/v1/runs?jobId=')&&!String(url).includes('limit=')?String(url)+'&limit=20':url,r=await fetch(requestUrl,options),body=await r.json().catch(()=>({}));if(r.status===401){location.href='/auth/linear';throw new Error('Unauthorized')}if(!r.ok)throw new Error(body.error?.message||body.error||'Request failed');return body};
 const jobRunsPageSize=20,jobRunsState={page:1,cursors:[null],runs:null,loading:false};
-const jobRunsMarkup=r=>r.items?.length?'<ul data-job-runs-list class="min-w-0 divide-y divide-stone-200 dark:divide-slate-800">'+r.items.map(x=>'<li class="min-w-0"><a class="flex min-w-0 items-center justify-between gap-4 p-5 hover:bg-stone-50 dark:hover:bg-slate-800" href="/job-runs/'+encodeURIComponent(x.id)+'"><span class="min-w-0 truncate"><span class="block truncate font-medium">'+esc(x.name||x.run_name||x.issue_title||x.provider||x.agent_kind||'Factorize')+'</span><span class="mt-1 block truncate text-xs text-slate-500">'+new Date(x.created_at).toLocaleString()+(activeRunStates.includes(x.state)?' · <span data-run-started="'+esc(x.created_at)+'">'+elapsedSince(x.created_at)+'</span>':'')+'</span></span><span class="shrink-0">'+stateBadge(x.state)+'</span></a></li>').join('')+'</ul>':'<p data-job-runs-list class="p-8 text-sm text-slate-500">No runs yet.</p>';
+const jobRunsMarkup=r=>r.items?.length?'<ul data-job-runs-list class="min-w-0 divide-y divide-stone-200 dark:divide-slate-800">'+r.items.map(x=>'<li class="min-w-0"><a class="flex min-w-0 items-center justify-between gap-4 p-5 hover:bg-stone-50 dark:hover:bg-slate-800" href="/job-runs/'+encodeURIComponent(x.id)+'"><span class="min-w-0 truncate"><span class="block truncate font-medium">'+esc(x.name||x.run_name||x.issue_title||x.provider||x.agent_kind||'Factorize')+'</span><span class="mt-1 block truncate text-xs text-slate-500">'+new Date(x.created_at).toLocaleString()+(activeRunStates.includes(x.state)&&x.started_at?' · <span data-run-started="'+esc(x.started_at)+'">'+elapsedSince(x.started_at)+'</span>':'')+'</span></span><span class="shrink-0">'+stateBadge(x.state)+'</span></a></li>').join('')+'</ul>':'<p data-job-runs-list class="p-8 text-sm text-slate-500">No runs yet.</p>';
 const jobRunsControls=(r,page)=>{if(page===1&&!r.nextCursor)return'';const previous=page>1?'':' disabled aria-disabled="true"',next=r.nextCursor?'':' disabled aria-disabled="true"';return'<nav data-job-runs-pagination class="flex items-center justify-between gap-3 border-b border-stone-200 px-6 py-3 text-sm dark:border-slate-800" aria-label="Runs pagination"><button type="button" data-run-page="previous"'+previous+' class="rounded-lg border border-stone-300 px-3 py-2 font-semibold disabled:cursor-not-allowed disabled:opacity-50 dark:border-slate-700">Previous</button><span class="text-slate-500">Page '+page+'</span><button type="button" data-run-page="next"'+next+' class="rounded-lg border border-stone-300 px-3 py-2 font-semibold disabled:cursor-not-allowed disabled:opacity-50 dark:border-slate-700">Next</button></nav>'};
