diff --git a/src/apps/chat/components/layout-drawer/ChatDrawerItem.tsx b/src/apps/chat/components/layout-drawer/ChatDrawerItem.tsx
index d46a7a011..611133191 100644
--- a/src/apps/chat/components/layout-drawer/ChatDrawerItem.tsx
+++ b/src/apps/chat/components/layout-drawer/ChatDrawerItem.tsx
@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@ import { autoConversationTitle } from '~/modules/aifn/autotitle/autoTitle';
 import type { DConversationId } from '~/common/stores/chat/chat.conversation';
 import type { DFolder } from '~/common/stores/folders/store-chat-folders';
 import { ANIM_BUSY_TYPING } from '~/common/util/dMessageUtils';
+import { ChatBeamIcon } from '~/common/components/icons/ChatBeamIcon';
 import { InlineTextarea } from '~/common/components/InlineTextarea';
 import { isDeepEqual } from '~/common/util/hooks/useDeep';
 import { useChatStore } from '~/common/stores/chat/store-chats';
@@ -64,6 +65,7 @@ export interface ChatNavigationItemData {
   containsImageAssets: boolean;
   folder: DFolder | null | undefined; // null: 'All', undefined: do not show folder select
   updatedAt: number;
+  hasBeamOpen: boolean;
   messageCount: number;
   beingGenerated: boolean;
   systemPurposeId: SystemPurposeId;
@@ -106,6 +108,7 @@ function ChatDrawerItem(props: {
     containsDocAttachments,
     containsImageAssets,
     folder,
+    hasBeamOpen,
     messageCount,
     beingGenerated,
     systemPurposeId,
@@ -210,7 +213,9 @@ function ChatDrawerItem(props: {
     {/* Symbol, if globally enabled */}
     {(props.showSymbols || isIncognito) && (
       <ListItemDecorator>
-        {isIncognito ? (
+        {hasBeamOpen ? (
+          <ChatBeamIcon sx={{ fontSize: 'xl' }} />
+        ) : isIncognito ? (
           <VisibilityOffIcon sx={{ fontSize: 'xl' }} />
         ) : (beingGenerated && props.showSymbols === 'gif') ? (
           <Avatar
@@ -286,7 +291,7 @@ function ChatDrawerItem(props: {
       </Box>
     ) : null}
 
-  </>, [beingGenerated, containsDocAttachments, containsImageAssets, handleTitleEditBegin, handleTitleEditCancel, handleTitleEditChange, isActive, isEditingTitle, isIncognito, isNew, personaImageURI, personaSymbol, props.showSymbols, searchFrequency, title, userFlagsSummary]);
+  </>, [beingGenerated, containsDocAttachments, containsImageAssets, handleTitleEditBegin, handleTitleEditCancel, handleTitleEditChange, hasBeamOpen, isActive, isEditingTitle, isIncognito, isNew, personaImageURI, personaSymbol, props.showSymbols, searchFrequency, title, userFlagsSummary]);
 
   const progressBarFixedComponent = React.useMemo(() =>
     progress > 0 && (
diff --git a/src/apps/chat/components/layout-drawer/useChatDrawerRenderItems.tsx b/src/apps/chat/components/layout-drawer/useChatDrawerRenderItems.tsx
index ed99dfc3e..102bbdce8 100644
--- a/src/apps/chat/components/layout-drawer/useChatDrawerRenderItems.tsx
+++ b/src/apps/chat/components/layout-drawer/useChatDrawerRenderItems.tsx
@@ -1,5 +1,7 @@
 import * as React from 'react';
 
+import { useModuleBeamStore } from '~/modules/beam/store-module-beam';
+
 import type { DFolder } from '~/common/stores/folders/store-chat-folders';
 import { DMessage, DMessageUserFlag, MESSAGE_FLAG_STARRED, messageFragmentsReduceText, messageHasUserFlag, messageUserFlagToEmoji } from '~/common/stores/chat/chat.message';
 import { conversationTitle, DConversationId } from '~/common/stores/chat/chat.conversation';
@@ -94,6 +96,9 @@ export function useChatDrawerRenderItems(
   // state
   const [_, setJustAMinuteCounter] = React.useState(0);
 
+  // external state
+  const openBeamConversationIds = useModuleBeamStore(state => state.openBeamConversationIds);
+
 
   // [effect] Refresh every minute because the `getTimeBucketEn` function uses the current time
   React.useEffect(() => {
@@ -173,6 +178,7 @@ export function useChatDrawerRenderItems(
                 ? allFolders.find(folder => folder.conversationIds.includes(_c.id)) ?? null
                 : null,
             updatedAt: _c.updated || _c.created || 0,
+            hasBeamOpen: !!openBeamConversationIds?.[_c.id],
             messageCount,
             beingGenerated: !!_c._abortController, // FIXME: when the AbortController is moved at the message level, derive the state in the conv
             systemPurposeId: _c.systemPurposeId,
diff --git a/src/common/chat-overlay/ConversationHandler.ts b/src/common/chat-overlay/ConversationHandler.ts
index c7609cbd7..e296dd3eb 100644
--- a/src/common/chat-overlay/ConversationHandler.ts
+++ b/src/common/chat-overlay/ConversationHandler.ts
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ import { bareBonesPromptMixer } from '~/modules/persona/pmix/pmix';
 import { SystemPurposes } from '../../data';
 
