diff --git a/AGENTS.md b/AGENTS.md
index 8a01b989..769ded1a 100644
--- a/AGENTS.md
+++ b/AGENTS.md
@@ -26,6 +26,8 @@ Live team smoke runtime:
 
 - Use the orchestrator source launcher by default for live/dev smoke loops: `/Users/belief/dev/projects/claude/agent_teams_orchestrator/cli-source`
 - The source launcher runs `src/entrypoints/cli.tsx` through Bun, so it reflects local orchestrator source edits immediately and cannot accidentally test stale `dist` output.
+- The source launcher normalizes inherited `NODE_ENV=production` to `NODE_ENV=development`. Release or production-like smoke must use the built wrapper instead of preserving production mode on source.
+- Local live/prove scripts should use `scripts/lib/live-smoke-runtime.mjs`, which defaults to `cli-source` unless `CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH` is explicitly set.
 - Source-mode teammate startup can be slower than bundled startup. Live smoke harnesses may raise `CLAUDE_TEAM_PROCESS_RUNTIME_READY_TIMEOUT_MS` and `CLAUDE_TEAM_PROCESS_INBOX_POLLER_READY_TIMEOUT_MS` when the test is validating source behavior instead of watchdog latency.
 - Use the built wrapper only for release or production-like smoke checks. Build first in `/Users/belief/dev/projects/claude/agent_teams_orchestrator` with `bun run build`, then set `CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH=/Users/belief/dev/projects/claude/agent_teams_orchestrator/cli`.
 - Do not use `cli-dev` or `bun run build:dev` as proof for the production wrapper. `cli` reads `dist/local-cli/cli.js`; `cli-dev` reads `dist/local-cli-dev/cli.js`.
diff --git a/docs/team-management/debugging-agent-teams.md b/docs/team-management/debugging-agent-teams.md
index a080aa33..6741f8c6 100644
--- a/docs/team-management/debugging-agent-teams.md
+++ b/docs/team-management/debugging-agent-teams.md
@@ -95,6 +95,10 @@ export CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH=/Users/belief/dev/projects/claud
 
 The source launcher executes `src/entrypoints/cli.tsx` through Bun. It is the right default for local
 debug loops, live model/provider checks, and cross-repo runtime fixes.
+It normalizes inherited `NODE_ENV=production` to `NODE_ENV=development`, because source smoke is a
+dev/runtime validation path. If you need production semantics, run the release smoke path below.
+Local live/prove scripts should resolve their default CLI through `scripts/lib/live-smoke-runtime.mjs`,
+which points at `cli-source` unless `CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH` is explicitly set.
 Source-mode teammate startup can be slower than bundled startup, so live smoke harnesses may set
 `CLAUDE_TEAM_PROCESS_RUNTIME_READY_TIMEOUT_MS` and
 `CLAUDE_TEAM_PROCESS_INBOX_POLLER_READY_TIMEOUT_MS` to larger values when they are validating source
diff --git a/scripts/lib/live-smoke-runtime.mjs b/scripts/lib/live-smoke-runtime.mjs
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..9cf959e6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/lib/live-smoke-runtime.mjs
@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+import path from 'node:path';
+
+export function resolveLiveSmokeOrchestratorCliPath({
+  env = process.env,
+  repoRoot,
+} = {}) {
+  const explicitCliPath = env.CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH?.trim();
+  if (explicitCliPath) {
+    return explicitCliPath;
+  }
+
+  const configuredRuntimeRoot = env.CLAUDE_DEV_RUNTIME_ROOT?.trim();
+  const baseRepoRoot = repoRoot ? path.resolve(repoRoot) : process.cwd();
+  const runtimeRoot = configuredRuntimeRoot
+    ? path.resolve(configuredRuntimeRoot)
+    : path.resolve(baseRepoRoot, '..', 'agent_teams_orchestrator');
+
+  return path.join(runtimeRoot, 'cli-source');
+}
+
+export function resolveReleaseSmokeOrchestratorCliPath({
+  env = process.env,
+  repoRoot,
+} = {}) {
+  const explicitCliPath = env.CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH?.trim();
+  if (explicitCliPath) {
+    return explicitCliPath;
+  }
+
+  const configuredRuntimeRoot = env.CLAUDE_DEV_RUNTIME_ROOT?.trim();
+  const baseRepoRoot = repoRoot ? path.resolve(repoRoot) : process.cwd();
+  const runtimeRoot = configuredRuntimeRoot
+    ? path.resolve(configuredRuntimeRoot)
+    : path.resolve(baseRepoRoot, '..', 'agent_teams_orchestrator');
+
+  return path.join(runtimeRoot, 'cli');
+}
diff --git a/scripts/prove-agent-cli-launch.mjs b/scripts/prove-agent-cli-launch.mjs
index 68d5e7c5..eaf63af5 100644
--- a/scripts/prove-agent-cli-launch.mjs
+++ b/scripts/prove-agent-cli-launch.mjs
@@ -5,18 +5,24 @@ import path from 'node:path';
 import process from 'node:process';
 import { fileURLToPath } from 'node:url';
 
