diff --git a/apps/web/src/components/chat/DraftHeroHeadline.browser.test.tsx b/apps/web/src/components/chat/DraftHeroHeadline.browser.test.tsx
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..d24e099f8b60
--- /dev/null
+++ b/apps/web/src/components/chat/DraftHeroHeadline.browser.test.tsx
@@ -0,0 +1,94 @@
+import { createMemoryHistory } from "@tanstack/react-router";
+import { scopeProjectRef } from "@t3tools/client-runtime/environment";
+import { ProjectId } from "@t3tools/contracts";
+import { DEFAULT_CLIENT_SETTINGS } from "@t3tools/contracts/settings";
+import type * as Context from "effect/Context";
+import { expect, it, vi } from "vite-plus/test";
+import { page, userEvent } from "vite-plus/test/browser";
+
+import { AppRoot } from "~/AppRoot";
+// The draft route loads ChatView lazily; importing it here keeps its first transform out of the test's timeout.
+import "~/components/ChatView";
+import { DraftId, useComposerDraftStore } from "~/composerDraftStore";
+import { __setClientSettingsForTests } from "~/hooks/useSettings";
+import { getRouter } from "~/router";
+import { useUiStateStore } from "~/uiStateStore";
+import {
+  ENVIRONMENT_ID,
+  PROJECT_ID,
+  installFakeEnvironment,
+  type FakeDriver,
+} from "../../../test/fakeEnvironment";
+import { render } from "../../../test/render";
+
+// The socket is the only fake layer; see test/appScenarios.renders.tsx.
+vi.mock(
+  "../../../../../packages/client-runtime/src/connection/driver.ts",
+  async (importOriginal) => {
+    const [actual, { fakeDriver }, Layer] = await Promise.all([
+      importOriginal<{ readonly ConnectionDriver: Context.Key<unknown, FakeDriver> }>(),
+      import("../../../test/fakeEnvironment"),
+      import("effect/Layer"),
+    ]);
+    return { ...actual, layer: Layer.succeed(actual.ConnectionDriver, fakeDriver) };
+  },
+);
+
+vi.mock(import("~/rpc/requestLatencyState"), async (original) => ({
+  ...(await original()),
+  trackRpcRequestSent: () => {},
+}));
+
+it("the new-thread project picker follows the manual sidebar project order", async () => {
+  using _environment = installFakeEnvironment([], {
+    extraProjects: [
+      { id: ProjectId.make("project-alpha"), title: "alpha" },
+      { id: ProjectId.make("project-beta"), title: "beta" },
+    ],
+  });
+  __setClientSettingsForTests({
+    ...DEFAULT_CLIENT_SETTINGS,
+    onboardingCompletedAt: "2026-01-01T00:00:00.000Z",
+    sidebarProjectSortOrder: "manual",
+  });
+  useUiStateStore.setState({
+    projectOrder: [
+      `${ENVIRONMENT_ID}:/workspace/beta`,
+      `${ENVIRONMENT_ID}:/workspace/render`,
+      `${ENVIRONMENT_ID}:/workspace/alpha`,
+    ],
+  });
+  using _order = { [Symbol.dispose]: () => useUiStateStore.setState({ projectOrder: [] }) };
+  const draftId = DraftId.make("draft-manual-order");
+  useComposerDraftStore
+    .getState()
+    .setProjectDraftThreadId(scopeProjectRef(ENVIRONMENT_ID, PROJECT_ID), draftId);
+
+  const router = getRouter(createMemoryHistory({ initialEntries: [`/draft/${draftId}`] }));
+  await router.load();
+  await using _app = await render(<AppRoot router={router} />, {
+    // AppRoot brings its own router.
+    router: false,
+  });
+  // The shell snapshot has arrived once the sidebar lists the project.
+  await expect.element(page.getByText("render", { exact: true }).first()).toBeVisible();
+  const trigger = document.querySelector<HTMLElement>("[data-draft-project-trigger]");
+  if (!trigger) throw new Error("The draft project picker did not render.");
+  await userEvent.click(page.elementLocator(trigger));
+  await expect.element(page.getByRole("option", { name: "beta" })).toBeVisible();
+
+  // The draft's own project leads; the rest keep the sidebar's order.