 import { BeamStore, createBeamVanillaStore } from '~/modules/beam/store-beam_vanilla';
+import { useModuleBeamStore } from '~/modules/beam/store-module-beam';
 
 import type { DConversationId } from '~/common/stores/chat/chat.conversation';
 import type { DLLMId } from '~/common/stores/llms/llms.types';
@@ -38,6 +39,12 @@ export class ConversationHandler {
   constructor(private readonly conversationId: DConversationId) {
     this.beamStore = createBeamVanillaStore();
     this.overlayStore = createPerChatVanillaStore();
+
+    // track the open status of beams - this is meant to be an accelerator for the UI
+    this.beamStore.subscribe((state, prevState) => {
+      if (state.isOpen === prevState.isOpen) return;
+      useModuleBeamStore.getState().setBeamOpenForConversation(this.conversationId, state.isOpen);
+    });
   }
 
 
diff --git a/src/modules/beam/store-module-beam.tsx b/src/modules/beam/store-module-beam.tsx
index 433f3f3d0..bdf308d71 100644
--- a/src/modules/beam/store-module-beam.tsx
+++ b/src/modules/beam/store-module-beam.tsx
@@ -1,13 +1,14 @@
 import { create } from 'zustand';
 import { persist } from 'zustand/middleware';
 
+import type { DConversationId } from '~/common/stores/chat/chat.conversation';
 import type { DLLMId } from '~/common/stores/llms/llms.types';
 import { agiUuid } from '~/common/util/idUtils';
 
 import type { FFactoryId } from './gather/instructions/beam.gather.factories';
 
 
-/// Presets (persistes as zustand store) ///
+/// Presets (persisted as zustand store) ///
 
 export interface BeamConfigSnapshot {
   id: string;
@@ -19,6 +20,8 @@ export interface BeamConfigSnapshot {
 
 
 interface ModuleBeamState {
+
+  // stored
   presets: BeamConfigSnapshot[];
   lastConfig: BeamConfigSnapshot | null;
   cardAdd: boolean;
@@ -27,6 +30,10 @@ interface ModuleBeamState {
   scatterShowPrevMessages: boolean;
   gatherAutoStartAfterScatter: boolean;
   gatherShowAllPrompts: boolean;
+
+  // non-stored, temporary but useful for the UI
+  openBeamConversationIds: Record<string, boolean>;
+
 }
 
 interface ModuleBeamStore extends ModuleBeamState {
@@ -43,6 +50,9 @@ interface ModuleBeamStore extends ModuleBeamState {
   toggleScatterShowPrevMessages: () => void;
   toggleGatherAutoStartAfterScatter: () => void;
   toggleGatherShowAllPrompts: () => void;
+
+  setBeamOpenForConversation: (conversationId: DConversationId, isOpen: boolean) => void;
+  clearBeamOpenForConversation: (conversationId: DConversationId) => void;
 }
 
 
@@ -57,6 +67,7 @@ export const useModuleBeamStore = create<ModuleBeamStore>()(persist(
     scatterShowPrevMessages: false,
     gatherShowAllPrompts: false,
     gatherAutoStartAfterScatter: false,
+    openBeamConversationIds: {},
 
 
     addPreset: (name, rayLlmIds, gatherLlmId, gatherFactoryId) => _set(state => ({
@@ -99,11 +110,32 @@ export const useModuleBeamStore = create<ModuleBeamStore>()(persist(
 
     toggleGatherShowAllPrompts: () => _set(state => ({ gatherShowAllPrompts: !state.gatherShowAllPrompts })),
 
+    setBeamOpenForConversation: (conversationId, isOpen) => _set(state => {
+      const openBeams = { ...state.openBeamConversationIds };
+      if (isOpen)
+        openBeams[conversationId] = true;
+      else
+        delete openBeams[conversationId];
+      return { openBeamConversationIds: openBeams };
+    }),
+
+    clearBeamOpenForConversation: (conversationId) => _set(state => {
+      const openBeams = { ...state.openBeamConversationIds };
+      delete openBeams[conversationId];
+      return { openBeamConversationIds: openBeams };
+    }),
+
   }), {
     name: 'app-module-beam',
     version: 1,
 
-    migrate: (state: any, fromVersion: number): ModuleBeamState => {
+    partialize: (state) => {
+      // exclude openBeamConversationIds from persistence
+      const { openBeamConversationIds, ...persistedState } = state;
+      return persistedState;
+    },
+
+    migrate: (state: any, fromVersion: number): Omit<ModuleBeamState, 'openBeamConversationIds'> => {
       // 0 -> 1: rename 'scatterPresets' to 'presets'
       if (state && fromVersion === 0 && !state.presets)
         return { ...state, presets: state.scatterPresets || [] };
@@ -125,6 +157,10 @@ export function useBeamScatterShowLettering() {
   return useModuleBeamStore((state) => state.scatterShowLettering);
 }
 
+export function useIsBeamOpenForConversation(conversationId: DConversationId | null): boolean {
+  return useModuleBeamStore(state => conversationId ? state.openBeamConversationIds[conversationId] ?? false : false);
+}
+
 export function updateBeamLastConfig(update: Partial<BeamConfigSnapshot>) {
   useModuleBeamStore.getState().updateLastConfig(update);
 }
\ No newline at end of file