diff --git a/packages/transcript/src/history/groupTurns.ts b/packages/transcript/src/history/groupTurns.ts
index 8d283eda5..88fa56121 100644
--- a/packages/transcript/src/history/groupTurns.ts
+++ b/packages/transcript/src/history/groupTurns.ts
@@ -200,7 +200,7 @@ export function groupMessagesIntoSnapshot(
           kind: 'text',
           frameId: `${step.stepId}.f${step.frames.length + 1}`,
           role: 'user',
-          text: textOf(message),
+          text: notificationFrameText(textOf(message)),
           ...(taskId !== undefined ? { taskId } : {}),
         });
         syncTurnItem(items, current);
@@ -280,6 +280,29 @@ export function groupMessagesIntoSnapshot(
   return { items, tasks: [], interactions: [], attachments, todos: [], prompts: [], meta: {} };
 }
 
+function notificationFrameText(text: string): string {
+  if (!text.startsWith('<notification')) return text;
+  const openingEnd = text.indexOf('>');
+  const closingStart = text.lastIndexOf('</notification>');
+  if (openingEnd === -1 || closingStart <= openingEnd) return text;
+  const inner = text.slice(openingEnd + 1, closingStart);
+  const lines = inner.split('\n');
+  let title = '';
+  let lastHeaderIndex = -1;
+  for (let i = 0; i < lines.length; i++) {
+    const line = lines[i]!;
+    if (line.startsWith('Title: ')) {
+      title = line.slice('Title: '.length);
+      lastHeaderIndex = i;
+    } else if (line.startsWith('Severity: ')) {
+      lastHeaderIndex = i;
+    }
+  }
+  const body = lines.slice(lastHeaderIndex + 1).join('\n').trim();
+  if (title.length > 0 && body.length > 0) return `${title}\n${body}`;
+  return title.length > 0 ? title : body.length > 0 ? body : text;
+}
+
 function opensOwnTurn(message: HistoryMessage): boolean {
   const origin = message.origin as { kind?: unknown; name?: unknown } | undefined;
   return (
diff --git a/packages/transcript/test/layers.test.ts b/packages/transcript/test/layers.test.ts
index 17a227f84..d7e8aed35 100644
--- a/packages/transcript/test/layers.test.ts
+++ b/packages/transcript/test/layers.test.ts
@@ -454,7 +454,10 @@ describe('groupMessagesIntoSnapshot (cold path)', () => {
       },
       {
         role: 'user',
-        content: [{ type: 'text', text: '<notification id="task:task-9:completed"></notification>' }],
+        content: [{
+          type: 'text',
+          text: '<notification id="task:task-9:completed" category="task" type="task.completed" source_kind="background_task" source_id="task-9">\nTitle: Background agent completed\nSeverity: info\ninspect done.\n</notification>',
+        }],
         toolCalls: [],
         origin: { kind: 'task', taskId: 'task-9' } as { kind: string },
       },
@@ -481,6 +484,7 @@ describe('groupMessagesIntoSnapshot (cold path)', () => {
       .flatMap((step) => step.frames)
       .filter((f) => f.kind === 'text' && f.role === 'user');
     expect(userFrames.map((f) => f.kind === 'text' && f.taskId)).toEqual(['task-9', 'task-8']);
+    expect(userFrames[0]).toMatchObject({ text: 'Background agent completed\ninspect done.' });
     const assistantTexts = turn.steps
       .flatMap((step) => step.frames)
       .filter((f) => f.kind === 'text' && f.role === 'assistant')