diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/main.ts b/apps/desktop/src/main.ts
index 529ed55d03f..c5507c6fb03 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/main.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/main.ts
@@ -75,6 +75,7 @@ import {
 } from "./updateMachine.ts";
 import { isArm64HostRunningIntelBuild, resolveDesktopRuntimeInfo } from "./runtimeArch.ts";
 import { resolveDesktopAppBranding } from "./appBranding.ts";
+import { bindFirstRevealTrigger, type RevealSubscription } from "./windowReveal.ts";
 
 syncShellEnvironment();
 
@@ -1998,16 +1999,17 @@ function createWindow(): BrowserWindow {
     emitUpdateState();
   });
 
-  let initialRevealScheduled = false;
-  const revealInitialWindow = () => {
-    if (initialRevealScheduled) {
-      return;
-    }
-    initialRevealScheduled = true;
-    revealWindow(window);
-  };
-
-  window.once("ready-to-show", revealInitialWindow);
+  // On Linux/Wayland with `show: false`, Electron's `ready-to-show` only
+  // fires after `show()` is called, deadlocking the standard "wait for
+  // ready, then show" pattern. Add `did-finish-load` as a Linux-only
+  // fallback so the window still surfaces once the renderer has loaded
+  // the page. Other platforms keep the no-flash `ready-to-show` path,
+  // since `did-finish-load` typically fires before the first paint there.
+  const revealSubscribers: RevealSubscription[] = [(fire) => window.once("ready-to-show", fire)];
+  if (process.platform === "linux") {
+    revealSubscribers.push((fire) => window.webContents.once("did-finish-load", fire));
+  }
+  bindFirstRevealTrigger(revealSubscribers, () => revealWindow(window));
 
   if (isDevelopment) {
     void window.loadURL(resolveDesktopDevServerUrl());
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/windowReveal.test.ts b/apps/desktop/src/windowReveal.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..88285fec0cb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/windowReveal.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,74 @@
+import { EventEmitter } from "node:events";
+
+import { describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
+
+import { bindFirstRevealTrigger } from "./windowReveal.ts";
+
+describe("bindFirstRevealTrigger", () => {
+  it("reveals when the first trigger fires", () => {
+    const window = new EventEmitter();
+    const webContents = new EventEmitter();
+    const reveal = vi.fn();
+
+    bindFirstRevealTrigger(
+      [
+        (fire) => window.once("ready-to-show", fire),
+        (fire) => webContents.once("did-finish-load", fire),
+      ],
+      reveal,
+    );
+
+    window.emit("ready-to-show");
+
+    expect(reveal).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+  });
+
+  it("reveals when only the fallback trigger fires (Wayland deadlock case)", () => {
+    const window = new EventEmitter();
+    const webContents = new EventEmitter();
+    const reveal = vi.fn();
+
+    bindFirstRevealTrigger(
+      [
+        (fire) => window.once("ready-to-show", fire),
+        (fire) => webContents.once("did-finish-load", fire),
+      ],
+      reveal,
+    );
+
+    webContents.emit("did-finish-load");
+
+    expect(reveal).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+  });
+
+  it("only reveals once when multiple triggers fire", () => {
+    const window = new EventEmitter();
+    const webContents = new EventEmitter();
+    const reveal = vi.fn();
+
+    bindFirstRevealTrigger(
+      [
+        (fire) => window.once("ready-to-show", fire),
+        (fire) => webContents.once("did-finish-load", fire),
+      ],
+      reveal,
+    );
+
+    webContents.emit("did-finish-load");
+    window.emit("ready-to-show");
+
+    expect(reveal).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+  });
+
+  it("subscribers using `once` ignore re-emitted events after reveal", () => {
+    const window = new EventEmitter();
+    const reveal = vi.fn();
+
+    bindFirstRevealTrigger([(fire) => window.once("ready-to-show", fire)], reveal);
+
+    window.emit("ready-to-show");
+    window.emit("ready-to-show");
+
+    expect(reveal).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+  });
+});
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/windowReveal.ts b/apps/desktop/src/windowReveal.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..8faf65aeb15
--- /dev/null
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/windowReveal.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,28 @@
+export type RevealSubscription = (listener: () => void) => void;
+
+/**
+ * Wire a reveal callback to fire exactly once, on whichever of the provided
+ * event subscribers fires first. Each subscriber is responsible for binding
+ * its own event source.
+ *
+ * Used by the desktop main window's first-paint reveal logic. The standard
+ * Electron pattern is to wait for `ready-to-show` before calling `show()`,
+ * but on Linux/Wayland with `show: false`, `ready-to-show` only fires after
+ * `show()` is called, deadlocking that pattern. Subscribing to both
+ * `ready-to-show` and `did-finish-load` (or any other "renderer is alive"
+ * signal) lets the window surface reliably across platforms.
+ */
+export function bindFirstRevealTrigger(
+  subscribers: readonly RevealSubscription[],
+  reveal: () => void,
+): void {
+  let revealed = false;
+  const fire = () => {
+    if (revealed) return;
+    revealed = true;
+    reveal();
+  };
+  for (const subscribe of subscribers) {
+    subscribe(fire);
+  }
+}