diff --git a/application/api/answer/services/conversation_service.py b/application/api/answer/services/conversation_service.py
index f116a274..97f6d54b 100644
--- a/application/api/answer/services/conversation_service.py
+++ b/application/api/answer/services/conversation_service.py
@@ -33,6 +33,25 @@ TERMINATED_RESPONSE_PLACEHOLDER = (
 )
 
 
+def _final_finish_reason(llm: Any) -> Optional[str]:
+    """Best-effort finish_reason of the round that actually produced the answer.
+
+    Read from the responding provider — the fallback instance when a fallback
+    served the stream, else the primary. Set by the Responses path, the
+    non-streaming path, and (now) the chat-completions stream. ``None`` when
+    unavailable (e.g. the stream was cut before any finish frame).
+    """
+    if llm is None:
+        return None
+    fallback = getattr(llm, "_fallback_llm", None)
+    responding = getattr(llm, "_responding_provider", None)
+    if fallback is not None and responding == getattr(fallback, "provider_name", None):
+        fr = getattr(fallback, "_last_finish_reason", None)
+        if fr is not None:
+            return fr
+    return getattr(llm, "_last_finish_reason", None)
+
+
 class ConversationService:
     def get_conversation(
         self, conversation_id: str, user_id: str
@@ -112,6 +131,25 @@ class ConversationService:
         if metadata:
             message_payload["metadata"] = metadata
 
+        # Classify empty answers at the point of persistence. A tool-request
+        # turn (finish_reason=tool_calls — the /v1 client-tool loop) and a
+        # genuine dead-end (finish_reason=stop with no visible content) both
+        # persist an empty ``response`` and are otherwise indistinguishable in
+        # the stored row; log the discriminators so they can be told apart.
+        if not (response or "").strip():
+            logger.info(
+                "empty_answer_persisted",
+                extra={
+                    "model": model_id,
+                    "finish_reason": _final_finish_reason(llm),
+                    "has_tool_calls": bool(tool_calls),
+                    "tool_call_count": len(tool_calls or []),
+                    "thought_len": len(thought or ""),
+                    "responding_provider": getattr(llm, "_responding_provider", None),
+                    "conversation_id": conversation_id,
+                },
+            )
+
         if conversation_id is not None and index is not None:
             with db_session() as conn:
                 repo = ConversationsRepository(conn)
diff --git a/application/llm/openai.py b/application/llm/openai.py
index e078a839..8f62f1a5 100644
--- a/application/llm/openai.py
+++ b/application/llm/openai.py
@@ -536,6 +536,7 @@ class OpenAILLM(BaseLLM):
         request_params["stream_options"] = stream_options
         self._last_usage = None
         self._stream_reached_finish = False
+        self._last_finish_reason = None
         response = self.client.chat.completions.create(**request_params)
 
         try:
@@ -564,6 +565,11 @@ class OpenAILLM(BaseLLM):
                     # this to refuse restreaming a delivered answer when a
                     # trailing frame fails.
                     self._stream_reached_finish = True
+                    # Capture the reason itself (not just the bool) so the save
+                    # path can classify an empty answer: a ``stop`` with no
+                    # content is a genuine dead-end, ``tool_calls`` is a tool
+                    # request. Previously the chat path discarded this.
+                    self._last_finish_reason = finish_reason
 
                 # Yield non-content chunks only when needed for tool-call handling.
                 if has_tool_calls or finish_reason == "tool_calls":