diff --git a/app/src/pages/onboarding/steps/ContextGatheringStep.tsx b/app/src/pages/onboarding/steps/ContextGatheringStep.tsx
index 94d9f60ef..a84d6b729 100644
--- a/app/src/pages/onboarding/steps/ContextGatheringStep.tsx
+++ b/app/src/pages/onboarding/steps/ContextGatheringStep.tsx
@@ -59,6 +59,20 @@ function canonicalLinkedInUrl(slug: string): string {
   return `https://www.linkedin.com/in/${slug}`;
 }
 
+function stageNow(): number {
+  return globalThis.performance?.now() ?? Date.now();
+}
+
+function durationMs(startedAt: number): number {
+  return Math.round(stageNow() - startedAt);
+}
+
+function errorReason(error: unknown): string {
+  if (error instanceof Error && error.message.trim()) return error.message;
+  if (typeof error === 'string' && error.trim()) return error;
+  return 'unknown';
+}
+
 /** URL-safe base64 → utf-8 string (Gmail body parts arrive in this form). */
 function decodeBase64Url(s: string): string {
   try {
@@ -153,72 +167,121 @@ const ContextGatheringStep = ({
   );
   const [finished, setFinished] = useState(false);
   const [hasError, setHasError] = useState(false);
-  const [showBackgroundLink, setShowBackgroundLink] = useState(false);
   const backgroundClickedRef = useRef(false);
   const ranRef = useRef(false);
 
   const hasGmail = connectedSources.some(s => s.includes('gmail'));
 
-  const setStage = (id: Stage['id'], status: StageStatus) => {
+  const setStage = (id: Stage['id'], status: StageStatus, duration?: number, reason?: string) => {
     stageStatusesRef.current = { ...stageStatusesRef.current, [id]: status };
+    console.debug('[onboarding:context] stage status', {
+      stage: id,
+      status,
+      durationMs: duration,
+      reason,
+    });
   };
 
   async function runPipeline() {
-    console.debug('[onboarding:context] runPipeline started');
+    const pipelineStartedAt = stageNow();
+    console.debug('[onboarding:context] pipeline started');
 
     // Stage 1 — Gmail
+    const gmailStartedAt = stageNow();
     setStage('gmail-search', 'active');
     let profileUrl: string | null;
     try {
       profileUrl = await findLinkedInUrlViaComposio();
       if (profileUrl) {
-        setStage('gmail-search', 'done');
+        setStage('gmail-search', 'done', durationMs(gmailStartedAt));
       } else {
-        setStage('gmail-search', 'skipped');
+        setStage('gmail-search', 'skipped', durationMs(gmailStartedAt), 'no_linkedin_url');
         setStage('linkedin-scrape', 'skipped');
         setStage('build-profile', 'skipped');
+        console.debug('[onboarding:context] pipeline finished', {
+          durationMs: durationMs(pipelineStartedAt),
+          result: 'no_profile_url',
+        });
         setFinished(true);
         return;
       }
     } catch (e) {
-      console.warn('[onboarding:context] gmail stage failed', e);
-      setStage('gmail-search', 'error');
+      const reason = errorReason(e);
+      console.warn('[onboarding:context] gmail stage failed', {
+        durationMs: durationMs(gmailStartedAt),
+        reason,
+      });
+      setStage('gmail-search', 'error', durationMs(gmailStartedAt), reason);
       setStage('linkedin-scrape', 'skipped');
       setStage('build-profile', 'skipped');
+      console.debug('[onboarding:context] pipeline finished', {
+        durationMs: durationMs(pipelineStartedAt),
+        result: 'gmail_error',
+        reason,
+      });
       setHasError(true);
       setFinished(true);
       return;
     }
 
     // Stage 2 — Apify LinkedIn scrape
+    const scrapeStartedAt = stageNow();
     setStage('linkedin-scrape', 'active');
     let scrapedMarkdown = '';
     try {
       scrapedMarkdown = await apifyScrapeLinkedIn(profileUrl);
-      setStage('linkedin-scrape', scrapedMarkdown.trim() ? 'done' : 'skipped');
+      setStage(
+        'linkedin-scrape',
+        scrapedMarkdown.trim() ? 'done' : 'skipped',
+        durationMs(scrapeStartedAt),
+        scrapedMarkdown.trim() ? undefined : 'empty_markdown'
+      );
     } catch (e) {
-      console.warn('[onboarding:context] apify_linkedin_scrape stage failed', e);
-      setStage('linkedin-scrape', 'error');
+      const reason = errorReason(e);
+      console.warn('[onboarding:context] apify_linkedin_scrape stage failed', {
+        durationMs: durationMs(scrapeStartedAt),
+        reason,
+      });
+      setStage('linkedin-scrape', 'error', durationMs(scrapeStartedAt), reason);
       // Continue — save_profile can still write a URL-only file.
     }
 
