diff --git a/ACCEPTANCE.md b/ACCEPTANCE.md
index 66156d1..205d286 100644
--- a/ACCEPTANCE.md
+++ b/ACCEPTANCE.md
@@ -1179,6 +1179,66 @@ is **updated** to the `?v=` form, **not** removed.
 
 ---
 
+## Bugfix: Initial-load module-graph waterfall (slow first data paint)
+
+The dashboard's first `/api/*` fetch is gated behind the **entire** 89-module
+ES-module graph loading, and that graph was discovered one import-tier at a time
+(`index.js` → `{config,main,settings}` → main's 33 imports → … ≈ 5 serial round
+trips) because nothing told the browser the deeper modules up-front. On a real
+connection each tier costs a full RTT, so data did not paint for **2–3 s**
+(measured: ~3.7 s to the first `/api/nodes` request at 150 ms RTT / 4× CPU; the
+server itself answers every endpoint in <250 ms). The fix emits one
+`<link rel="modulepreload">` per served app ES module in `<head>` — the **same
+set the AV3 import map versions** — so the whole graph downloads in parallel
+(one round trip over HTTP/2) instead of tier-by-tier. Native browser feature, no
+build step or dependency (D7/AV4); read-side only (apex/privacy/parity untouched);
+a module absent from the preloads still loads normally (AV3's degradation
+property). Built by `PotatoMesh::App::AssetImportMap.preload_html`
+(`web/lib/potato_mesh/application/helpers/asset_helpers.rb`), rendered after the
+import map in `views/layouts/app.erb`.
+
+*Run the server in public mode (as in AV-A1) and leave it running for the curl check.*
+
+### MP-A1 — The head preloads the whole app ES-module graph (busted URLs)
+```bash
+curl -s http://127.0.0.1:41447/ \
+  | grep -oE '<link rel="modulepreload" href="/assets/js/app/[A-Za-z0-9/_.-]+\?v=[^"]+">' \
+  | grep -E 'app/(index|main)\.js'
+```
+**Expected:** matches a `<link rel="modulepreload">` for both the entry point
+`index.js` and the transitively-imported `main.js`, each carrying the
+`?v=<APP_VERSION>` query — i.e. the preloaded URL equals the import-map **target**,
+so the preload and the eventual `import` resolve to the same cache entry. Every
+served `/assets/js/app/**` module is preloaded; the classic non-module scripts
+(`/assets/js/theme.js`, `/assets/js/background.js`) and `__tests__` files are
+**not** preloaded.
+
+### MP-A2 — Preloads sit after the import map, before the module entry; unit-tested
+```bash
+( cd web && bundle exec rspec spec/asset_versioning_spec.rb -e "modulepreload" \
+                            spec/asset_import_map_spec.rb -e "preload" )
+```
+**Expected:** pass. The rendering spec asserts the modulepreload block is emitted
+**after** the `<script type="importmap">` and **before** the
+`<script type="module" src="…index.js">` entry (so resolution order is correct),
+that classic scripts and `__tests__` are excluded, and the unit specs cover
+`AssetImportMap.preload_paths` (app modules only) and `.preload_html` (one
+version-stamped link per module, memoized).
+
+### MP-R1 — Regression: prior acceptance still holds
+```bash
+( cd web && bundle exec rspec ) && ( cd web && npm test )
+```
+**Expected:** every prior check still passes. **At risk and explicitly required to
+remain green:** **AV-A2** (still exactly one import map, still busting the deep
+graph — the preloads are additive, not a replacement); **AV-A1/AV-A4** (asset
+versioning + image-scope boundary unchanged); **D1** (the shared layout's
+`/version`-fed config behavior is unchanged); **B1** (all suites). The preloads
+are purely additive head markup — no existing asset URL, the import map, or any
+`/api/*`/`/version` shape changes.
+
+---
+
 ## Feature: Uniform backward pagination (`?before=`) for bulk collection APIs
 
 Maps to SPEC decisions **BP1–BP9**. `?before=<unix_seconds>` is added as an
diff --git a/web/lib/potato_mesh/application/helpers/asset_helpers.rb b/web/lib/potato_mesh/application/helpers/asset_helpers.rb
index de58bb7..6f99775 100644
--- a/web/lib/potato_mesh/application/helpers/asset_helpers.rb
+++ b/web/lib/potato_mesh/application/helpers/asset_helpers.rb
@@ -57,6 +57,40 @@ module PotatoMesh
         cache[[js_root, version]] ||= JSON.generate(document(js_root, version))
       end
 
