diff --git a/src/lib/programs/__tests__/self-driving-detect.test.ts b/src/lib/programs/__tests__/self-driving-detect.test.ts
index b749cdba..10bd3280 100644
--- a/src/lib/programs/__tests__/self-driving-detect.test.ts
+++ b/src/lib/programs/__tests__/self-driving-detect.test.ts
@@ -67,6 +67,20 @@ describe('SELF_DRIVING_ABORT_CASES', () => {
     expect(matched[0].message).toBeTruthy();
     expect(matched[0].body).toBeTruthy();
   });
+
+  it('frames the unavailable-access abort as open beta, not a closed per-team beta', () => {
+    // STEP 1 no longer gates on access — Self-driving is open beta — but the
+    // abort is kept as a safety net. Its copy must say the product is still
+    // in beta while dropping the old closed/per-team "join the beta" framing.
+    const [accessCase] = SELF_DRIVING_ABORT_CASES.filter((c) =>
+      c.match.test('self-driving is not available for this project'),
+    );
+    expect(accessCase).toBeDefined();
+    const copy = `${accessCase.message} ${accessCase.body}`.toLowerCase();
+    expect(copy).toContain('open beta');
+    expect(copy).not.toContain('per team');
+    expect(copy).not.toContain('join the beta');
+  });
 });
 
 describe('selfDrivingConfig', () => {
diff --git a/src/lib/programs/self-driving/ARCHITECTURE.md b/src/lib/programs/self-driving/ARCHITECTURE.md
index ab1f334b..018cd9b1 100644
--- a/src/lib/programs/self-driving/ARCHITECTURE.md
+++ b/src/lib/programs/self-driving/ARCHITECTURE.md
@@ -59,7 +59,7 @@ matching context-mill file carries the HOW.
 
 **Step backbone (expected action, one line each):**
 
-1. **Check access** — probe the Signals API; if it's not available for the team, abort cleanly (`[ABORT] self-driving is not available for this project`).
+1. **Check access** — **instant, no probe.** Self-driving is in **open beta** (available to every team), so there is no access gate to check; the step just marks itself in_progress→completed (no MCP call) so the step-tracking funnel still fires and the user gets an immediate first checkmark. `[ABORT] self-driving is not available for this project` is kept only as a safety net for a genuine Signals-API outage during the run.
 2. **Read context** — build an evidence picture of which products are in use (setup report + `signals-scout-project-profile-get` + cheap usage probes + a light repo scan); read-only.
 3. **Connect GitHub** — required; if no `github` integration, send the user through the GitHub App install (one-click authorize deep-link) and re-verify; abort if declined.
 4. **Enable sources** — always enable the scout gate; enable native sources (error tracking, replay, support) only where step-2 evidence shows the product is in use.
@@ -72,7 +72,7 @@ The table below adds the skill reference and the tool/MCP surface for each.
 
 | # | Step | Skill ref / file | Tools · surface |
 |---|---|---|---|
-| 1 | Check access | `1-check-access.md` | Probe `inbox-source-configs-list` (no readable beta flag — the API *is* the probe). Fail → `[ABORT] self-driving is not available for this project`. |
+| 1 | Check access | `1-check-access.md` | **No probe — instant** (open beta: available to every team). Marks the task in_progress→completed immediately, calls no MCP tool. The `[ABORT] self-driving is not available for this project` string remains a safety net for a genuine Signals-API outage during the run, not a beta gate. |
 | 2 | Read project & Signals state | `2-read-context.md` | `./posthog-setup-report.md` + `signals-scout-project-profile-get` + cheap usage probes. Prompt opt-ins are authoritative ("repo evidence rules a product IN, never OUT"). |
 | 3 | Connect GitHub (REQUIRED) | `3-github.md` | `integrations-list` for `kind:"github"`; else `wizard_ask` with the one-click `integrations/authorize?kind=github` deep-link (the single link covers fresh install / link-existing / re-auth — no separate settings "re-link" path), re-verify after a manual "done". Can't → `[ABORT] github connection declined`. |
 | 4 | Enable signal sources | `4-sources.md` | Create/enable `SignalSourceConfig` rows for products in use (`inbox-source-configs-*`). Always enables the scout gate `signals_scout`/`cross_source_issue`. Never enables an unconfirmed tool. |
@@ -232,6 +232,14 @@ scoped to `created_via=MCP`.
 