     // Stage 3 — summarize + persist via core LLM compressor
+    const profileStartedAt = stageNow();
     setStage('build-profile', 'active');
     try {
       const body = scrapedMarkdown.trim()
         ? scrapedMarkdown
         : `# User Profile\n\nLinkedIn: ${profileUrl}\n\n_Scrape returned no data._`;
       await saveProfile(body);
-      setStage('build-profile', 'done');
+      setStage('build-profile', 'done', durationMs(profileStartedAt));
     } catch (e) {
-      console.warn('[onboarding:context] save_profile failed', e);
-      setStage('build-profile', 'error');
+      const reason = errorReason(e);
+      console.warn('[onboarding:context] save_profile failed', {
+        durationMs: durationMs(profileStartedAt),
+        reason,
+      });
+      setStage('build-profile', 'error', durationMs(profileStartedAt), reason);
       setHasError(true);
     }
 
+    console.debug('[onboarding:context] pipeline finished', {
+      durationMs: durationMs(pipelineStartedAt),
+      result: stageStatusesRef.current['build-profile'] === 'error' ? 'profile_error' : 'completed',
+    });
     setFinished(true);
   }
 
+  const continueToChat = () => {
+    backgroundClickedRef.current = true;
+    console.debug('[onboarding:context] user continued before pipeline completion', {
+      finished,
+      hasError,
+      stages: stageStatusesRef.current,
+    });
+    void onNext();
+  };
+
   // Auto-start pipeline on mount
   useEffect(() => {
     if (ranRef.current) return;
@@ -247,13 +310,6 @@ const ContextGatheringStep = ({
     }
   }, [finished, hasError, onNext]);
 
-  // Show "Keep building in background" link after 10s
-  useEffect(() => {
-    if (!hasGmail || finished) return;
-    const t = setTimeout(() => setShowBackgroundLink(true), 10_000);
-    return () => clearTimeout(t);
-  }, [hasGmail, finished]);
-
   if (finished && hasError) {
     return (
       <div className="rounded-2xl border border-stone-200 bg-white p-8 shadow-soft animate-fade-up">
@@ -263,7 +319,7 @@ const ContextGatheringStep = ({
             We couldn&apos;t build your full profile right now, but that&apos;s okay — you can
             always update it later.
           </p>
-          <OnboardingNextButton label="Continue" onClick={() => void onNext()} />
+          <OnboardingNextButton label="Continue to chat" onClick={continueToChat} />
         </div>
       </div>
     );
@@ -286,16 +342,8 @@ const ContextGatheringStep = ({
           <div className="h-3 w-1/2 rounded-full bg-gradient-to-r from-stone-300 via-stone-100 to-stone-300 bg-[length:200%_100%] animate-shimmer [animation-delay:300ms]" />
         </div>
 
-        {showBackgroundLink && (
-          <button
-            type="button"
-            className="animate-fade-in text-sm text-ocean-600 hover:text-ocean-700 underline underline-offset-2 transition-colors mt-2"
-            onClick={() => {
-              backgroundClickedRef.current = true;
-              void onNext();
-            }}>
-            Keep building in background &amp; continue
-          </button>
+        {hasGmail && !finished && (
+          <OnboardingNextButton label="Continue to chat" onClick={continueToChat} />
         )}
       </div>
     </div>
diff --git a/app/src/pages/onboarding/steps/__tests__/ContextGatheringStep.test.tsx b/app/src/pages/onboarding/steps/__tests__/ContextGatheringStep.test.tsx
index 5e9414429..3b2074d93 100644
--- a/app/src/pages/onboarding/steps/__tests__/ContextGatheringStep.test.tsx
+++ b/app/src/pages/onboarding/steps/__tests__/ContextGatheringStep.test.tsx
@@ -124,13 +124,12 @@ describe('ContextGatheringStep', () => {
     await waitFor(() => expect(onNext).toHaveBeenCalled(), { timeout: 5000 });
   });
 
-  describe('background continuation link', () => {
+  describe('non-blocking continuation', () => {
     afterEach(() => {
       vi.useRealTimers();
     });
 
-    it('does not show background link before 10s threshold', async () => {
-      vi.useFakeTimers();
+    it('lets users continue to chat immediately while integration work is slow', async () => {
       let resolveGmail!: (v: unknown) => void;
       callCoreRpc.mockImplementation(
         () =>
@@ -143,45 +142,14 @@ describe('ContextGatheringStep', () => {
         <ContextGatheringStep connectedSources={['composio:gmail']} onNext={vi.fn()} />
       );
 
