diff --git a/memory/CURRENT_STATE.md b/memory/CURRENT_STATE.md
index 0719c85..cddada7 100644
--- a/memory/CURRENT_STATE.md
+++ b/memory/CURRENT_STATE.md
@@ -1,13 +1,13 @@
 # CURRENT_STATE
 
-_Last updated: 2026-03-09 14:46 Australia/Brisbane_
+_Last updated: 2026-03-09 15:01 Australia/Brisbane_
 
 ## In Flight
-- [in_progress] anti-silence workflow hardening — main — workflow rules hardened again after finding a completion-consumption bug: runtime worker results can reach Tao before main updates state and summarizes them
-- [in_progress] Geopolitical Turbulance Trapper planning — main — project scope has been re-anchored using Tao's restored chats + old Claude draft; writing Development Plan v1 and deciding what to reuse vs rewrite from the HK-only prototype
+- [in_progress] anti-silence workflow hardening — main — workflow rules hardened again after finding a completion-consumption bug: runtime worker results can reach Tao before main updates state and summarizes them; ACP smoke-test heartbeat is now paused because repeated blocked/no-change updates became noise
+- [in_progress] Geopolitical Turbulance Trapper planning — main — project scope has been re-anchored using Tao's restored chats + old Claude draft; Development Plan v1 and project skeleton are created, next step is HK-first data/verification layer
 
 ## Blocked / Waiting
-- [blocked] ACP + Codex smoke test — main — 14:46 watchdog re-check: tracked ACP Codex session still has no messages/history or visible artifact trace at all, so status remains blocked / no change and should be treated as an ACP launch/config-path blocker, not in-progress execution
+- [blocked] ACP + Codex smoke test — main — 15:01 watchdog timeout re-check: tracked ACP Codex session still has no messages/history or visible artifact trace at all, so status remains blocked / no change and should be treated as an ACP launch/config-path blocker, not in-progress execution
 - [failed] Geopolitical Turbulence Trapper workflow test — main — previous flow test failed: planned workers (`data_worker`, `strategy_worker`, `dashboard_worker`) never produced launch/execution evidence, yet main reported progress as if work were underway
 
 ## Recently Finished
diff --git a/memory/project-heartbeat-state.json b/memory/project-heartbeat-state.json
index 14d773f..bcd8468 100644
--- a/memory/project-heartbeat-state.json
+++ b/memory/project-heartbeat-state.json
@@ -2,14 +2,14 @@
   "version": 1,
   "activeProject": {
     "name": "ACP + Codex smoke test",
-    "state": "armed",
+    "state": "paused",
     "timeoutMin": 15,
-    "lastUserVisibleUpdateAt": "2026-03-09T12:58:00+10:00",
-    "lastCheckAt": "2026-03-09T12:58:00+10:00",
+    "lastUserVisibleUpdateAt": "2026-03-09T15:03:00+10:00",
+    "lastCheckAt": "2026-03-09T15:03:00+10:00",
     "trackedWorkers": [
       "main",
       "codex (ACP)"
     ],
-    "notes": "Tao approved trying a harder anti-silence rule. This project is now the active heartbeat test. If 15 minutes pass without fresh ACP execution evidence, main must still send a user-visible timeout update with blocked/no-change/plain blocker wording instead of staying silent. Current known blocker: acpx non-interactive permissions likely block writes/exec in ACP smoke tests."
+    "notes": "Paused by Tao at 15:03 after repeated low-value automatic blocked/no-change updates. Do not emit further heartbeat nudges for this ACP smoke test unless the project is explicitly re-armed with a new experiment or new evidence path."
   }
 }
\ No newline at end of file