 const refreshJobRunsPagination=()=>{const section=document.querySelector('[data-job-runs-section]')||document.querySelector('#job-detail section:last-of-type'),r=jobRunsState.runs;if(!section||!r)return;section.querySelectorAll('[data-job-runs-pagination]').forEach(x=>x.remove());const list=section.querySelector('[data-job-runs-list]')||section.querySelector('ul,section>p');if(list)list.outerHTML=jobRunsMarkup(r);const header=section.firstElementChild;header?.insertAdjacentHTML('afterend',jobRunsControls(r,jobRunsState.page));section.insertAdjacentHTML('beforeend',jobRunsControls(r,jobRunsState.page));section.querySelectorAll('[data-run-page]').forEach(button=>button.addEventListener('click',async()=>{if(jobRunsState.loading)return;const direction=button.dataset.runPage,currentPage=jobRunsState.page,targetPage=direction==='next'?currentPage+1:currentPage-1;if(targetPage<1||targetPage>currentPage+1)return;const cursor=targetPage===currentPage+1?r.nextCursor:jobRunsState.cursors[targetPage];if(direction==='next'&&!cursor)return;jobRunsState.loading=true;try{const query='/api/v1/runs?jobId='+encodeURIComponent(document.querySelector('#job-detail').dataset.id)+'&limit='+jobRunsPageSize+(cursor?'&cursor='+encodeURIComponent(cursor):'');const nextRuns=await request(query);jobRunsState.cursors[targetPage]=cursor;jobRunsState.page=targetPage;jobRunsState.runs=nextRuns;refreshJobRunsPagination()}finally{jobRunsState.loading=false}}))};
 const pairs=v=>Object.entries(v||{}).map(([k,x])=>k+'='+x).join('\\n');
@@ -192,11 +192,12 @@ function triggerProvenance(r){
 const traceStyle={user_message:'border-amber-300 bg-amber-50 dark:border-amber-900 dark:bg-amber-950/30',assistant_message:'border-emerald-300 bg-emerald-50 dark:border-emerald-900 dark:bg-emerald-950/30',reasoning:'border-violet-300 bg-violet-50 dark:border-violet-900 dark:bg-violet-950/30',tool_call:'border-sky-300 bg-sky-50 dark:border-sky-900 dark:bg-sky-950/30',tool_result:'border-cyan-300 bg-cyan-50 dark:border-cyan-900 dark:bg-cyan-950/30',command:'border-slate-400 bg-slate-950 text-slate-100',error:'border-red-400 bg-red-50 dark:bg-red-950/30',warning:'border-orange-300 bg-orange-50 dark:bg-orange-950/30'};
 function traceCard(e){return '<article class="rounded-xl border p-4 '+(traceStyle[e.type]||'border-stone-200 bg-stone-50 dark:border-slate-700 dark:bg-slate-800/50')+'"><div class="flex flex-wrap items-center justify-between gap-2"><h3 class="text-sm font-semibold">'+esc(e.title)+'</h3><span class="rounded-full border border-current/20 px-2 py-0.5 text-[.68rem] font-semibold uppercase tracking-wide opacity-70">'+esc(e.type.replaceAll('_',' '))+'</span></div><pre class="mt-3 max-h-96 overflow-auto whitespace-pre-wrap break-words font-mono text-xs leading-5">'+esc(e.preview||'')+'</pre></article>'}
 async function loadTrace(reset=false){if(reset){traceCursor=0;traceDone=false;const list=$('[data-run-trace]');if(list)list.innerHTML=''}if(traceDone)return;const page=await request('/api/v1/runs/'+encodeURIComponent(id)+'/trace?after='+traceCursor+'&limit=100'),list=$('[data-run-trace]');if(!list)return;list.insertAdjacentHTML('beforeend',page.items.map(traceCard).join(''));if(page.items.length)traceCursor=page.items.at(-1).sequence;traceDone=!page.nextCursor;const more=$('[data-trace-more]');if(more)more.classList.toggle('hidden',traceDone);const empty=$('[data-trace-empty]');if(empty)empty.classList.toggle('hidden',Boolean(list.children.length))}
-function elapsed(r){const start=new Date(r.created_at).getTime(),end=activeStates.includes(r.state)?Date.now():new Date(r.updated_at||r.created_at).getTime(),seconds=Math.max(0,Math.floor((end-start)/1000)),hours=Math.floor(seconds/3600),minutes=Math.floor(seconds%3600/60),remainder=seconds%60;return(hours?hours+'h ':'')+(minutes||hours?minutes+'m ':'')+remainder+'s elapsed'}
