diff --git a/.github/workflows/prerelease-cua-cli.yml b/.github/workflows/prerelease-cua-cli.yml
deleted file mode 100644
index 4f95774..0000000
--- a/.github/workflows/prerelease-cua-cli.yml
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,117 +0,0 @@
-name: Prerelease CUA CLI
-
-# Manually publish a prerelease of @onkernel/cua-cli from any branch under an
-# npm dist-tag (never `latest`). Unlike release-cua-cli.yml there is no
-# "tag is on main" gate — this exists to try unmerged work via
-# `npm install -g @onkernel/cua-cli@<dist-tag>`. The published version is
-# `<pkg-version>-<dist-tag>.<run-number>`, unique per run, and only reachable
-# through the chosen dist-tag, so normal installs are unaffected.
-
-on:
-  workflow_dispatch:
-    inputs:
-      dist_tag:
-        description: "npm dist-tag to publish under (never 'latest'); also used as the prerelease id"
-        required: true
-        default: "ext"
-        type: string
-
-permissions:
-  contents: read
-  id-token: write
-
-concurrency:
-  group: prerelease-cua-cli-${{ github.ref_name }}
-  cancel-in-progress: false
-
-jobs:
-  publish:
-    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
-    timeout-minutes: 20
-    steps:
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v5
-
-      - uses: actions/setup-node@v5
-        with:
-          node-version: 24
-          registry-url: https://registry.npmjs.org
-
-      - name: Ensure npm supports trusted publishing
-        run: npm install -g npm@^11.5.1
-
-      - name: Validate dist-tag
-        env:
-          DIST_TAG: ${{ inputs.dist_tag }}
-        run: |
-          if [[ ! "$DIST_TAG" =~ ^[a-z0-9][a-z0-9-]*$ ]]; then
-            echo "dist_tag must be lowercase alphanumeric/hyphen, e.g. ext, next, pr-41 (got '$DIST_TAG')" >&2
-            exit 1
-          fi
-          if [[ "$DIST_TAG" == "latest" ]]; then
-            echo "refusing to publish a prerelease to the 'latest' dist-tag" >&2
-            exit 1
-          fi
-
-      - run: npm ci
-
-      - name: Compute prerelease version
-        id: version
-        env:
-          DIST_TAG: ${{ inputs.dist_tag }}
-        run: |
-          BASE=$(node -p "require('./packages/cli/package.json').version")
-          VERSION="${BASE}-${DIST_TAG}.${GITHUB_RUN_NUMBER}"
-          npm pkg set version="$VERSION" --workspace @onkernel/cua-cli
-          echo "version=$VERSION" >> "$GITHUB_OUTPUT"
-          echo "cua-cli prerelease version: $VERSION"
-
-      - name: Verify runtime dependencies are published
-        run: |
-          node -p 'require("./packages/cli/package.json").dependencies["@onkernel/cua-ai"]' \
-            | xargs -I{} npm view @onkernel/cua-ai@{} version
-          node -p 'require("./packages/cli/package.json").dependencies["@onkernel/cua-agent"]' \
-            | xargs -I{} npm view @onkernel/cua-agent@{} version
-
-      - run: npm run build --workspace @onkernel/cua-ai
-      - run: npm run build --workspace @onkernel/cua-agent
-
-      - name: Build cua-cli
-        run: npm run build --workspace @onkernel/cua-cli
-
-      - name: Pack tarball
-        run: npm pack --workspace @onkernel/cua-cli --pack-destination "$RUNNER_TEMP"
-
-      - name: CLI bin smoke test
-        run: |
-          SMOKE_DIR=$(mktemp -d)
-          cd "$SMOKE_DIR"
-          npm init -y > /dev/null
-          npm install "$RUNNER_TEMP"/onkernel-cua-cli-*.tgz
-          OUTPUT=$(./node_modules/.bin/cua --help)
-          echo "$OUTPUT"
-          echo "$OUTPUT" | grep -q "Usage:"
-          echo "$OUTPUT" | grep -q "cua \[options\] \[prompt\.\.\.\]"
-
-      - name: Publish to npm
-        env:
-          DIST_TAG: ${{ inputs.dist_tag }}
-        run: npm publish --workspace @onkernel/cua-cli --access public --tag "$DIST_TAG"
-
-      - name: Job summary
-        env:
-          DIST_TAG: ${{ inputs.dist_tag }}
-          VERSION: ${{ steps.version.outputs.version }}
-        run: |
-          {
-            echo "### Prerelease published"
-            echo ""
-            echo "- version: \`$VERSION\`"
-            echo "- dist-tag: \`$DIST_TAG\`"
-            echo "- branch: \`$GITHUB_REF_NAME\` (\`$GITHUB_SHA\`)"
-            echo ""
-            echo "Install:"
-            echo ""
-            echo '```'
-            echo "npm install -g @onkernel/cua-cli@$DIST_TAG"
-            echo '```'
-          } >> "$GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY"
diff --git a/.github/workflows/release-cua-cli.yml b/.github/workflows/release-cua-cli.yml
index 46de0c6..371b14f 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/release-cua-cli.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/release-cua-cli.yml
@@ -4,13 +4,20 @@ on:
   push:
     tags:
       - "cua-cli/v*"
+  workflow_dispatch:
+    inputs:
+      dist_tag:
+        description: "npm dist-tag to publish under (never 'latest'); also used as the prerelease id"
+        required: true
+        default: "ext"
+        type: string
 
