diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index bed7bff..ee24e70 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -70,6 +70,11 @@ sudo install -m755 podtui /usr/local/bin/podtui
 > The tarball contains `podtui` plus `libopentui.<ext>` and
 > `libcavacore.<ext>` **beside it** — keep them together (don't move just the
 > binary alone), or the native FFI libraries won't load.
+>
+> One caveat: the embedded runtime reads a `bunfig.toml` from the directory
+> you launch from. If that file has a `preload` entry (as Bun project
+> directories often do), startup fails with `preload not found`. Launching
+> from a normal directory (home, `~/bin`, …) works fine.
 
 ### 3. Arch Linux (AUR)
 
@@ -187,9 +192,10 @@ make dist-mac    # (run on macOS)    → podtui-darwin-<arch>.tar.gz
 make dist-linux  # (run on Linux)    → podtui-linux-<arch>.tar.gz
 ```
 
-`make dist` compiles against `bunfig.standalone.toml` (a preload-free Bun
-config) so the emitted binary doesn't bake in the dev-only `@opentui/solid`
-preload. The solid JSX transform is registered in `build.ts` itself.
+`make dist` emits a config-independent binary: Bun does not bake bunfig
+settings into `--compile` output, and the solid JSX transform is registered in
+`build.ts` itself. The binary then embeds the `preload`-free runtime, so launch
+it from any normal directory.
 
 ## Packaging model
 
diff --git a/bunfig.toml b/bunfig.toml
index fe44855..96b1f08 100644
--- a/bunfig.toml
+++ b/bunfig.toml
@@ -1,4 +1,9 @@
-preload = ["@opentui/solid/preload"]
+# NO top-level `preload` here — intentional. A compiled PodTUI binary's
+# embedded Bun runtime reads the launching process's CWD bunfig.toml, and a
+# top-level `preload` entry (e.g. "@opentui/solid/preload", which the
+# standalone cannot resolve) makes the binary die at startup with
+# "preload not found". Dev/test still get the solid transform via explicit
+# `--preload` flags in package.json and the [test] section below.
 
 [test]
 preload = "@opentui/solid/preload"
diff --git a/package.json b/package.json
index 4fc7ab5..e606e66 100644
--- a/package.json
+++ b/package.json
@@ -8,8 +8,8 @@
     "podtui": "./dist/index.js"
   },
   "scripts": {
-    "start": "bun src/index.tsx",
-    "dev": "bun --watch src/index.tsx",
+    "start": "bun --preload @opentui/solid/preload src/index.tsx",
+    "dev": "bun --preload @opentui/solid/preload --watch src/index.tsx",
     "build:native": "bash scripts/build-cavacore.sh",
     "build": "bun run build.ts",
     "dist": "bun dist/index.js",