-function updateElapsed(r){const label=$('[data-run-elapsed]');if(label)label.textContent=elapsed(r);clearInterval(elapsedTimer);if(activeStates.includes(r.state))elapsedTimer=setInterval(()=>{const current=$('[data-run-elapsed]');if(current)current.textContent=elapsed(r)},1000)}
+function elapsed(r){if(!r.started_at)return ['queued','starting'].includes(r.state)?'Waiting to start':'Start time unavailable';const start=new Date(r.started_at).getTime(),end=activeStates.includes(r.state)?Date.now():new Date(r.updated_at||r.created_at).getTime(),seconds=Math.max(0,Math.floor((end-start)/1000)),hours=Math.floor(seconds/3600),minutes=Math.floor(seconds%3600/60),remainder=seconds%60;return(hours?hours+'h ':'')+(minutes||hours?minutes+'m ':'')+remainder+'s elapsed'}
+function queueTime(r){if(!r.started_at&&!['queued','starting'].includes(r.state))return '';const seconds=Math.max(0,Math.floor((new Date(r.started_at||Date.now()).getTime()-new Date(r.created_at).getTime())/1000));return seconds+'s '+(r.started_at?'queue time':'waiting to start')}
+function updateElapsed(r){const queue=$('[data-run-queue]');if(queue)queue.textContent=queueTime(r);const label=$('[data-run-elapsed]');if(label)label.textContent=elapsed(r);clearInterval(elapsedTimer);if(activeStates.includes(r.state))elapsedTimer=setInterval(()=>{const current=$('[data-run-elapsed]');if(current)current.textContent=elapsed(r);const queue=$('[data-run-queue]');if(queue)queue.textContent=queueTime(r)},1000)}
 function scheduleRefresh(r){clearTimeout(refreshTimer);if(activeStates.includes(r.state))refreshTimer=setTimeout(refreshOutput,3000)}
 async function refreshOutput(){try{const r=await request('/api/v1/runs/'+encodeURIComponent(id)),state=$('[data-run-state]');if(state)state.innerHTML=stateBadge(r.state);traceDone=false;await loadTrace();updateElapsed(r);scheduleRefresh(r)}catch{refreshTimer=setTimeout(refreshOutput,5000)}}
-request('/api/v1/runs/'+encodeURIComponent(id)).then(async r=>({r,j:await request('/api/v1/jobs/'+encodeURIComponent(r.job_id))})).then(async({r,j})=>{const canKill=!['done','failed','stopped','succeeded'].includes(r.state),runLabel=r.name||r.run_name||r.issue_title||'Run '+r.id.slice(0,8);document.title=runLabel+' — Factorize';root.innerHTML='<nav aria-label="Breadcrumb"><ol class="flex min-w-0 flex-wrap items-center gap-2 text-sm text-slate-500"><li><a href="/jobs" class="font-medium hover:text-slate-950 dark:hover:text-white">Jobs</a></li><li aria-hidden="true">/</li><li class="min-w-0 max-w-full"><a href="/jobs/'+encodeURIComponent(r.job_id)+'" class="block truncate font-medium hover:text-slate-950 dark:hover:text-white">'+esc(j.name)+'</a></li><li aria-hidden="true">/</li><li aria-current="page" class="min-w-0 max-w-full truncate font-medium text-slate-950 dark:text-white">'+esc(runLabel)+'</li></ol></nav><div class="mt-6 flex min-w-0 flex-wrap items-start justify-between gap-4"><div class="min-w-0"><h1 class="break-words text-3xl font-bold">'+esc(runLabel)+'</h1><p data-run-elapsed class="mt-2 text-slate-500">'+elapsed(r)+'</p></div><div class="flex min-w-0 flex-wrap items-center gap-3"><span data-run-state>'+stateBadge(r.state)+'</span>'+(canKill?'<button id="kill-run" class="rounded-xl border border-red-200 px-4 py-2 text-sm font-semibold text-red-700">Kill run</button>':'')+'</div></div>'+triggerProvenance(r)+'<details data-run-prompt-details class="${card} mt-8 min-w-0 overflow-hidden p-6"><summary class="cursor-pointer font-semibold">Prompt</summary><pre data-run-prompt class="mt-4 min-w-0 max-w-full overflow-x-auto whitespace-pre-wrap break-words rounded-xl bg-slate-950 p-4 font-mono text-xs leading-5 text-slate-100">'+esc(r.prompt||'Prompt is not available for this run.')