 permissions:
   contents: read
   id-token: write
 
 concurrency:
-  group: release-cua-cli-${{ github.ref_name }}
+  group: release-cua-cli-${{ github.event_name }}-${{ github.ref_name }}
   cancel-in-progress: false
 
 jobs:
@@ -24,23 +31,12 @@ jobs:
         with:
           fetch-depth: 0
 
-      - name: Verify tag is on main
+      - name: Verify production release
+        if: github.event_name == 'push'
         run: |
           git fetch origin main:refs/remotes/origin/main
           git merge-base --is-ancestor "$GITHUB_SHA" origin/main
 
-      - uses: actions/setup-node@v5
-        with:
-          node-version: 24
-          registry-url: https://registry.npmjs.org
-
-      - name: Ensure npm supports trusted publishing
-        run: npm install -g npm@^11.5.1
-
-      - run: npm ci
-
-      - name: Verify package version matches tag
-        run: |
           node --input-type=module <<'EOF'
           import { readFileSync } from "node:fs";
 
@@ -59,13 +55,46 @@ jobs:
           console.log(`${pkg.name}@${pkg.version}`);
           EOF
 
+      - uses: actions/setup-node@v5
+        with:
+          node-version: 24
+          registry-url: https://registry.npmjs.org
+
+      - name: Ensure npm supports trusted publishing
+        run: npm install -g npm@^11.5.1
+
+      - run: npm ci
+
+      - name: Compute prerelease version
+        if: github.event_name == 'workflow_dispatch'
+        id: prerelease
+        env:
+          DIST_TAG: ${{ inputs.dist_tag }}
+        run: |
+          if [[ ! "$DIST_TAG" =~ ^[a-z0-9][a-z0-9-]*$ ]]; then
+            echo "dist_tag must be lowercase alphanumeric/hyphen, e.g. ext, next, pr-41 (got '$DIST_TAG')" >&2
+            exit 1
+          fi
+          if [[ "$DIST_TAG" == "latest" ]]; then
+            echo "refusing to publish a prerelease to the 'latest' dist-tag" >&2
+            exit 1
+          fi
+
+          BASE=$(node -p "require('./packages/cli/package.json').version")
+          VERSION="${BASE}-${DIST_TAG}.${GITHUB_RUN_NUMBER}"
+          npm pkg set version="$VERSION" --workspace @onkernel/cua-cli
+          echo "version=$VERSION" >> "$GITHUB_OUTPUT"
+          echo "cua-cli prerelease version: $VERSION"
+
       - name: Cache Zig toolchain
+        if: github.event_name == 'push'
         uses: actions/cache@v4
         with:
           path: .dev/tools/zig-x86_64-linux-${{ env.PTYWRIGHT_ZIG_VERSION }}
           key: zig-${{ runner.os }}-${{ env.PTYWRIGHT_ZIG_VERSION }}
 
       - name: Install Zig ${{ env.PTYWRIGHT_ZIG_VERSION }}
+        if: github.event_name == 'push'
         run: |
           set -euo pipefail
           ZIG_DIR=".dev/tools/zig-x86_64-linux-${PTYWRIGHT_ZIG_VERSION}"
@@ -78,6 +107,7 @@ jobs:
           echo "${GITHUB_WORKSPACE}/${ZIG_DIR}" >> "${GITHUB_PATH}"
 
       - name: Cache ptywright native artifacts
+        if: github.event_name == 'push'
         uses: actions/cache@v4
         with:
           path: |
@@ -88,37 +118,122 @@ jobs:
       - run: npm run build --workspace @onkernel/cua-ai
       - run: npm run build --workspace @onkernel/cua-agent
 
-      - name: Build ptywright (native binding)
-        run: npm run build --workspace @onkernel/ptywright
-
-      - name: Build cua-cli
-        run: npm run build --workspace @onkernel/cua-cli
-
-      - name: Verify runtime dependencies are published
+      - name: Verify published production dependencies
+        if: github.event_name == 'push'
         run: |
           node -p 'require("./packages/cli/package.json").dependencies["@onkernel/cua-ai"]' \
             | xargs -I{} npm view @onkernel/cua-ai@{} version
           node -p 'require("./packages/cli/package.json").dependencies["@onkernel/cua-agent"]' \
             | xargs -I{} npm view @onkernel/cua-agent@{} version
 
+      - name: Build ptywright (native binding)
+        if: github.event_name == 'push'
+        run: npm run build --workspace @onkernel/ptywright
+
+      - name: Build cua-cli
+        run: npm run build --workspace @onkernel/cua-cli
+
       - name: CLI unit tests
+        if: github.event_name == 'push'
         env:
           PTYWRIGHT_REQUIRED: "1"
         run: npm test --workspace @onkernel/cua-cli
 