-      await act(async () => {
-        vi.advanceTimersByTime(9_999);
-      });
-      expect(screen.queryByText(/keep building in background/i)).not.toBeInTheDocument();
-
-      // Cleanup
-      await act(async () => {
-        resolveGmail({ successful: true, data: { messages: [] } });
-      });
-    });
-
-    it('shows background link after 10s with fade-in animation', async () => {
-      vi.useFakeTimers();
-      let resolveGmail!: (v: unknown) => void;
-      callCoreRpc.mockImplementation(
-        () =>
-          new Promise(res => {
-            resolveGmail = res;
-          })
-      );
-
-      renderWithProviders(
-        <ContextGatheringStep connectedSources={['composio:gmail']} onNext={vi.fn()} />
-      );
-
-      await act(async () => {
-        vi.advanceTimersByTime(10_000);
-      });
-      const link = screen.getByText(/keep building in background/i);
-      expect(link).toBeInTheDocument();
-      expect(link.className).toContain('animate-fade-in');
+      expect(screen.getByRole('button', { name: /continue to chat/i })).toBeInTheDocument();
 
       await act(async () => {
         resolveGmail({ successful: true, data: { messages: [] } });
       });
     });
 
-    it('clicking background link calls onNext to complete onboarding', async () => {
-      vi.useFakeTimers();
+    it('clicking continue calls onNext before the pipeline finishes', async () => {
       let resolveGmail!: (v: unknown) => void;
       callCoreRpc.mockImplementation(
         () =>
@@ -195,10 +163,7 @@ describe('ContextGatheringStep', () => {
         <ContextGatheringStep connectedSources={['composio:gmail']} onNext={onNext} />
       );
 
-      await act(async () => {
-        vi.advanceTimersByTime(10_000);
-      });
-      fireEvent.click(screen.getByText(/keep building in background/i));
+      fireEvent.click(screen.getByRole('button', { name: /continue to chat/i }));
       expect(onNext).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
 
       await act(async () => {
@@ -206,8 +171,7 @@ describe('ContextGatheringStep', () => {
       });
     });
 
-    it('does not show background link if pipeline finishes within 10s', async () => {
-      vi.useFakeTimers();
+    it('hides the manual continue button if the pipeline finishes quickly', async () => {
       callCoreRpc.mockResolvedValue({ successful: true, data: { messages: [] } });
 
       renderWithProviders(
@@ -219,15 +183,10 @@ describe('ContextGatheringStep', () => {
         await Promise.resolve();
       });
 
-      // Advance past 10s — link should still not appear since finished is true
-      await act(async () => {
-        vi.advanceTimersByTime(11_000);
-      });
-      expect(screen.queryByText(/keep building in background/i)).not.toBeInTheDocument();
+      expect(screen.queryByRole('button', { name: /continue to chat/i })).not.toBeInTheDocument();
     });
 
-    it('pipeline saves profile even after user clicks background link and component unmounts', async () => {
-      vi.useFakeTimers();
+    it('pipeline saves profile even after user continues and component unmounts', async () => {
       let resolveScrape!: (v: unknown) => void;
       let resolveSave!: (v: unknown) => void;
 
@@ -262,13 +221,8 @@ describe('ContextGatheringStep', () => {
         await Promise.resolve();
       });
 
-      // Show background link after 10s
-      await act(async () => {
-        vi.advanceTimersByTime(10_000);
-      });
-
-      // User clicks background link → onNext called, then unmount
-      fireEvent.click(screen.getByText(/keep building in background/i));
+      // User continues while the scrape is still running, then the route unmounts.
+      fireEvent.click(screen.getByRole('button', { name: /continue to chat/i }));
       expect(onNext).toHaveBeenCalled();
       unmount();
 
@@ -292,6 +246,29 @@ describe('ContextGatheringStep', () => {
     });
   });
 
+  it('treats Gmail insufficient-scope failures as recoverable and non-blocking', async () => {
+    const onNext = vi.fn().mockResolvedValue(undefined);
+    callCoreRpc.mockResolvedValueOnce({
+      successful: false,
+      data: null,
+      error: 'Request had insufficient authentication scopes.',
+    });
+
+    renderWithProviders(
+      <ContextGatheringStep connectedSources={['composio:gmail']} onNext={onNext} />
+    );
+
+    await waitFor(() => {
+      expect(
+        screen.getByText(/we couldn't build your full profile right now/i)
+      ).toBeInTheDocument();
+    });
+
+    fireEvent.click(screen.getByRole('button', { name: /continue to chat/i }));
+    expect(onNext).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+    expect(callCoreRpc).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+  });
+
   it('shows friendly error message when learning_save_profile rejects', async () => {
     const onNext = vi.fn().mockResolvedValue(undefined);
     callCoreRpc.mockImplementation(async (req: { method: string; params: unknown }) => {
@@ -320,7 +297,7 @@ describe('ContextGatheringStep', () => {
       ).toBeInTheDocument();
     });
 
-    expect(screen.getByRole('button', { name: 'Continue' })).toBeInTheDocument();
+    expect(screen.getByRole('button', { name: /continue to chat/i })).toBeInTheDocument();
     expect(screen.queryByText('disk full')).not.toBeInTheDocument();
 
     // fireEvent not needed — onNext is available via the button but user can also