diff --git a/.claude/scripts/sync.sh b/.claude/scripts/sync.sh
index 993617e..a9d620f 100755
--- a/.claude/scripts/sync.sh
+++ b/.claude/scripts/sync.sh
@@ -65,6 +65,12 @@ echo -e "${GREEN}[OK]${NC} Syncing as: $USER_DISPLAY (machine: $MACHINE)"
 echo ""
 echo "=== Phase 1: Local changes ==="
 
+# Update submodules to latest remote before staging so we never commit a stale pointer
+if [ -f ".gitmodules" ]; then
+    echo -e "${GREEN}[OK]${NC} Updating submodules to latest remote..."
+    git submodule update --remote --quiet 2>/dev/null || true
+fi
+
 if ! git diff-index --quiet HEAD -- 2>/dev/null; then
     echo -e "${YELLOW}[INFO]${NC} Local changes detected:"
     git status --short