+      # List the served **ES-module** paths to preload — every
+      # +/assets/js/app/**+ module, excluding the classic top-level scripts
+      # (+theme.js+, +background.js+) which are loaded as ordinary
+      # +<script>+ tags, not modules. Preloading a classic script as a module
+      # would fetch it a second time, so the preload set is the app graph only.
+      #
+      # @param js_root [String] absolute path to the served +/assets/js+ dir.
+      # @return [Array<String>] sorted ``/assets/js/app/...`` module paths.
+      def preload_paths(js_root)
+        module_paths(js_root).select { |path| path.start_with?("/assets/js/app/") }
+      end
+
+      # Render one +<link rel="modulepreload">+ per app module so the browser
+      # fetches the **entire** transitive ES-module graph in parallel rather
+      # than discovering it one import-tier at a time (the waterfall that
+      # delayed the dashboard's first data paint). Each href is the
+      # version-stamped URL — i.e. the import-map **target** — so the preload
+      # and the eventual +import+ resolve to the same cache entry. Memoized per
+      # +[js_root, version]+ (both constant for the process), mirroring {json}.
+      #
+      # A module absent here still loads normally on demand, so a missing entry
+      # can never break a working import (the same degradation property as the
+      # import map, SPEC AV3).
+      #
+      # @param js_root [String] absolute path to the served +/assets/js+ dir.
+      # @param version [String] cache-busting token (the application version).
+      # @return [String] newline-joined +<link rel="modulepreload">+ tags.
+      def preload_html(js_root, version)
+        cache = (@preload_cache ||= {})
+        cache[[js_root, version]] ||= preload_paths(js_root)
+          .map { |path| %(<link rel="modulepreload" href="#{path}?v=#{version}">) }
+          .join("\n")
+      end
+
       # List the absolute asset paths (``/assets/js/...``) of every served
       # module, excluding test files, in a stable sorted order.
       #
@@ -100,6 +134,17 @@ module PotatoMesh
         PotatoMesh::App::AssetImportMap.json(asset_js_root, app_constant(:APP_VERSION))
       end
 
+      # Render the +<link rel="modulepreload">+ tags that preload the whole
+      # served ES-module graph in parallel (so the browser does not walk the
+      # import waterfall before the app can fetch its first data). Emitted in the
+      # layout head **after** the import map (which must precede any module
+      # resolution) and before the module entry point.
+      #
+      # @return [String] newline-joined modulepreload link tags.
+      def asset_modulepreload_tags
+        PotatoMesh::App::AssetImportMap.preload_html(asset_js_root, app_constant(:APP_VERSION))
+      end
+
       # Absolute path to the served JavaScript asset directory.
       #
       # @return [String] the ``<public_folder>/assets/js`` directory.
diff --git a/web/spec/asset_import_map_spec.rb b/web/spec/asset_import_map_spec.rb
index 462ac1b..5ab84f1 100644
--- a/web/spec/asset_import_map_spec.rb
+++ b/web/spec/asset_import_map_spec.rb
@@ -57,6 +57,52 @@ RSpec.describe PotatoMesh::App::AssetImportMap do
     end
   end
 
