TUI: render sending and waiting indicators immediately

CHANGELOG.md

@@ -21,6 +21,7 @@ Docs: https://docs.openclaw.ai
 - Cron/Gateway: keep `cron.list` and `cron.status` responsive during startup catch-up by avoiding a long-held cron lock while missed jobs execute. (#23106) Thanks @jayleekr.
 - Gateway/Config reload: compare array-valued config paths structurally during diffing so unchanged `memory.qmd.paths` and `memory.qmd.scope.rules` no longer trigger false restart-required reloads. (#23185) Thanks @rex05ai.
 - TUI/Input: enable multiline-paste burst coalescing on macOS Terminal.app and iTerm so pasted blocks no longer submit line-by-line as separate messages. (#18809) Thanks @fwends.
+- TUI/Status: request immediate renders after setting `sending`/`waiting` activity states so in-flight runs always show visible progress indicators instead of appearing idle until completion. (#21549) Thanks @13Guinness.
 - Agents/Fallbacks: treat JSON payloads with `type: "api_error"` + `"Internal server error"` as transient failover errors so Anthropic 500-style failures trigger model fallback. (#23193) Thanks @jarvis-lane.
 - Agents/Diagnostics: include resolved lifecycle error text in `embedded run agent end` warnings so UI/TUI “Connection error” runs expose actionable provider failure reasons in gateway logs. (#23054) Thanks @Raize.
 - Gateway/Pairing: treat operator.admin pairing tokens as satisfying operator.write requests so legacy devices stop looping through scope-upgrade prompts introduced in 2026.2.19. (#23125, #23006) Thanks @vignesh07.

src/tui/tui-command-handlers.test.ts

@@ -2,6 +2,55 @@ import { describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
 import { createCommandHandlers } from "./tui-command-handlers.js";
 
 describe("tui command handlers", () => {
+  it("renders the sending indicator before chat.send resolves", async () => {
+    let resolveSend: ((value: { runId: string }) => void) | null = null;
+    const sendChat = vi.fn(
+      () =>
+        new Promise<{ runId: string }>((resolve) => {
+          resolveSend = resolve;
+        }),
+    );
+    const addUser = vi.fn();
+    const requestRender = vi.fn();
+    const setActivityStatus = vi.fn();
+
+    const { handleCommand } = createCommandHandlers({
+      client: { sendChat } as never,
+      chatLog: { addUser, addSystem: vi.fn() } as never,
+      tui: { requestRender } as never,
+      opts: {},
+      state: {
+        currentSessionKey: "agent:main:main",
+        activeChatRunId: null,
+        sessionInfo: {},
+      } as never,
+      deliverDefault: false,
+      openOverlay: vi.fn(),
+      closeOverlay: vi.fn(),
+      refreshSessionInfo: vi.fn(),
+      loadHistory: vi.fn(),
+      setSession: vi.fn(),
+      refreshAgents: vi.fn(),
+      abortActive: vi.fn(),
+      setActivityStatus,
+      formatSessionKey: vi.fn(),
+      applySessionInfoFromPatch: vi.fn(),
+      noteLocalRunId: vi.fn(),
+    });
+
+    const pending = handleCommand("/context");
+    await Promise.resolve();
+
+    expect(setActivityStatus).toHaveBeenCalledWith("sending");
+    const sendingOrder = setActivityStatus.mock.invocationCallOrder[0] ?? 0;
+    const renderOrders = requestRender.mock.invocationCallOrder;
+    expect(renderOrders.some((order) => order > sendingOrder)).toBe(true);
+
+    resolveSend?.({ runId: "r1" });
+    await pending;
+    expect(setActivityStatus).toHaveBeenCalledWith("waiting");
+  });
+
   it("forwards unknown slash commands to the gateway", async () => {
     const sendChat = vi.fn().mockResolvedValue({ runId: "r1" });
     const addUser = vi.fn();

src/tui/tui-command-handlers.ts

@@ -470,6 +470,7 @@ export function createCommandHandlers(context: CommandHandlerContext) {
       noteLocalRunId(runId);
       state.activeChatRunId = runId;
       setActivityStatus("sending");
+      tui.requestRender();
       await client.sendChat({
         sessionKey: state.currentSessionKey,
         message: text,
@@ -479,6 +480,7 @@ export function createCommandHandlers(context: CommandHandlerContext) {
         runId,
       });
       setActivityStatus("waiting");
+      tui.requestRender();
     } catch (err) {
       if (state.activeChatRunId) {
         forgetLocalRunId?.(state.activeChatRunId);
@@ -486,8 +488,8 @@ export function createCommandHandlers(context: CommandHandlerContext) {
       state.activeChatRunId = null;
       chatLog.addSystem(`send failed: ${String(err)}`);
       setActivityStatus("error");
+      tui.requestRender();
     }
-    tui.requestRender();
   };
 
   return {