diff --git a/src/main.rs b/src/main.rs
index da00b0a..6e0ce06 100644
--- a/src/main.rs
+++ b/src/main.rs
@@ -254,13 +254,22 @@ fn load_agent_config() -> gyandoot_core::config::AgentConfig {
 fn load_and_convert_config(path: &std::path::Path) -> Result<gyandoot_core::config::AgentConfig, Box<dyn std::error::Error>> {
     let content = std::fs::read_to_string(path)?;
 
-    // Try parsing as canonical GyandootConfig first
-    if let Ok(gyandoot_cfg) = toml::from_str::<gyandoot_core::config::GyandootConfig>(&content) {
+    // Detect format: flat `[provider]` (singular, from gyandoot setup) or
+    // canonical `[providers]` (plural). We check the raw content because
+    // GyandootConfig has #[serde(default)] on everything — silent deser
+    // swallows unknown sections and returns defaults instead of erroring.
+    let is_flat_format = content.contains("[provider]\n")
+        || content.contains("[provider]")
+            && !content.contains("[providers]");
+
+    if !is_flat_format {
+        // Canonical format — parse directly
+        let gyandoot_cfg = toml::from_str::<gyandoot_core::config::GyandootConfig>(&content)?;
         tracing::info!("Loaded config from {}", path.display());
         return Ok(gyandoot_core::config::AgentConfig::from(gyandoot_cfg));
     }
 
-    // Fallback: parse flat `[provider]` format and convert to canonical
+    // Flat `[provider]` format — parse and convert to canonical
     #[derive(serde::Deserialize)]
     struct FlatConfig {
         provider: FlatProvider,