diff --git a/pkg/gateway/channel_only.go b/pkg/gateway/channel_only.go
index 28046c393..d94d3482b 100644
--- a/pkg/gateway/channel_only.go
+++ b/pkg/gateway/channel_only.go
@@ -67,6 +67,9 @@ func RunChannelsOnly(debug bool, homePath, configPath string, allowEmptyStartup
 		return fmt.Errorf("error creating provider: %w", err)
 	}
 
+	if allowEmptyStartup {
+		fmt.Println("⚠️ Channel-only runtime started in limited mode (--allow-empty); no startup agents are configured.")
+	}
 	if modelID != "" {
 		cfg.Agents.Defaults.ModelName = modelID
 	}