diff --git a/app/src/components/CapturesTab/CapturesTab.tsx b/app/src/components/CapturesTab/CapturesTab.tsx
index 65c66103..7492d320 100644
--- a/app/src/components/CapturesTab/CapturesTab.tsx
+++ b/app/src/components/CapturesTab/CapturesTab.tsx
@@ -567,7 +567,7 @@ export function CapturesTab() {
                     {t('captures.actions.configure')}
                   </Link>
                 </Button>
-                {readiness.allReady && (
+                {readiness.canRecord && (
                   <Button
                     variant="outline"
                     onClick={handleUploadClick}
@@ -583,11 +583,11 @@ export function CapturesTab() {
                 )}
               </>
             )}
-            {/* Hide Dictate when readiness fails so the user can't kick off
+            {/* Hide Dictate when recording readiness fails so the user can't kick off
                 a capture that has nowhere to land. Stop stays visible if a
                 recording is somehow already in flight (e.g. a model was
                 uninstalled mid-record) so the user can always cancel. */}
-            {(readiness.allReady || session.isRecording) && (
+            {(readiness.canRecord || session.isRecording) && (
               <Button
                 onClick={session.toggleRecording}
                 disabled={session.isUploading && !session.isRecording}
@@ -842,7 +842,7 @@ export function CapturesTab() {
                 <Captions className="h-10 w-10 mx-auto opacity-40" />
                 <p className="text-sm">{t('captures.empty.pickOne')}</p>
               </div>
-            ) : hotkeyEnabled && !readiness.allReady ? (
+            ) : hotkeyEnabled && !readiness.canRecord ? (
               <DictationReadinessChecklist readiness={readiness} />
             ) : hotkeyEnabled && (pushToTalkKeys.length || toggleToTalkKeys.length) ? (
               <div className="max-w-sm mx-auto text-center space-y-5">
diff --git a/app/src/lib/hooks/useChordSync.ts b/app/src/lib/hooks/useChordSync.ts
index 4758db88..76054e7b 100644
--- a/app/src/lib/hooks/useChordSync.ts
+++ b/app/src/lib/hooks/useChordSync.ts
@@ -6,18 +6,18 @@ import { usePlatform } from '@/platform/PlatformContext';
 
 /**
  * Spawn (or quiet) the global hotkey monitor based on the saved
- * `capture_settings.hotkey_enabled` flag AND the dictation readiness gates,
+ * `capture_settings.hotkey_enabled` flag and the recording readiness gates,
  * and keep its bindings in sync with the user's chord choices.
  *
  * Boot sequence:
- *  - hotkey_enabled = false OR any readiness gate missing → call
+ *  - hotkey_enabled = false OR a recording gate is missing → call
  *    `disable_hotkey` (no-op if monitor was never spawned). Crucially, we do
  *    *not* call `enable_hotkey` in this state, so the macOS Input Monitoring
  *    TCC prompt is never triggered for users who haven't opted in, AND the
  *    chord physically can't fire when models aren't downloaded — preventing
  *    the "stuck pill" failure mode where dictation triggers but has nowhere
  *    to land.
- *  - hotkey_enabled = true AND all gates green → call `enable_hotkey` with
+ *  - hotkey_enabled = true AND recording gates green → call `enable_hotkey` with
  *    the saved chords. This creates the CGEventTap and triggers the TCC
  *    prompt on first opt-in. Re-runs whenever a gate flips green (e.g. the
  *    user finishes downloading Whisper in another tab) so the chord
@@ -28,7 +28,7 @@ import { usePlatform } from '@/platform/PlatformContext';
 export function useChordSync() {
   const platform = usePlatform();
   const { settings } = useCaptureSettings();
-  const { allReady } = useDictationReadiness();
+  const { canRecord } = useDictationReadiness();
   const enabled = settings?.hotkey_enabled;
   const pushKeys = settings?.chord_push_to_talk_keys;
   const toggleKeys = settings?.chord_toggle_to_talk_keys;
@@ -36,7 +36,7 @@ export function useChordSync() {
   useEffect(() => {
     if (!platform.metadata.isTauri) return;
     if (enabled === undefined || !pushKeys || !toggleKeys) return;
-    const shouldArm = enabled && allReady;
+    const shouldArm = enabled && canRecord;
     const command = shouldArm ? 'enable_hotkey' : 'disable_hotkey';
     const args = shouldArm ? { pushToTalk: pushKeys, toggleToTalk: toggleKeys } : {};
     invoke(command, args).catch((err) => {
@@ -45,7 +45,7 @@ export function useChordSync() {
   }, [
     platform.metadata.isTauri,
     enabled,
-    allReady,
+    canRecord,
     // Stringify so a referentially-new array with the same content
     // doesn't fire a redundant invoke on every settings refetch.
     pushKeys?.join(','),
diff --git a/app/src/lib/hooks/useDictationReadiness.ts b/app/src/lib/hooks/useDictationReadiness.ts
index 141ed82b..fd755a2f 100644
--- a/app/src/lib/hooks/useDictationReadiness.ts
+++ b/app/src/lib/hooks/useDictationReadiness.ts
@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ export type ReadinessGate = 'stt' | 'llm' | 'input_monitoring' | 'accessibility'
 
 export interface DictationReadiness {
   isLoading: boolean;
+  canRecord: boolean;
   allReady: boolean;
   /** Subset of gates that are NOT yet satisfied — what the checklist renders. */
   missing: ReadinessGate[];
@@ -26,12 +27,11 @@ export interface DictationReadiness {
 }
 
 /**
- * Single source of truth for "can the user trigger dictation right now?"
+ * Single source of truth for dictation readiness.
  *
- * Combines four gates into one struct so the chord-sync hook can refuse to
- * arm the global hotkey unless every gate is green — the "stuck pill" we
- * used to get on missing models is solved by never letting the chord fire
- * in the first place.
+ * ``canRecord`` covers the gates that must be green before the chord can
+ * start recording. ``allReady`` also includes Accessibility, which only gates
+ * synthetic paste — dictation still records and lands in Captures without it.
  *
  * Gates:
  *  - stt / llm: backend ``/capture/readiness`` (polled, since downloads
@@ -87,9 +87,11 @@ export function useDictationReadiness(): DictationReadiness {
   if (!llmReady) missing.push('llm');
   if (!inputMonitoring) missing.push('input_monitoring');
   if (!accessibility) missing.push('accessibility');
+  const canRecord = sttReady && llmReady && inputMonitoring;
 
   return {
     isLoading,
+    canRecord,
     allReady: missing.length === 0,
     missing,
     stt: data?.stt,