+'</pre></details><section class="${card} mt-6 min-w-0 overflow-hidden p-6"><div class="flex flex-wrap items-center justify-between gap-3"><div><h2 class="font-semibold">Trace</h2><p class="mt-1 text-xs text-slate-500">Native '+esc(r.agent_kind||'agent')+' session · '+esc(r.artifact_state||'pending')+'</p></div>'+(activeStates.includes(r.state)?'<span class="text-xs text-slate-500" aria-live="polite">Live · refreshes automatically</span>':'')+'</div><p data-trace-empty class="mt-6 text-sm text-slate-500">Trace events are not available yet.</p><div data-run-trace class="mt-5 grid gap-3"></div><button data-trace-more class="mt-5 hidden rounded-xl border border-stone-300 px-4 py-2 text-sm font-semibold">Load more</button></section>';if(canKill)$('#kill-run').onclick=async()=>{if(!confirm('Kill this run and release its concurrency slot?'))return;await request('/api/v1/runs/'+encodeURIComponent(id)+'/kill',{method:'POST'});location.reload()};$('[data-trace-more]').onclick=()=>{traceDone=false;loadTrace()};await loadTrace();updateElapsed(r);scheduleRefresh(r)}).catch(e=>root.innerHTML='<p class="text-red-700">'+esc(e.message)+'</p>');`);
+request('/api/v1/runs/'+encodeURIComponent(id)).then(async r=>({r,j:await request('/api/v1/jobs/'+encodeURIComponent(r.job_id))})).then(async({r,j})=>{const canKill=!['done','failed','stopped','succeeded'].includes(r.state),runLabel=r.name||r.run_name||r.issue_title||'Run '+r.id.slice(0,8);document.title=runLabel+' — Factorize';root.innerHTML='<nav aria-label="Breadcrumb"><ol class="flex min-w-0 flex-wrap items-center gap-2 text-sm text-slate-500"><li><a href="/jobs" class="font-medium hover:text-slate-950 dark:hover:text-white">Jobs</a></li><li aria-hidden="true">/</li><li class="min-w-0 max-w-full"><a href="/jobs/'+encodeURIComponent(r.job_id)+'" class="block truncate font-medium hover:text-slate-950 dark:hover:text-white">'+esc(j.name)+'</a></li><li aria-hidden="true">/</li><li aria-current="page" class="min-w-0 max-w-full truncate font-medium text-slate-950 dark:text-white">'+esc(runLabel)+'</li></ol></nav><div class="mt-6 flex min-w-0 flex-wrap items-start justify-between gap-4"><div class="min-w-0"><h1 class="break-words text-3xl font-bold">'+esc(runLabel)+'</h1><p data-run-elapsed class="mt-2 text-slate-500">'+elapsed(r)+'</p><p data-run-queue class="mt-1 text-sm text-slate-500">'+queueTime(r)+'</p></div><div class="flex min-w-0 flex-wrap items-center gap-3"><span data-run-state>'+stateBadge(r.state)+'</span>'+(canKill?'<button id="kill-run" class="rounded-xl border border-red-200 px-4 py-2 text-sm font-semibold text-red-700">Kill run</button>':'')+'</div></div>'+triggerProvenance(r)+'<details data-run-prompt-details class="${card} mt-8 min-w-0 overflow-hidden p-6"><summary class="cursor-pointer font-semibold">Prompt</summary><pre data-run-prompt class="mt-4 min-w-0 max-w-full overflow-x-auto whitespace-pre-wrap break-words rounded-xl bg-slate-950 p-4 font-mono text-xs leading-5 text-slate-100">'+esc(r.prompt||'Prompt is not available for this run.')+'</pre></details><section class="${card} mt-6 min-w-0 overflow-hidden p-6"><div class="flex flex-wrap items-center justify-between gap-3"><div><h2 class="font-semibold">Trace</h2><p class="mt-1 text-xs text-slate-500">Native '+esc(r.agent_kind||'agent')+' session · '+esc(r.artifact_state||'pending')+'</p></div>'+(activeStates.includes(r.state)?'