+import { resolveLiveSmokeOrchestratorCliPath } from './lib/live-smoke-runtime.mjs';
+
 const scriptDir = path.dirname(fileURLToPath(import.meta.url));
 const repoRoot = path.resolve(scriptDir, '..');
-const siblingOrchestrator = path.resolve(repoRoot, '..', 'agent_teams_orchestrator');
 
 const env = {
   ...process.env,
   AGENT_CLI_LAUNCH_LIVE_E2E: '1',
   CLAUDE_TEAM_CLI_FLAVOR: process.env.CLAUDE_TEAM_CLI_FLAVOR || 'agent_teams_orchestrator',
-  CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH:
-    process.env.CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH || path.join(siblingOrchestrator, 'cli'),
 };
 
+if (!env.CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH?.trim()) {
+  env.CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH = resolveLiveSmokeOrchestratorCliPath({
+    env,
+    repoRoot,
+  });
+}
+
 console.log('Running agent CLI launch live smoke');
 console.log(`Claude runtime: ${env.CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH}`);
 
diff --git a/scripts/prove-opencode-mixed-recovery.mjs b/scripts/prove-opencode-mixed-recovery.mjs
index 9fa176da..3a896a7f 100644
--- a/scripts/prove-opencode-mixed-recovery.mjs
+++ b/scripts/prove-opencode-mixed-recovery.mjs
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ import path from 'node:path';
 import process from 'node:process';
 import { fileURLToPath } from 'node:url';
 
+import { resolveLiveSmokeOrchestratorCliPath } from './lib/live-smoke-runtime.mjs';
 import {
   exitForSkippedPreflight,
   preflightOpenCodeLiveEnvironment,
@@ -12,8 +13,6 @@ import {
 
 const scriptDir = path.dirname(fileURLToPath(import.meta.url));
 const repoRoot = path.resolve(scriptDir, '..');
-const orchestratorRoot = process.env.CLAUDE_DEV_RUNTIME_ROOT?.trim();
-const siblingOrchestrator = path.resolve(repoRoot, '..', 'agent_teams_orchestrator');
 
 const env = {
   ...process.env,
@@ -26,8 +25,10 @@ const env = {
 };
 
 if (!env.CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH?.trim()) {
-  const runtimeRoot = orchestratorRoot ? path.resolve(orchestratorRoot) : siblingOrchestrator;
-  env.CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH = path.join(runtimeRoot, 'cli');
+  env.CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH = resolveLiveSmokeOrchestratorCliPath({
+    env,
+    repoRoot,
+  });
 }
 
 console.log('Running OpenCode mixed recovery live smoke');
diff --git a/scripts/prove-opencode-semantic-gauntlet.mjs b/scripts/prove-opencode-semantic-gauntlet.mjs
index abb9cc1a..031b18a1 100644
--- a/scripts/prove-opencode-semantic-gauntlet.mjs
+++ b/scripts/prove-opencode-semantic-gauntlet.mjs
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ import path from 'node:path';
 import process from 'node:process';
 import { fileURLToPath } from 'node:url';
 
+import { resolveLiveSmokeOrchestratorCliPath } from './lib/live-smoke-runtime.mjs';
 import {
   exitForSkippedPreflight,
   preflightOpenCodeLiveEnvironment,
@@ -12,8 +13,6 @@ import {
 
 const scriptDir = path.dirname(fileURLToPath(import.meta.url));
 const repoRoot = path.resolve(scriptDir, '..');
-const orchestratorRoot = process.env.CLAUDE_DEV_RUNTIME_ROOT?.trim();
-const siblingOrchestrator = path.resolve(repoRoot, '..', 'agent_teams_orchestrator');
 
 const env = {
   ...process.env,
@@ -33,8 +32,10 @@ const env = {
 };
 
 if (!env.CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH?.trim()) {
-  const runtimeRoot = orchestratorRoot ? path.resolve(orchestratorRoot) : siblingOrchestrator;
-  env.CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH = path.join(runtimeRoot, 'cli');
+  env.CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH = resolveLiveSmokeOrchestratorCliPath({
+    env,
+    repoRoot,
+  });
 }
 
 console.log('Running OpenCode semantic gauntlet live smoke');
diff --git a/scripts/prove-opencode-semantic-messaging.mjs b/scripts/prove-opencode-semantic-messaging.mjs
index 19d4e0bd..1eee1cb0 100644
--- a/scripts/prove-opencode-semantic-messaging.mjs
+++ b/scripts/prove-opencode-semantic-messaging.mjs
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ import path from 'node:path';
 import process from 'node:process';
 import { fileURLToPath } from 'node:url';
 