 ## 6. Gating & prerequisites — "will it actually work?"
 
+> [!NOTE]
+> **Open beta — the wizard no longer probes access.** Self-driving is in open
+> beta (available to every team), so STEP 1 dropped its `inbox-source-configs-list`
+> access probe and runs instantly; the wizard surfaces no beta gate of its own.
+> The PostHog-side gates below still apply **server-side** (a flag not yet at 100%
+> just means findings won't surface), and the `[ABORT] self-driving is not available
+> for this project` path is now only a safety net for a genuine Signals-API outage.
+
 1. **UI flag `product-autonomy`** (`posthog/frontend/src/lib/constants.tsx`,
    `FEATURE_FLAGS.PRODUCT_AUTONOMY`). Frontend-only — gates the Inbox scene, nav item, and source-config
    loading. Off → the user can't *see* the inbox; the pipeline is unaffected.
@@ -281,8 +289,10 @@ Plus the **Temporal coordinator schedule** (`signals-scout-coordinator-schedule`
 3. **posthog backend deploy** of the `feat/signals-scout-config-sync` work: the `sync` endpoint, companion
    seeding (`lazy_seed.py`), and the 10 canonical scout skills.
 4. **Temporal coordinator schedule** running in prod.
-5. **Flag rollout:** `signals-scout` 100%-on with target teams in `guaranteed_team_ids`; `product-autonomy`
-   on for target users.
+5. **Flag rollout (open beta = everyone):** `signals-scout` 100%-on for all teams (still the real
+   server gate for dispatch); `product-autonomy` on for all users. The wizard no longer probes access
+   in STEP 1, so an un-flagged team isn't turned away at setup — it just won't see findings until the
+   server-side flags are on.
 6. **Per-team runtime** (user's responsibility): org AI consent on, GitHub connected.
 
 > [!NOTE]
diff --git a/src/lib/programs/self-driving/detect.ts b/src/lib/programs/self-driving/detect.ts
index f3595437..6926b2be 100644
--- a/src/lib/programs/self-driving/detect.ts
+++ b/src/lib/programs/self-driving/detect.ts
@@ -5,13 +5,18 @@
  * `session.installDir` is a real, readable directory. We deliberately do
  * NOT require the base posthog-integration report to be present — it is a
  * report many users never commit, and `requires: ['posthog-integration']`
- * is metadata, not a hard runtime gate. Real readiness (integration state
- * + beta access) is established by the agent's STEP 1 Signals API probe at
- * the start of the run. The beta gates (the `product-autonomy` access flag
- * and `signals-scout` enrollment — PostHog-side flag names, unchanged by
- * the wizard-side "self-driving" rename) are PostHog-internal flags with no
- * customer-facing read API, which is why that probe lives in the run and
- * emits a structured `[ABORT]` when the product is not available.
+ * is metadata, not a hard runtime gate.
+ *
+ * Self-driving is now in OPEN beta — available to every team — so STEP 1
+ * no longer probes the Signals API as an access gate; it completes
+ * instantly so the run opens with a fast first checkmark. The
+ * `self-driving is not available for this project` abort below is kept
+ * only as a safety net: if the Signals API genuinely can't be reached
+ * during the run (a hard error that is unexpected in open beta), the skill
+ * emits it and the wizard renders a friendly "try again" screen — now with
+ * open-beta wording, not the old closed, per-team "join the beta" copy. The
+ * PostHog-side flags (`product-autonomy`, `signals-scout`) are unchanged by
+ * the wizard-side "self-driving" rename.
  */
 
 import { existsSync, statSync } from 'fs';
@@ -39,10 +44,10 @@ export const SELF_DRIVING_ABORT_CASES: AbortCase[] = [
     match: /^self-driving is not available for this project$/i,
     message: 'PostHog Self-driving is not available for this project',
     body:
-      'Self-driving is in beta and is enabled per ' +
-      'team by PostHog. This project does not appear to have access yet. ' +
-      'Reach out to your PostHog contact (or wizard@posthog.com) to join ' +
-      'the beta, then run the wizard again.',
+      'Self-driving is in open beta and available to every team, so this ' +
+      'is unexpected — the PostHog Signals API could not be reached for ' +
+      'this project. Nothing was changed. Try again in a moment, and if it ' +
+      'keeps happening reach out to wizard@posthog.com.',
   },
   {
     // Skill emits: [ABORT] github connection declined
diff --git a/src/lib/programs/self-driving/prompt.ts b/src/lib/programs/self-driving/prompt.ts
index 7d5df20d..afb25533 100644
--- a/src/lib/programs/self-driving/prompt.ts
+++ b/src/lib/programs/self-driving/prompt.ts
@@ -72,8 +72,13 @@ Wizard mechanics:
 Follow these steps IN ORDER. Do not skip or reorder.
 
 STEP 1 — Check Self-driving access. (skill: "Check access")
-   Probe the Signals API as the skill describes. If the API is not
-   available for this project (permission or not-found errors), emit
+   Self-driving is in open beta and available to every team, so there is
+   no access gate to probe. Do NOT call any MCP tool here — mark this task
+   in_progress and then completed right away and emit the
+   ${AgentSignals.STATUS} line, so the user sees an immediate first step.
+   Only if the Signals API later turns out to be genuinely unreachable for
+   this project (a hard error on every Signals call, unexpected in open
+   beta) should you emit
    ${AgentSignals.ABORT} self-driving is not available for this project
    and halt.