diff --git a/apps/bot/src/index.ts b/apps/bot/src/index.ts
index bfde14e..79c4c56 100644
--- a/apps/bot/src/index.ts
+++ b/apps/bot/src/index.ts
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ import {
   registerDefaultHandlers,
 } from "./ipc/command-consumer.js";
 import { sweepStalePendingAccounts } from "./ipc/pair-handler.js";
+import { sweepStalePendingRuns } from "./scheduler/sweep-stale-runs.js";
 
 async function main(): Promise<void> {
   logger.info("bot starting");
@@ -22,6 +23,7 @@ async function main(): Promise<void> {
   const stopConsumer = await startCommandConsumer();
 
   await sweepStalePendingAccounts();
+  await sweepStalePendingRuns();
   await sessionManager.resumeFromDb();
 
   const shutdown = async (signal: string): Promise<void> => {
diff --git a/apps/bot/src/scheduler/sweep-stale-runs.test.ts b/apps/bot/src/scheduler/sweep-stale-runs.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ae35871
--- /dev/null
+++ b/apps/bot/src/scheduler/sweep-stale-runs.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,76 @@
+import { describe, it, expect, vi, beforeEach } from "vitest";
+
+/**
+ * Corner case under test: fire-reminder writes the run row with
+ * status='pending' UP FRONT. If the bot is killed before it flips to
+ * a terminal status, the row sits at 'pending' indefinitely — pg-boss
+ * won't retry (the job already ran). Activity surfaces, the dashboard
+ * counters, and the paused-banner all read the row at face value, so
+ * the operator sees a "stuck" run that never moves.
+ *
+ * sweepStalePendingRuns recovers from this on bot startup.
+ */
+
+// db.execute fan-out: build a list of {sql, return} pairs the test
+// can assert on, and replay them in order. Ordering matters because
+// the implementation does TWO updates (runs first, then targets) and
+// the second one must only run if the first returned anything.
+const executeMock = vi.fn();
+
+vi.mock("../db.js", () => ({
+  db: {
+    execute: (...a: unknown[]) => executeMock(...a),
+  },
+}));
+
+import { sweepStalePendingRuns } from "./sweep-stale-runs.js";
+
+beforeEach(() => {
+  executeMock.mockReset();
+});
+
+describe("sweepStalePendingRuns", () => {
+  it("returns 0 when no stale rows exist (skips the second UPDATE)", async () => {
+    executeMock.mockResolvedValueOnce({ rows: [] });
+    const r = await sweepStalePendingRuns();
+    expect(r).toEqual({ runs: 0, targets: 0 });
+    // Only the first UPDATE (runs) runs; no second UPDATE for targets.
+    expect(executeMock).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+  });
+
+  it("fires both UPDATEs when there ARE stale rows", async () => {
+    executeMock
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce({ rows: [{ id: "run-A" }, { id: "run-B" }] })
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce({ rows: [{ id: "t-1" }, { id: "t-2" }, { id: "t-3" }] });
+
+    const r = await sweepStalePendingRuns();
+
+    expect(r).toEqual({ runs: 2, targets: 3 });
+    expect(executeMock).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(2);
+  });
+
+  it("returns the actual swept counts so the caller can log them", async () => {
+    executeMock
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce({
+        rows: [{ id: "run-A" }, { id: "run-B" }, { id: "run-C" }],
+      })
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce({ rows: Array.from({ length: 17 }, (_, i) => ({ id: `t-${i}` })) });
+
+    const r = await sweepStalePendingRuns();
+
+    expect(r.runs).toBe(3);
+    expect(r.targets).toBe(17);
+  });
+
+  it("doesn't throw when the targets UPDATE returns no rows (run with no pending targets)", async () => {
+    // A stale run with zero pending targets is unusual but possible —
+    // the run row got the up-front insert but the per-target inserts
+    // never ran. Still a stale run, still gets cleared.
+    executeMock
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce({ rows: [{ id: "run-D" }] })
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce({ rows: [] });
+
+    const r = await sweepStalePendingRuns();
+    expect(r).toEqual({ runs: 1, targets: 0 });
+  });
+});
diff --git a/apps/bot/src/scheduler/sweep-stale-runs.ts b/apps/bot/src/scheduler/sweep-stale-runs.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f7484f0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/apps/bot/src/scheduler/sweep-stale-runs.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,64 @@
+import { sql } from "drizzle-orm";
+import { db } from "../db.js";
+import { logger } from "../logger.js";
+
+/**
+ * Recover from "bot crashed / restarted mid-run" crashes.
+ *
+ * fire-reminder writes the run row with status='pending' UP FRONT so
+ * the Activity tab can show progress mid-run, then flips to a
+ * terminal status (success/partial/failed/paused/skipped) once it's
+ * done. If the bot dies between those two writes, the row sits at
+ * 'pending' forever — pg-boss already marked the job 'completed', so
+ * it won't retry.
+ *
+ * This sweep runs at bot startup. It finds any 'pending' run older
+ * than `maxAgeMs` (default 5 minutes — enough slack that a real
+ * mid-run rebalance to another worker isn't accidentally killed) and:
+ *
+ *   • Flips the run to 'failed' with a clear error_summary so the UI
+ *     stops showing it as in-flight.
+ *   • Flips its pending run_target rows to 'skipped' with the same
+ *     reason so per-group counts make sense.
+ *
+ * Does NOT touch the parent reminder's lifecycle status — the row was
+ * 'active' when the run started and stays that way; the next
+ * occurrence (cron) or operator action will fire a fresh run.
+ */
+export async function sweepStalePendingRuns(
+  maxAgeMs: number = 5 * 60 * 1000,
+): Promise<{ runs: number; targets: number }> {
+  const cutoffMs = Date.now() - maxAgeMs;
+  const cutoff = new Date(cutoffMs);
+
+  const runs = await db.execute(sql`
+    UPDATE reminder_runs
+    SET status = 'failed',
+        error_summary = 'Bot restarted before this run completed.'
+    WHERE status = 'pending'
+      AND fired_at < ${cutoff}
+    RETURNING id
+  `);
+  const runRows = runs.rows as Array<{ id: string }>;
+  if (runRows.length === 0) {
+    logger.info("sweep-stale-runs: no stale pending runs");
+    return { runs: 0, targets: 0 };
+  }
+
+  const ids = runRows.map((r) => r.id);
+  const targets = await db.execute(sql`
+    UPDATE reminder_run_targets
+    SET status = 'skipped',
+        error = 'bot restarted before this group could be sent'
+    WHERE status = 'pending'
+      AND run_id IN (${sql.join(ids.map((id) => sql`${id}`), sql`, `)})
+    RETURNING id
+  `);
+  const targetCount = (targets.rows as Array<unknown>).length;
+
+  logger.warn(
+    { runs: runRows.length, targets: targetCount, cutoff: cutoff.toISOString() },
+    "sweep-stale-runs: cleared stale pending runs",
+  );
+  return { runs: runRows.length, targets: targetCount };
+}