claude-code - 💡(How to fix) Fix Dispatch needs user-level persistent persona / identity injection

Summary

There is no documented, user-level mechanism to inject a persistent persona or identity into Dispatch-spawned sessions. Empirically confirmed: neither ~/.claude/CLAUDE.md nor ~/.claude/settings.json hooks reach Dispatch. The only channel that propagates is Cowork global instructions, which is static text in the Desktop UI, not git-tracked, not multi-line markdown friendly, and tied to a single device.

Use case

I run a multi-surface AI assistant ("Amy") backed by a git-tracked memory file (memory/MEMORY.md, ~200 lines, evolves daily). I want every Dispatch session, regardless of which repo it spawns into (including third-party shared repos where I cannot add a project CLAUDE.md), to load that identity automatically.

Empirical findings (Windows + iOS Dispatch)

1. Added a unique canary string to ~/.claude/CLAUDE.md, asked the spawned Dispatch session to recite it. Response: session does not see the canary. Global CLAUDE.md is not loaded by Dispatch.
2. ~/.claude/settings.json SessionStart hooks do not fire in Dispatch sessions.
3. Project-level CLAUDE.md in shared third-party repos is not an option (would leak personal context into PRs and reviewers).
4. MCP tools fire only on explicit user / task call, not on session init, so an MCP bootstrap_amy() tool cannot self-load.
5. Anthropic Project system instructions: no documentation confirming Dispatch sessions bind to or inherit from a claude.ai Project.

Ask

Pick one (any would solve this):

A. Dispatch sessions inherit ~/.claude/CLAUDE.md (or ~/.claude/CLAUDE.local.md) from the Desktop machine on which they spawn. This is the most natural extension of the documented CLI behavior.

B. Bind iOS Dispatch sessions to a claude.ai Project, with the Project's system instructions firing in the spawned session. Multi-line, account-level, persists across surfaces.

C. A user-level identity field in Cowork settings that supports multi-line markdown and can @-import a local file (so the source of truth can stay in git).

D. A documented MCP "init tool" contract so a connector tool fires automatically on session start, allowing the user's MCP server to return live identity context.

Related

• #39889 (Dispatch ignores user model and permission-mode settings) reflects the same architectural gap: Dispatch sessions are isolated from the user's Desktop config, with no opt-in inheritance.

Impact

Without this, "one assistant across every surface" is impossible. Users who invest in CLAUDE.md-based identity / agent design cannot bring it to Dispatch, which leaves Dispatch usable only for one-shot generic tasks.