+import { resolveLiveSmokeOrchestratorCliPath } from './lib/live-smoke-runtime.mjs';
 import {
   exitForSkippedPreflight,
   preflightOpenCodeLiveEnvironment,
@@ -12,8 +13,6 @@ import {
 
 const scriptDir = path.dirname(fileURLToPath(import.meta.url));
 const repoRoot = path.resolve(scriptDir, '..');
-const orchestratorRoot = process.env.CLAUDE_DEV_RUNTIME_ROOT?.trim();
-const siblingOrchestrator = path.resolve(repoRoot, '..', 'agent_teams_orchestrator');
 
 const env = {
   ...process.env,
@@ -25,8 +24,10 @@ const env = {
 };
 
 if (!env.CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH?.trim()) {
-  const runtimeRoot = orchestratorRoot ? path.resolve(orchestratorRoot) : siblingOrchestrator;
-  env.CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH = path.join(runtimeRoot, 'cli');
+  env.CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH = resolveLiveSmokeOrchestratorCliPath({
+    env,
+    repoRoot,
+  });
 }
 
 console.log('Running OpenCode semantic messaging live smoke');
diff --git a/scripts/prove-opencode-semantic-model-matrix.mjs b/scripts/prove-opencode-semantic-model-matrix.mjs
index 717dc804..9f91862f 100644
--- a/scripts/prove-opencode-semantic-model-matrix.mjs
+++ b/scripts/prove-opencode-semantic-model-matrix.mjs
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ import path from 'node:path';
 import process from 'node:process';
 import { fileURLToPath } from 'node:url';
 
+import { resolveLiveSmokeOrchestratorCliPath } from './lib/live-smoke-runtime.mjs';
 import {
   exitForSkippedPreflight,
   preflightOpenCodeLiveEnvironment,
@@ -12,8 +13,6 @@ import {
 
 const scriptDir = path.dirname(fileURLToPath(import.meta.url));
 const repoRoot = path.resolve(scriptDir, '..');
-const orchestratorRoot = process.env.CLAUDE_DEV_RUNTIME_ROOT?.trim();
-const siblingOrchestrator = path.resolve(repoRoot, '..', 'agent_teams_orchestrator');
 
 const env = {
   ...process.env,
@@ -24,8 +23,10 @@ const env = {
 };
 
 if (!env.CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH?.trim()) {
-  const runtimeRoot = orchestratorRoot ? path.resolve(orchestratorRoot) : siblingOrchestrator;
-  env.CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH = path.join(runtimeRoot, 'cli');
+  env.CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH = resolveLiveSmokeOrchestratorCliPath({
+    env,
+    repoRoot,
+  });
 }
 
 console.log('Running OpenCode semantic model matrix live smoke');
diff --git a/scripts/prove-opencode-team-provisioning.mjs b/scripts/prove-opencode-team-provisioning.mjs
index 246e891a..12673fd3 100644
--- a/scripts/prove-opencode-team-provisioning.mjs
+++ b/scripts/prove-opencode-team-provisioning.mjs
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ import path from 'node:path';
 import process from 'node:process';
 import { fileURLToPath } from 'node:url';
 
+import { resolveLiveSmokeOrchestratorCliPath } from './lib/live-smoke-runtime.mjs';
 import {
   exitForSkippedPreflight,
   preflightOpenCodeLiveEnvironment,
@@ -12,8 +13,6 @@ import {
 
 const scriptDir = path.dirname(fileURLToPath(import.meta.url));
 const repoRoot = path.resolve(scriptDir, '..');
-const orchestratorRoot = process.env.CLAUDE_DEV_RUNTIME_ROOT?.trim();
-const siblingOrchestrator = path.resolve(repoRoot, '..', 'agent_teams_orchestrator');
 
 const env = {
   ...process.env,
@@ -25,8 +24,10 @@ const env = {
 };
 
 if (!env.CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH?.trim()) {
-  const runtimeRoot = orchestratorRoot ? path.resolve(orchestratorRoot) : siblingOrchestrator;
-  env.CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH = path.join(runtimeRoot, 'cli');
+  env.CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH = resolveLiveSmokeOrchestratorCliPath({
+    env,
+    repoRoot,
+  });
 }
 
 console.log('Running OpenCode team provisioning live smoke');
diff --git a/scripts/prove-provider-launch-stress.mjs b/scripts/prove-provider-launch-stress.mjs
index f8abe106..397e87d7 100644
--- a/scripts/prove-provider-launch-stress.mjs
+++ b/scripts/prove-provider-launch-stress.mjs
@@ -7,12 +7,11 @@ import path from 'node:path';
 import process from 'node:process';
 import { fileURLToPath } from 'node:url';
 
