[macOS] Voice button disappears after ending voice while task remains in Thinking

What version of the Codex App are you using?

Desktop version 26.903.71938, build 8576 (installed bundle displays ChatGPT and uses bundle identifier com.openai.codex).

What platform is your computer?

macOS 26.6.2.

What issue are you seeing?

After ending a voice conversation in an existing desktop task, the task continues to show Thinking, but the voice button is no longer available. I cannot restart voice to speak with the assistant while the task appears to continue working.

This has happened repeatedly in my workflow. In particular, I have asked the assistant to end voice while work continues, and then cannot find the voice control to reconnect. The missing voice button and the visible Thinking state are the important symptoms.

What steps can reproduce the bug?

This is the sequence reported by the user, not an independently validated deterministic reproducer:

1. Start a voice conversation in an existing desktop task.
2. Ask the assistant to perform work that continues after the conversation.
3. End the voice conversation, including by asking the assistant to close voice.
4. Return to the task to start speaking again.
5. Observe the task displaying Thinking while the voice button is absent, preventing another voice conversation.

What is the expected behavior?

Ending voice should restore an obvious way to start voice again. If an active task temporarily prevents voice from restarting, the UI should keep a discoverable control and explain its state, rather than removing it without an explanation. The user should be able to communicate with the assistant again without cancelling unrelated ongoing work.

Additional information

• Reported on 10 September 2026. Exact frequency and a reliable recovery procedure have not been established.
• This report does not establish that the backend task is stuck. The user-visible problem is the unavailable voice control while the UI says Thinking.
• Possibly related: #39178 concerns a Windows voice/overlay interaction leaving the UI in Thinking. This report is on macOS and focuses on restarting voice; a shared root cause has not been verified.
• Prepared with AI assistance and submitted at the user's explicit request.
• No project code, project identifiers, deployment information, conversation transcripts, private task IDs, screenshots or raw logs are attached.

The issue names no project files, tests, or entry points. Start by reproducing the macOS sequence with an existing task that remains in Thinking after voice ends, then trace the desktop voice-control state; done means the control remains discoverable or explains why voice cannot restart without interrupting the task.