<span class="text-xs text-slate-500" aria-live="polite">Live · refreshes automatically</span>':'')+'</div><p data-trace-empty class="mt-6 text-sm text-slate-500">Trace events are not available yet.</p><div data-run-trace class="mt-5 grid gap-3"></div><button data-trace-more class="mt-5 hidden rounded-xl border border-stone-300 px-4 py-2 text-sm font-semibold">Load more</button></section>';if(canKill)$('#kill-run').onclick=async()=>{if(!confirm('Kill this run and release its concurrency slot?'))return;await request('/api/v1/runs/'+encodeURIComponent(id)+'/kill',{method:'POST'});location.reload()};$('[data-trace-more]').onclick=()=>{traceDone=false;loadTrace()};await loadTrace();updateElapsed(r);scheduleRefresh(r)}).catch(e=>root.innerHTML='<p class="text-red-700">'+esc(e.message)+'</p>');`);
 
 const settingsLayout = (active: "integrations" | "api-keys", content: string) => `<main class="mx-auto w-full max-w-6xl min-w-0 px-4 py-8 sm:px-5 sm:py-12 lg:px-8"><div class="grid min-w-0 gap-8 md:grid-cols-[13rem_minmax(0,1fr)] md:gap-10"><nav aria-label="Settings" class="flex gap-2 overflow-x-auto border-b border-stone-200 pb-3 md:block md:border-b-0 md:pb-0 dark:border-slate-800">
 ${[["integrations", "Integrations"], ["api-keys", "API Keys"]].map(([id, label]) => `<a href="/settings/${id}"${active === id ? ` aria-current="page"` : ""} class="flex min-h-11 shrink-0 items-center rounded-lg px-3 py-2 text-sm text-slate-600 hover:bg-stone-100 hover:text-slate-950 focus-visible:outline-none focus-visible:ring-2 focus-visible:ring-inset focus-visible:ring-factorize-600 aria-[current=page]:bg-stone-100 aria-[current=page]:font-semibold aria-[current=page]:text-slate-950 md:mb-1 dark:text-slate-300 dark:hover:bg-slate-800 dark:hover:text-white dark:aria-[current=page]:bg-slate-800 dark:aria-[current=page]:text-white">${label}</a>`).join("")}
diff --git a/packages/app/test/postgres-run-query-repository.test.ts b/packages/app/test/postgres-run-query-repository.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..000bfe8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/app/test/postgres-run-query-repository.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,16 @@
+import { describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
+import { RunQueryRepository } from "../src/postgres/run-query-repository";
+
+describe("run timing queries", () => {
+  it.each([null, new Date("2026-09-18T12:10:00Z")])("exposes the persisted start (%s) separately from creation", async started_at => {
+    const row = { id: "run", created_at: new Date("2026-09-18T12:00:00Z"), started_at };
+    const query = vi.fn(async () => ({ rows: [row] }));
+    const repository = new RunQueryRepository({ pool: { query } } as any, "tenant");
+    expect((await repository.list(new URLSearchParams())).items[0]).toEqual(row);
+    expect(await repository.get("run")).toEqual(row);
+    for (const [sql] of query.mock.calls as unknown as [string][]) {
+      expect(sql).toContain("jr.started_at");
+      expect(sql).toContain("jr.tenant_id=r.tenant_id AND jr.id=r.id");
+    }
+  });
+});
diff --git a/packages/app/test/postgres-run-repository.test.ts b/packages/app/test/postgres-run-repository.test.ts
index 7319205..f3504de 100644
--- a/packages/app/test/postgres-run-repository.test.ts
+++ b/packages/app/test/postgres-run-repository.test.ts