-      - name: Pack tarball
+      - name: Pack production tarball
+        if: github.event_name == 'push'
         run: npm pack --workspace @onkernel/cua-cli --pack-destination "$RUNNER_TEMP"
 
+      - name: Pack branch workspace dependencies
+        if: github.event_name == 'workflow_dispatch'
+        run: |
+          mkdir -p "$RUNNER_TEMP/workspace-packages"
+          npm pack --workspace @onkernel/cua-ai --pack-destination "$RUNNER_TEMP/workspace-packages"
+          npm pack --workspace @onkernel/cua-agent --pack-destination "$RUNNER_TEMP/workspace-packages"
+
+      - name: Pack bundled CLI prerelease
+        if: github.event_name == 'workflow_dispatch'
+        run: |
+          export STAGE_DIR="$RUNNER_TEMP/cua-cli-prerelease"
+          mkdir -p "$STAGE_DIR/node_modules/@onkernel"
+          cp packages/cli/package.json packages/cli/README.md "$STAGE_DIR/"
+          cp -R packages/cli/dist "$STAGE_DIR/"
+
+          for package in cua-ai cua-agent; do
+            tarball=$(find "$RUNNER_TEMP/workspace-packages" -name "onkernel-${package}-*.tgz" -print -quit)
+            mkdir -p "$STAGE_DIR/node_modules/@onkernel/$package"
+            tar -xzf "$tarball" --strip-components=1 -C "$STAGE_DIR/node_modules/@onkernel/$package"
+          done
+
+          node --input-type=module <<'EOF'
+          import { readFileSync, writeFileSync } from "node:fs";
+          import { join } from "node:path";
+
+          const packagePath = join(process.env.STAGE_DIR, "package.json");
+          const pkg = JSON.parse(readFileSync(packagePath, "utf8"));
+          const bundled = ["@onkernel/cua-ai", "@onkernel/cua-agent"];
+
+          for (const name of bundled) {
+            const dependency = JSON.parse(
+              readFileSync(join(process.env.STAGE_DIR, "node_modules", name, "package.json"), "utf8"),
+            );
+            pkg.dependencies[name] = dependency.version;
+            for (const [dependencyName, version] of Object.entries(dependency.dependencies ?? {})) {
+              if (bundled.includes(dependencyName)) continue;
+              const current = pkg.dependencies[dependencyName];
+              if (current && current !== version) {
+                throw new Error(`Conflicting ${dependencyName} versions: ${current} and ${version}`);
+              }
+              pkg.dependencies[dependencyName] = version;
+            }
+          }
+
+          pkg.bundledDependencies = bundled;
+          writeFileSync(packagePath, `${JSON.stringify(pkg, null, 2)}\n`);
+          EOF
+
+          npm pack "$STAGE_DIR" --pack-destination "$RUNNER_TEMP"
+
       - name: CLI bin smoke test
         run: |
           SMOKE_DIR=$(mktemp -d)
           cd "$SMOKE_DIR"
           npm init -y > /dev/null
           npm install "$RUNNER_TEMP"/onkernel-cua-cli-*.tgz
+          if [[ "$GITHUB_EVENT_NAME" == "workflow_dispatch" ]]; then
+            test -f node_modules/@onkernel/cua-cli/node_modules/@onkernel/cua-ai/dist/index.js
+            test -f node_modules/@onkernel/cua-cli/node_modules/@onkernel/cua-agent/dist/index.js
+          fi
           OUTPUT=$(./node_modules/.bin/cua --help)
           echo "$OUTPUT"
           echo "$OUTPUT" | grep -q "Usage:"
           echo "$OUTPUT" | grep -q "cua \[options\] \[prompt\.\.\.\]"
 
-      - name: Publish to npm
+      - name: Publish production release
+        if: github.event_name == 'push'
         run: npm publish --workspace @onkernel/cua-cli --access public
+
+      - name: Publish prerelease
+        if: github.event_name == 'workflow_dispatch'
+        env:
+          DIST_TAG: ${{ inputs.dist_tag }}
+        run: npm publish "$RUNNER_TEMP"/onkernel-cua-cli-*.tgz --access public --tag "$DIST_TAG"
+
+      - name: Prerelease summary
+        if: github.event_name == 'workflow_dispatch'
+        env:
+          DIST_TAG: ${{ inputs.dist_tag }}
+          VERSION: ${{ steps.prerelease.outputs.version }}
+        run: |
+          {
+            echo "### Prerelease published"
+            echo ""
+            echo "- version: \`$VERSION\`"
+            echo "- dist-tag: \`$DIST_TAG\`"
+            echo "- branch: \`$GITHUB_REF_NAME\` (\`$GITHUB_SHA\`)"
+            echo ""
+            echo "Install:"
+            echo ""
+            echo '```'
+            echo "npm install -g @onkernel/cua-cli@$DIST_TAG"
+            echo '```'
+          } >> "$GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY"