diff --git a/bin/auto-commit-guard.sh b/bin/auto-commit-guard.sh
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..e95494d7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/bin/auto-commit-guard.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,159 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+# auto-commit-guard.sh — Background daemon that auto-commits uncommitted work
+#
+# Usage: auto-commit-guard.sh [interval_seconds] [worktree_base]
+#   auto-commit-guard.sh          # defaults: 120s, ~/worktrees
+#   auto-commit-guard.sh 60       # check every 60s
+#   auto-commit-guard.sh 180 ~/my-worktrees
+#
+# Scans all git repos under the worktree base for uncommitted changes.
+# If dirty for >= 1 check cycle, auto-commits with a WIP message.
+# Pushes unpushed commits so work is always recoverable from the remote.
+#
+# Also scans /tmp for orphaned agent workdirs on startup.
+
+set -uo pipefail
+
+INTERVAL="${1:-120}"
+WORKTREE_BASE="${2:-$HOME/worktrees}"
+LOG_DIR="$HOME/.hermes/logs"
+LOG="$LOG_DIR/auto-commit-guard.log"
+PIDFILE="$LOG_DIR/auto-commit-guard.pid"
+ORPHAN_SCAN_DONE="$LOG_DIR/.orphan-scan-done"
+
+mkdir -p "$LOG_DIR"
+
+# Single instance guard
+if [ -f "$PIDFILE" ]; then
+  old_pid=$(cat "$PIDFILE")
+  if kill -0 "$old_pid" 2>/dev/null; then
+    echo "auto-commit-guard already running (PID $old_pid)" >&2
+    exit 0
+  fi
+fi
+echo $$ > "$PIDFILE"
+trap 'rm -f "$PIDFILE"' EXIT
+
+log() {
+  echo "[$(date '+%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S')] AUTO-COMMIT: $*" >> "$LOG"
+}
+
+# --- Orphaned workdir scan (runs once on startup) ---
+scan_orphans() {
+  if [ -f "$ORPHAN_SCAN_DONE" ]; then
+    return 0
+  fi
+  log "Scanning /tmp for orphaned agent workdirs..."
+  local found=0
+  local rescued=0
+
+  for dir in /tmp/*-work-* /tmp/timmy-burn-* /tmp/tc-burn; do
+    [ -d "$dir" ] || continue
+    [ -d "$dir/.git" ] || continue
+
+    found=$((found + 1))
+    cd "$dir" 2>/dev/null || continue
+
+    local dirty
+    dirty=$(git status --porcelain 2>/dev/null | wc -l | tr -d " ")
+    if [ "${dirty:-0}" -gt 0 ]; then
+      local branch
+      branch=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "orphan")
+      git add -A 2>/dev/null
+      if git commit -m "WIP: orphan rescue — $dirty file(s) auto-committed on $(date -u +%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ)
+
+Orphaned workdir detected at $dir.
+Branch: $branch
+Rescued by auto-commit-guard on startup." 2>/dev/null; then
+        rescued=$((rescued + 1))
+        log "RESCUED: $dir ($dirty files on branch $branch)"
+
+        # Try to push if remote exists
+        if git remote get-url origin >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+          git push -u origin "$branch" 2>/dev/null &&             log "PUSHED orphan rescue: $dir → $branch" ||             log "PUSH FAILED orphan rescue: $dir (no remote access)"
+        fi
+      fi
+    fi
+  done
+
+  log "Orphan scan complete: $found workdirs checked, $rescued rescued"
+  touch "$ORPHAN_SCAN_DONE"
+}
+
+# --- Main guard loop ---
+guard_cycle() {
+  local committed=0
+  local scanned=0
+
+  # Scan worktree base
+  if [ -d "$WORKTREE_BASE" ]; then
+    for dir in "$WORKTREE_BASE"/*/; do
+      [ -d "$dir" ] || continue
+      [ -d "$dir/.git" ] || continue
+
+      scanned=$((scanned + 1))
+      cd "$dir" 2>/dev/null || continue
+
+      local dirty
+      dirty=$(git status --porcelain 2>/dev/null | wc -l | tr -d " ")
+      [ "${dirty:-0}" -eq 0 ] && continue
+
+      local branch
+      branch=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "detached")
+
+      git add -A 2>/dev/null
+      if git commit -m "WIP: auto-commit — $dirty file(s) on $branch
+
+Automated commit by auto-commit-guard at $(date -u +%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ).
+Work preserved to prevent loss on crash." 2>/dev/null; then
+        committed=$((committed + 1))
+        log "COMMITTED: $dir ($dirty files, branch $branch)"
+
+        # Push to preserve remotely
+        if git remote get-url origin >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+          git push -u origin "$branch" 2>/dev/null &&             log "PUSHED: $dir → $branch" ||             log "PUSH FAILED: $dir (will retry next cycle)"
+        fi
+      fi
+    done
+  fi
+
+  # Also scan /tmp for agent workdirs
+  for dir in /tmp/*-work-*; do
+    [ -d "$dir" ] || continue
+    [ -d "$dir/.git" ] || continue
+
+    scanned=$((scanned + 1))
+    cd "$dir" 2>/dev/null || continue
+
+    local dirty
+    dirty=$(git status --porcelain 2>/dev/null | wc -l | tr -d " ")
+    [ "${dirty:-0}" -eq 0 ] && continue
+
+    local branch
+    branch=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "detached")
+
+    git add -A 2>/dev/null
+    if git commit -m "WIP: auto-commit — $dirty file(s) on $branch
+
+Automated commit by auto-commit-guard at $(date -u +%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ).
+Agent workdir preserved to prevent loss." 2>/dev/null; then
+      committed=$((committed + 1))
+      log "COMMITTED: $dir ($dirty files, branch $branch)"
+
+      if git remote get-url origin >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+        git push -u origin "$branch" 2>/dev/null &&           log "PUSHED: $dir → $branch" ||           log "PUSH FAILED: $dir (will retry next cycle)"
+      fi
+    fi
+  done
+
+  [ "$committed" -gt 0 ] && log "Cycle done: $scanned scanned, $committed committed"
+}
+
+# --- Entry point ---
+log "Starting auto-commit-guard (interval=${INTERVAL}s, worktree=${WORKTREE_BASE})"
+scan_orphans
+
+while true; do
+  guard_cycle
+  sleep "$INTERVAL"
+done