diff --git a/src/shared/transcript-parser.ts b/src/shared/transcript-parser.ts
index ebd2cef0..8a7482ab 100644
--- a/src/shared/transcript-parser.ts
+++ b/src/shared/transcript-parser.ts
@@ -13,12 +13,14 @@ export function extractLastMessage(
   stripSystemReminders: boolean = false
 ): string {
   if (!transcriptPath || !existsSync(transcriptPath)) {
-    throw new Error(`Transcript path missing or file does not exist: ${transcriptPath}`);
+    logger.warn('PARSER', `Transcript path missing or file does not exist: ${transcriptPath}`);
+    return '';
   }
 
   const content = readFileSync(transcriptPath, 'utf-8').trim();
   if (!content) {
-    throw new Error(`Transcript file exists but is empty: ${transcriptPath}`);
+    logger.warn('PARSER', `Transcript file exists but is empty: ${transcriptPath}`);
+    return '';
   }
 
   const lines = content.split('\n');