diff --git a/.github/workflows/release.yml b/.github/workflows/release.yml
index f8fc97ab..aa5b1719 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/release.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/release.yml
@@ -20,6 +20,11 @@ jobs:
     steps:
       - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
+      - name: Setup Python
+        uses: actions/setup-python@v5
+        with:
+          python-version: '3.11'
+
       - name: Setup Node.js
         uses: actions/setup-node@v4
         with:
@@ -84,6 +89,11 @@ jobs:
     steps:
       - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
+      - name: Setup Python
+        uses: actions/setup-python@v5
+        with:
+          python-version: '3.11'
+
       - name: Setup Node.js
         uses: actions/setup-node@v4
         with:
@@ -147,6 +157,11 @@ jobs:
     steps:
       - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
+      - name: Setup Python
+        uses: actions/setup-python@v5
+        with:
+          python-version: '3.11'
+
       - name: Setup Node.js
         uses: actions/setup-node@v4
         with:
@@ -188,6 +203,11 @@ jobs:
     steps:
       - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
+      - name: Setup Python
+        uses: actions/setup-python@v5
+        with:
+          python-version: '3.11'
+
       - name: Setup Node.js
         uses: actions/setup-node@v4
         with:
diff --git a/apps/frontend/src/main/python-detector.ts b/apps/frontend/src/main/python-detector.ts
index 8f6834a7..55cea55e 100644
--- a/apps/frontend/src/main/python-detector.ts
+++ b/apps/frontend/src/main/python-detector.ts
@@ -18,17 +18,18 @@ export function findPythonCommand(): string | null {
 
   for (const cmd of candidates) {
     try {
-      const version = execSync(`${cmd} --version`, {
-        stdio: 'pipe',
-        timeout: 5000,
-        windowsHide: true
-      }).toString();
-
-      if (version.includes('Python 3')) {
+      // Validate version meets minimum requirement (Python 3.10+)
+      const validation = validatePythonVersion(cmd);
+      if (validation.valid) {
+        console.log(`[Python] Found valid Python: ${cmd} (${validation.version})`);
         return cmd;
+      } else {
+        console.warn(`[Python] ${cmd} version too old: ${validation.message}`);
+        continue;
       }
     } catch {
       // Command not found or errored, try next
+      console.warn(`[Python] Command not found or errored: ${cmd}`);
       continue;
     }
   }
@@ -37,6 +38,71 @@ export function findPythonCommand(): string | null {
   return isWindows ? 'python' : 'python3';
 }
 
+/**
+ * Extract Python version from a command.
+ *
+ * @param pythonCmd - The Python command to check (e.g., "python3", "py -3")
+ * @returns The version string (e.g., "3.10.5") or null if unable to detect
+ */
+function getPythonVersion(pythonCmd: string): string | null {
+  try {
+    const version = execSync(`${pythonCmd} --version`, {
+      stdio: 'pipe',
+      timeout: 5000,
+      windowsHide: true
+    }).toString().trim();
+
+    // Extract version number from "Python 3.10.5" format
+    const match = version.match(/Python (\d+\.\d+\.\d+)/);
+    return match ? match[1] : null;
+  } catch {
+    return null;
+  }
+}
+
+/**
+ * Validate that a Python command meets minimum version requirements.
+ *
+ * @param pythonCmd - The Python command to validate
+ * @returns Validation result with status, version, and message
+ */
+function validatePythonVersion(pythonCmd: string): {
+  valid: boolean;
+  version?: string;
+  message: string;
+} {
+  const MINIMUM_VERSION = '3.10.0';
+
+  const versionStr = getPythonVersion(pythonCmd);
+  if (!versionStr) {
+    return {
+      valid: false,
+      message: 'Unable to detect Python version'
+    };
+  }
+
+  // Parse version numbers for comparison
+  const [major, minor] = versionStr.split('.').map(Number);
+  const [reqMajor, reqMinor] = MINIMUM_VERSION.split('.').map(Number);
+
+  const meetsRequirement =
+    major > reqMajor || (major === reqMajor && minor >= reqMinor);
+
+  if (!meetsRequirement) {
+    return {
+      valid: false,
+      version: versionStr,
+      message: `Python ${versionStr} is too old. Requires Python ${MINIMUM_VERSION}+ (claude-agent-sdk requirement)`
+    };
+  }
+
+  return {
+    valid: true,
+    version: versionStr,
+    message: `Python ${versionStr} meets requirements`
+  };
+}
+
 /**
  * Get the default Python command for the current platform.
  * This is a synchronous fallback that doesn't test if Python actually exists.
diff --git a/apps/frontend/src/main/python-env-manager.ts b/apps/frontend/src/main/python-env-manager.ts
index 5056b7cc..00e2737e 100644
--- a/apps/frontend/src/main/python-env-manager.ts
+++ b/apps/frontend/src/main/python-env-manager.ts
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@ import { existsSync } from 'fs';
 import path from 'path';
 import { EventEmitter } from 'events';
 import { app } from 'electron';
+import { findPythonCommand } from './python-detector';
 