@@ -2,6 +2,16 @@ import { describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
 import { RunRepository } from "../src/postgres/run-repository";
 
 describe("RunRepository", () => {
+  it("records the first successful launch time without replacing creation time", async () => {
+    const query = vi.fn(async () => ({ rows: [], rowCount: 1 }));
+    const database = { transaction: (work: any) => work({ query }) } as any;
+    await new RunRepository(database).markLaunched({ tenantId: "tenant", id: "run" } as any, { backendKind: "exe" } as any, "https://example.com", []);
+    const calls = query.mock.calls as unknown as [string, unknown[]][];
+    expect(calls[0][0]).toContain("started_at=COALESCE(started_at,now())");
+    expect(calls[0][1]).toEqual(["tenant", "run"]);
+    expect(calls.every(([sql]) => !sql.includes("created_at="))).toBe(true);
+  });
+
   it("claims queue work with row locking and persisted concurrency", async () => {
     const query = vi.fn(async (sql: string) => ({ rows: sql.includes("WITH candidate") ? [] : [], rowCount: 0 }));
     const database = { transaction: (work: any) => work({ query }), pool: { query } } as any;
diff --git a/packages/app/test/run-timing.browser.test.ts b/packages/app/test/run-timing.browser.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..914f61f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/app/test/run-timing.browser.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,52 @@
+// @vitest-environment happy-dom
+import { afterEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
+import { jobDetailPage, jobRunPage } from "../src/ui";
+
+declare const document: any;
+afterEach(() => { vi.useRealTimers(); vi.unstubAllGlobals(); document.body.innerHTML = ""; });
+
+describe("run elapsed time", () => {
+  it("uses actual start times in the job list and omits runtime before launch", async () => {
+    vi.useFakeTimers();
+    vi.setSystemTime(new Date("2026-09-18T12:10:03Z"));
+    const created_at = "2026-09-18T12:00:00Z";
+    vi.stubGlobal("fetch", vi.fn(async (url: string) => new Response(JSON.stringify(
+      url.includes("/runs?") ? { items: [
+        { id: "running", state: "running", created_at, started_at: "2026-09-18T12:10:00Z" },
+        { id: "queued", state: "queued", created_at, started_at: null },
+        { id: "legacy", state: "running", created_at, started_at: null },
+      ] } : { name: "Test job", triggers: [], enabled: true, runningCount: 2, concurrencyLimit: 3 }
+    ))));
+    const html = jobDetailPage({ email: "test@example.com" }, "job");
+    document.body.innerHTML = html.match(/<body[^>]*>([\s\S]*?)<\/body>/)![1];
+    new Function([...html.matchAll(/<script>([\s\S]*?)<\/script>/g)].at(-1)![1])();
+    await vi.advanceTimersByTimeAsync(0);
+    const labels = document.querySelectorAll("[data-run-started]");
+    expect(labels).toHaveLength(1);
+    expect(labels[0].textContent).toBe("3s elapsed");
+    await vi.advanceTimersByTimeAsync(1000);
+    expect(labels[0].textContent).toBe("4s elapsed");
+  });
+
+  it("excludes queue time, starts after launch, and freezes on completion", async () => {
+    vi.useFakeTimers();
+    vi.setSystemTime(new Date("2026-09-18T12:10:00Z"));
+    let run = { id: "run-1", job_id: "job-1", state: "queued", created_at: "2026-09-18T12:00:00Z", started_at: null as string | null, updated_at: "2026-09-18T12:00:00Z" };
+    vi.stubGlobal("fetch", vi.fn(async (url: string) => new Response(JSON.stringify(