+  describe ".preload_paths" do
+    it "lists only the app ES modules (excludes the classic top-level scripts)" do
+      # theme.js is a classic <script>, not an ES module, so it must never be
+      # emitted as <link rel="modulepreload"> (that would fetch it as a module
+      # and double-load it). Only /assets/js/app/** modules are preloaded.
+      expect(described_class.preload_paths(@js_root)).to eq(
+        [
+          "/assets/js/app/config.js",
+          "/assets/js/app/main.js",
+        ],
+      )
+    end
+
+    it "excludes __tests__ files" do
+      expect(described_class.preload_paths(@js_root)).not_to include(
+        a_string_including("__tests__"),
+      )
+    end
+
+    it "returns an empty list when the directory is absent" do
+      expect(described_class.preload_paths(File.join(@js_root, "nope"))).to eq([])
+    end
+  end
+
+  describe ".preload_html" do
+    it "emits one version-stamped modulepreload link per app module" do
+      html = described_class.preload_html(@js_root, "1.2.3")
+
+      expect(html).to eq(
+        %(<link rel="modulepreload" href="/assets/js/app/config.js?v=1.2.3">\n) +
+          %(<link rel="modulepreload" href="/assets/js/app/main.js?v=1.2.3">),
+      )
+    end
+
+    it "never preloads the classic top-level scripts" do
+      expect(described_class.preload_html(@js_root, "1.2.3")).not_to include("theme.js")
+    end
+
+    it "is stable across repeated calls (memoized per root/version)" do
+      first = described_class.preload_html(@js_root, "7.0.0")
+      second = described_class.preload_html(@js_root, "7.0.0")
+
+      expect(second).to equal(first)
+    end
+  end
+
   describe ".document" do
     it "maps each module path to its version-stamped URL" do
       doc = described_class.document(@js_root, "1.2.3")
diff --git a/web/spec/asset_versioning_spec.rb b/web/spec/asset_versioning_spec.rb
index 41eff7b..af27547 100644
--- a/web/spec/asset_versioning_spec.rb
+++ b/web/spec/asset_versioning_spec.rb
@@ -102,4 +102,52 @@ RSpec.describe "Asset cache-busting" do
       expect(map_at).to be < entry_at
     end
   end
+
+  # Regression: initial-load module-graph waterfall (slow first data paint).
+  # Without modulepreload hints the browser discovers the 89-module graph one
+  # import-tier at a time (≈5 serial round trips) before the app can fire its
+  # first /api fetch, so data does not paint for 2-3s on a real connection. The
+  # head must preload the whole ES-module graph so it downloads in parallel.
+  describe "modulepreload for the deep module graph (initial-load latency)" do
+    before { get "/" }
+
+    it "preloads a transitively-imported module so the graph loads in parallel" do
+      # main.js is reached only through a relative import inside index.js; a
+      # modulepreload for it proves the whole graph (not just entry points) is
+      # fetched up-front instead of tier-by-tier.
+      expect(last_response.body).to include(
+        %(<link rel="modulepreload" href="/assets/js/app/main.js?v=#{version}">),
+      )
+    end
+
+    it "preloads the module entry point itself" do
+      expect(last_response.body).to include(
+        %(<link rel="modulepreload" href="/assets/js/app/index.js?v=#{version}">),
+      )
+    end
+
+    it "does not preload the classic (non-module) scripts" do
+      expect(last_response.body).not_to include(
+        '<link rel="modulepreload" href="/assets/js/theme.js',
+      )
+      expect(last_response.body).not_to include(
+        '<link rel="modulepreload" href="/assets/js/background.js',
+      )
+    end
+
+    it "does not leak test files into the preloads" do
+      preloads = last_response.body.scan(/<link rel="modulepreload"[^>]*>/).join
+      expect(preloads).not_to include("__tests__")
+    end
+
+    it "places the preloads after the import map and before the module entry" do
+      body = last_response.body
+      map_at = body.index('<script type="importmap">')
+      preload_at = body.index('<link rel="modulepreload"')
+      entry_at = body.index('<script type="module" src="/assets/js/app/index.js')
+
+      expect(map_at).to be < preload_at
+      expect(preload_at).to be < entry_at
+    end
+  end
 end
diff --git a/web/views/layouts/app.erb b/web/views/layouts/app.erb
index d218845..e791b16 100644
--- a/web/views/layouts/app.erb
+++ b/web/views/layouts/app.erb
@@ -74,6 +74,12 @@
   <%# Import map versions the entire served JS module graph (SPEC AV3); must
       precede any module load so relative imports resolve to the busted URLs. %>
   <script type="importmap"><%= asset_import_map_json %></script>
+  <%# Preload the whole ES-module graph in parallel so the browser fetches it in
+      one round trip instead of discovering it import-tier by import-tier; this
+      removes the waterfall that delayed the first /api data paint. Same set the
+      import map versions; emitted after it so module URLs resolve to the busted
+      targets. A module absent here still loads normally on demand. %>
+  <%= asset_modulepreload_tags %>
   <link rel="stylesheet" href="<%= asset_url("/assets/styles/base.css") %>" />
   <script src="<%= asset_url("/assets/js/theme.js") %>" defer></script>
   <script src="<%= asset_url("/assets/js/background.js") %>" defer></script>