 export interface PythonEnvStatus {
   ready: boolean;
@@ -96,61 +97,29 @@ export class PythonEnvManager extends EventEmitter {
   }
 
   /**
-   * Find system Python3
+   * Find system Python 3.10+
+   * Uses the shared python-detector logic which validates version requirements.
    */
   private findSystemPython(): string | null {
-    const isWindows = process.platform === 'win32';
-
-    // Windows candidates - py launcher is handled specially
-    // Unix candidates - try python3 first, then python
-    const candidates = isWindows
-      ? ['python', 'python3']
-      : ['python3', 'python'];
-
-    // On Windows, try the py launcher first (most reliable)
-    if (isWindows) {
-      try {
-        // py -3 runs Python 3, verify it works
-        const version = execSync('py -3 --version', {
-          stdio: 'pipe',
-          timeout: 5000
-        }).toString();
-        if (version.includes('Python 3')) {
-          // Get the actual executable path
-          const pythonPath = execSync('py -3 -c "import sys; print(sys.executable)"', {
-            stdio: 'pipe',
-            timeout: 5000
-          }).toString().trim();
-          return pythonPath;
-        }
-      } catch {
-        // py launcher not available, continue with other candidates
-      }
+    const pythonCmd = findPythonCommand();
+    if (!pythonCmd) {
+      return null;
     }
 
-    for (const cmd of candidates) {
-      try {
-        const version = execSync(`${cmd} --version`, {
-          stdio: 'pipe',
-          timeout: 5000
-        }).toString();
-        if (version.includes('Python 3')) {
-          // Get the actual path
-          // On Windows, use Python itself to get the path
-          // On Unix, use 'which'
-          const pathCmd = isWindows
-            ? `${cmd} -c "import sys; print(sys.executable)"`
-            : `which ${cmd}`;
-          const pythonPath = execSync(pathCmd, { stdio: 'pipe', timeout: 5000 })
-            .toString()
-            .trim();
-          return pythonPath;
-        }
-      } catch {
-        continue;
-      }
+    try {
+      // Get the actual executable path from the command
+      // For commands like "py -3", we need to resolve to the actual executable
+      const pythonPath = execSync(`${pythonCmd} -c "import sys; print(sys.executable)"`, {
+        stdio: 'pipe',
+        timeout: 5000
+      }).toString().trim();
+
+      console.log(`[PythonEnvManager] Found Python at: ${pythonPath}`);
+      return pythonPath;
+    } catch (err) {
+      console.error(`[PythonEnvManager] Failed to get Python path for ${pythonCmd}:`, err);
+      return null;
     }
-    return null;
   }
 
   /**
@@ -161,7 +130,11 @@ export class PythonEnvManager extends EventEmitter {
 
     const systemPython = this.findSystemPython();
     if (!systemPython) {
-      this.emit('error', 'Python 3 not found. Please install Python 3.9+');
+      this.emit(
+        'error',
+        'Python 3.10+ not found. Please install Python 3.10 or higher (required by claude-agent-sdk).\n\n' +
+        'Download: https://www.python.org/downloads/'
+      );
       return false;
     }