+      url.includes("/trace?") ? { items: [], nextCursor: null } : url.includes("/jobs/") ? { name: "Test job" } : run
+    ))));
+    const html = jobRunPage({ email: "test@example.com" }, run.id);
+    document.body.innerHTML = html.match(/<body[^>]*>([\s\S]*?)<\/body>/)![1];
+    new Function([...html.matchAll(/<script>([\s\S]*?)<\/script>/g)].at(-1)![1])();
+    await vi.advanceTimersByTimeAsync(0);
+    expect(document.querySelector("[data-run-elapsed]").textContent).toBe("Waiting to start");
+    expect(document.querySelector("[data-run-queue]").textContent).toBe("600s waiting to start");
+    run = { ...run, state: "running", started_at: "2026-09-18T12:10:00Z" };
+    await vi.advanceTimersByTimeAsync(3000);
+    expect(document.querySelector("[data-run-elapsed]").textContent).toBe("3s elapsed");
+    expect(document.querySelector("[data-run-queue]").textContent).toBe("600s queue time");
+    run = { ...run, state: "succeeded", updated_at: "2026-09-18T12:10:05Z" };
+    await vi.advanceTimersByTimeAsync(6000);
+    expect(document.querySelector("[data-run-elapsed]").textContent).toBe("5s elapsed");
+  });
+});
diff --git a/packages/docs/openapi.yaml b/packages/docs/openapi.yaml
index e179afc..ee30f00 100644
--- a/packages/docs/openapi.yaml
+++ b/packages/docs/openapi.yaml
@@ -25,6 +25,13 @@ components:
         model: { type: string, maxLength: 120 }
         effort: { type: string, maxLength: 40 }
         triggers: { type: array, maxItems: 50, items: { type: object }, description: "Job lifecycle config uses sourceJobIds and states (succeeded, failed, stopped, edited). Edited fires on successful job saves, including enable/disable; context contains source_job_id, event, and edited_at." }
+    Run:
+      type: object
+      properties:
+        created_at: { type: string, format: date-time, description: Time the run was created and queued. }
+        started_at: { type: [string, 'null'], format: date-time, description: Time execution launch succeeded. Null until started or when unknown. Runtime starts here; the difference from created_at is queue time including launch preparation. }
+        updated_at: { type: string, format: date-time, description: Last run update; used as the elapsed runtime endpoint for terminal runs. }
+    RunPage: { type: object, required: [items], properties: { items: { type: array, items: { $ref: '#/components/schemas/Run' } }, nextCursor: { type: string, nullable: true } } }
     ExecutionDiagnostics:
       type: [object, 'null']
       description: First terminal backend observation, retained independently of collection and cleanup errors. Null for older or nonterminal runs. Commands and raw backend responses are never included.
@@ -60,6 +67,8 @@ components:
         state: { type: string, enum: [stored] }
         created_at: { type: string, format: date-time }
     RunDetail:
+      allOf:
+        - $ref: '#/components/schemas/Run'
       type: object
       required: [id, state, execution_diagnostics, harness_log]
       properties:
@@ -87,7 +96,6 @@ components:
         activity: { type: array, items: { type: object } }
         createdAt: { type: string, format: date-time }
         updatedAt: { type: string, format: date-time }
-    RunPage: { type: object, required: [items], properties: { items: { type: array, items: { type: object } }, nextCursor: { type: string, nullable: true } } }
     ManualInvocation:
       type: object
       additionalProperties: false