+  await vi.waitFor(() => {
+    expect(
+      page
+        .getByRole("option")
+        .elements()
+        .map((option) => option.textContent),
+    ).toEqual([
+      expect.stringMatching(/render$/),
+      expect.stringMatching(/beta$/),
+      expect.stringMatching(/alpha$/),
+      "Add project",
+    ]);
+  });
+});
diff --git a/apps/web/src/components/chat/DraftHeroHeadline.tsx b/apps/web/src/components/chat/DraftHeroHeadline.tsx
index e621f491527d..26c741cd8b8d 100644
--- a/apps/web/src/components/chat/DraftHeroHeadline.tsx
+++ b/apps/web/src/components/chat/DraftHeroHeadline.tsx
@@ -24,10 +24,9 @@ import {
 } from "@t3tools/client-runtime/state/project-grouping";
 import {
   buildSidebarProjectPickerEntries,
-  buildSidebarProjectSnapshots,
   projectGroupsSpanEnvironments,
 } from "~/sidebarProjectGrouping";
-import { useProjects, useVisibleThreadShells } from "~/state/entities";
+import { useProjects } from "~/state/entities";
 import {
   useEnvironments,
   usePrimaryEnvironmentId,
@@ -36,7 +35,7 @@ import {
 import { ProjectEnvironmentBadge } from "../ProjectEnvironmentBadge";
 import { ProjectFavicon } from "../ProjectFavicon";
 import { isProjectPinShortcut, ProjectPinButton } from "../ProjectPinButton";
-import { sortLogicalProjectsForSidebar } from "../Sidebar.logic";
+import { useSortedProjectGroups } from "../CommandPaletteLookups";
 import {
   Combobox,
   ComboboxEmpty,
@@ -75,12 +74,10 @@ export function DraftHeroHeadline({
   activeProjectTitle,
 }: DraftHeroHeadlineProps) {
   const projects = useProjects();
-  const threads = useVisibleThreadShells();
   const { environments } = useEnvironments();
   const providersByEnvironment = useEnvironmentProviders();
   const primaryEnvironmentId = usePrimaryEnvironmentId();
   const projectGroupingSettings = useClientSettings(selectProjectGroupingSettings);
-  const projectSortOrder = useClientSettings((settings) => settings.sidebarProjectSortOrder);
   const setLogicalProjectDraftThreadId = useComposerDraftStore(
     (store) => store.setLogicalProjectDraftThreadId,
   );
@@ -104,16 +101,7 @@ export function DraftHeroHeadline({
   const environmentLabelById = new Map(
     environments.map((environment) => [environment.environmentId, environment.label] as const),
   );
-  const projectGroups = sortLogicalProjectsForSidebar(
-    buildSidebarProjectSnapshots({
-      projects,
-      settings: projectGroupingSettings,
-      primaryEnvironmentId,
-      resolveEnvironmentLabel: (environmentId) => environmentLabelById.get(environmentId) ?? null,
-    }),
-    threads,
-    projectSortOrder,
-  );
+  const projectGroups = useSortedProjectGroups(environmentLabelById);
   const showProjectEnvironments = projectGroupsSpanEnvironments(projectGroups);
   const environmentMachineById = new Map(
     environments.map(
diff --git a/apps/web/test/fakeEnvironment.ts b/apps/web/test/fakeEnvironment.ts
index 6fc18e58dea8..5e6706d861a8 100644
--- a/apps/web/test/fakeEnvironment.ts
+++ b/apps/web/test/fakeEnvironment.ts
@@ -408,6 +408,7 @@ let terminalMetadataSubscriber: Queue.Queue<TerminalMetadataStreamEvent> | null
 let threads: ReadonlyArray<FakeThread> = [];
 let dispatched: OrchestrationV2Command[] = [];
 let acceptCommands = false;
+let projects: ReadonlyArray<OrchestrationProjectShell> = [project];
 let holdCommand: (command: OrchestrationV2Command) => boolean = () => false;
 let pendingDispatches: Array<{
   readonly command: OrchestrationV2Command;
@@ -463,7 +464,7 @@ const handlers: Record<string, (input: never) => unknown> = {
         snapshot: {
           schemaVersion: 1,
           snapshotSequence: sequence,
-          projects: [project],
+          projects,
           threads: threads.filter((thread) => !thread.olderSettled).map(shellOf),
           archivedThreads: [],
         },
@@ -561,6 +562,7 @@ export function installFakeEnvironment(
   fixtures: ReadonlyArray<FakeThread>,
   options?: {
     readonly acceptCommands?: boolean;
+    readonly extraProjects?: ReadonlyArray<Pick<OrchestrationProjectShell, "id" | "title">>;
     /** Commands left unanswered even when accepting, until `rejectPendingCommand`. */
     readonly holdCommand?: (command: OrchestrationV2Command) => boolean;
     readonly providers?: ReadonlyArray<unknown>;
@@ -570,6 +572,14 @@ export function installFakeEnvironment(
   baseServerConfig = makeServerConfig(options?.providers ?? [CODEX_PROVIDER]);
   dispatched = [];
   acceptCommands = options?.acceptCommands === true;
+  projects = [
+    project,
+    ...(options?.extraProjects ?? []).map((extra) => ({
+      ...project,
+      ...extra,
+      workspaceRoot: `/workspace/${extra.title}`,
+    })),
+  ];
   holdCommand = options?.holdCommand ?? (() => false);
   globalThis.fetch = async (input, init) => {
     const url = new URL(input instanceof Request ? input.url : String(input), window.location.href);
@@ -595,6 +605,7 @@ export function installFakeEnvironment(
       baseServerConfig = makeServerConfig([CODEX_PROVIDER]);
       dispatched = [];
       acceptCommands = false;
+      projects = [project];
       holdCommand = () => false;
       pendingDispatches = [];
       pendingAssetUrls = [];