+import { resolveLiveSmokeOrchestratorCliPath } from './lib/live-smoke-runtime.mjs';
 import { preflightOpenCodeLiveEnvironment } from './lib/opencode-live-preflight.mjs';
 
 const scriptDir = path.dirname(fileURLToPath(import.meta.url));
 const repoRoot = path.resolve(scriptDir, '..');
-const orchestratorRoot = process.env.CLAUDE_DEV_RUNTIME_ROOT?.trim();
-const siblingOrchestrator = path.resolve(repoRoot, '..', 'agent_teams_orchestrator');
 const requestedOrder =
   process.env.PROVIDER_LAUNCH_STRESS_ORDER?.trim() || 'anthropic,codex,opencode,mixed';
 
@@ -31,8 +30,10 @@ const env = {
 };
 
 if (!env.CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH?.trim()) {
-  const runtimeRoot = orchestratorRoot ? path.resolve(orchestratorRoot) : siblingOrchestrator;
-  env.CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH = path.join(runtimeRoot, 'cli');
+  env.CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH = resolveLiveSmokeOrchestratorCliPath({
+    env,
+    repoRoot,
+  });
 }
 
 console.log('Running provider launch stress live smoke');
diff --git a/test/scripts/liveSmokeRuntime.test.ts b/test/scripts/liveSmokeRuntime.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..3b8bc74d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/scripts/liveSmokeRuntime.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,66 @@
+// @vitest-environment node
+
+import * as path from 'path';
+import { pathToFileURL } from 'url';
+import { describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
+
+interface LiveSmokeRuntimeModule {
+  resolveLiveSmokeOrchestratorCliPath(input?: {
+    env?: NodeJS.ProcessEnv;
+    repoRoot?: string;
+  }): string;
+  resolveReleaseSmokeOrchestratorCliPath(input?: {
+    env?: NodeJS.ProcessEnv;
+    repoRoot?: string;
+  }): string;
+}
+
+describe('live smoke runtime launcher paths', () => {
+  const repoRoot = '/Users/belief/dev/projects/claude/claude_team';
+  const siblingRuntimeRoot = '/Users/belief/dev/projects/claude/agent_teams_orchestrator';
+
+  it('defaults live smoke to the source launcher', async () => {
+    const { resolveLiveSmokeOrchestratorCliPath } = await loadModule();
+
+    expect(resolveLiveSmokeOrchestratorCliPath({ env: {}, repoRoot })).toBe(
+      path.join(siblingRuntimeRoot, 'cli-source')
+    );
+  });
+
+  it('uses CLAUDE_DEV_RUNTIME_ROOT with cli-source for live smoke', async () => {
+    const { resolveLiveSmokeOrchestratorCliPath } = await loadModule();
+
+    expect(
+      resolveLiveSmokeOrchestratorCliPath({
+        env: { CLAUDE_DEV_RUNTIME_ROOT: '/tmp/runtime-source' },
+        repoRoot,
+      })
+    ).toBe(path.join('/tmp/runtime-source', 'cli-source'));
+  });
+
+  it('keeps explicit CLI path overrides authoritative', async () => {
+    const { resolveLiveSmokeOrchestratorCliPath } = await loadModule();
+
+    expect(
+      resolveLiveSmokeOrchestratorCliPath({
+        env: { CLAUDE_AGENT_TEAMS_ORCHESTRATOR_CLI_PATH: '  /custom/runtime/cli  ' },
+        repoRoot,
+      })
+    ).toBe('/custom/runtime/cli');
+  });
+
+  it('keeps release smoke pointed at the built wrapper', async () => {
+    const { resolveReleaseSmokeOrchestratorCliPath } = await loadModule();
+
+    expect(resolveReleaseSmokeOrchestratorCliPath({ env: {}, repoRoot })).toBe(
+      path.join(siblingRuntimeRoot, 'cli')
+    );
+  });
+});
+
+async function loadModule(): Promise<LiveSmokeRuntimeModule> {
+  const moduleUrl = pathToFileURL(
+    path.join(process.cwd(), 'scripts/lib/live-smoke-runtime.mjs')
+  ).href;
+  return (await import(`${moduleUrl}?t=${Date.now()}`)) as LiveSmokeRuntimeModule;
+}