diff --git a/cmd/orly-acl/main.go b/cmd/orly-acl/main.go
index 71a9f5f..8db667d 100644
--- a/cmd/orly-acl/main.go
+++ b/cmd/orly-acl/main.go
@@ -117,19 +117,25 @@ func main() {
 		FollowsThrottleMaxDelay: cfg.FollowsThrottleMaxDelay,
 	}
 
-	// Set ACL mode and configure the registry (may take time to load follow lists)
+	// Set ACL mode first
 	acl.Registry.SetMode(cfg.ACLMode)
-	if err := acl.Registry.Configure(appCfg, db, ctx); chk.E(err) {
-		log.E.F("failed to configure ACL: %v", err)
-		os.Exit(1)
-	}
 
-	// Mark service as ready now that configuration is complete
+	// Mark service as ready IMMEDIATELY so relay can start
+	// Configure runs in background and loads follow lists asynchronously
 	service.SetReady(true)
+	log.I.F("ACL service ready (follow lists loading in background)")
 
-	// Start the syncer goroutine for background operations
-	acl.Registry.Syncer()
-	log.I.F("ACL syncer started for mode: %s", cfg.ACLMode)
+	// Run Configure in background (may take time to load follow lists)
+	go func() {
+		if err := acl.Registry.Configure(appCfg, db, ctx); chk.E(err) {
+			log.E.F("failed to configure ACL: %v", err)
+			// Don't exit - service can still function with limited ACL
+		}
+		log.I.F("ACL configuration complete")
+		// Start the syncer goroutine for background operations
+		acl.Registry.Syncer()
+		log.I.F("ACL syncer started for mode: %s", cfg.ACLMode)
+	}()
 
 	// Handle graceful shutdown - block until signal received
 	sigs := make(chan os.Signal, 1)
diff --git a/cmd/orly-launcher/config.go b/cmd/orly-launcher/config.go
index 46ac63e..cf65e90 100644
--- a/cmd/orly-launcher/config.go
+++ b/cmd/orly-launcher/config.go
@@ -103,7 +103,7 @@ func loadConfig() (*Config, error) {
 		ACLEnabled:      getEnvOrDefault("ORLY_LAUNCHER_ACL_ENABLED", "false") == "true",
 		ACLMode:         aclMode,
 		DBReadyTimeout:  parseDuration("ORLY_LAUNCHER_DB_READY_TIMEOUT", 30*time.Second),
-		ACLReadyTimeout: parseDuration("ORLY_LAUNCHER_ACL_READY_TIMEOUT", 30*time.Second),
+		ACLReadyTimeout: parseDuration("ORLY_LAUNCHER_ACL_READY_TIMEOUT", 120*time.Second),
 		StopTimeout:     parseDuration("ORLY_LAUNCHER_STOP_TIMEOUT", 30*time.Second), // Increased for DB flush
 		DataDir:         getEnvOrDefault("ORLY_DATA_DIR", filepath.Join(xdg.DataHome, "ORLY")),
 		LogLevel:        getEnvOrDefault("ORLY_LOG_LEVEL", "info"),
diff --git a/cmd/orly-launcher/supervisor.go b/cmd/orly-launcher/supervisor.go
index f768608..dee9c40 100644
--- a/cmd/orly-launcher/supervisor.go
+++ b/cmd/orly-launcher/supervisor.go
@@ -10,8 +10,12 @@ import (
 	"syscall"
 	"time"
 
+	"google.golang.org/grpc"
+	"google.golang.org/grpc/credentials/insecure"
 	"lol.mleku.dev/chk"
 	"lol.mleku.dev/log"
+
+	orlyaclv1 "next.orly.dev/pkg/proto/orlyacl/v1"
 )
 
 // Supervisor manages the database, ACL, sync, and relay processes.
@@ -258,21 +262,51 @@ func (s *Supervisor) waitForACLReady(timeout time.Duration) error {
 	ticker := time.NewTicker(250 * time.Millisecond)
 	defer ticker.Stop()
 
+	var grpcConn *grpc.ClientConn
+	var aclClient orlyaclv1.ACLServiceClient
+
 	for {
 		select {
 		case <-s.ctx.Done():
+			if grpcConn != nil {
+				grpcConn.Close()
+			}
 			return s.ctx.Err()
 		case <-ticker.C:
 			if time.Now().After(deadline) {
+				if grpcConn != nil {
+					grpcConn.Close()
+				}
 				return fmt.Errorf("timeout waiting for ACL server")
 			}
 
-			// Try to connect to the gRPC port
+			// First, check if TCP port is open
 			conn, err := net.DialTimeout("tcp", s.cfg.ACLListen, time.Second)
-			if err == nil {
-				conn.Close()
-				return nil // ACL server is accepting connections
+			if err != nil {
+				continue // Port not open yet
+			}
+			conn.Close()
+
+			// Port is open, now check gRPC Ready() endpoint
+			if grpcConn == nil {
+				grpcConn, err = grpc.DialContext(s.ctx, s.cfg.ACLListen,
+					grpc.WithTransportCredentials(insecure.NewCredentials()),
+				)
+				if err != nil {
+					continue // Failed to connect
+				}
+				aclClient = orlyaclv1.NewACLServiceClient(grpcConn)
+			}
+
+			// Call Ready() to check if service is fully configured
+			ctx, cancel := context.WithTimeout(s.ctx, time.Second)
+			resp, err := aclClient.Ready(ctx, &orlyaclv1.Empty{})
+			cancel()
+			if err == nil && resp.Ready {
+				grpcConn.Close()
+				return nil // ACL server is fully ready
 			}
+			// Not ready yet, keep polling
 		}
 	}
 }
diff --git a/pkg/version/version b/pkg/version/version
index a27f781..7e20366 100644
--- a/pkg/version/version
+++ b/pkg/version/version
@@ -1 +1 @@
-v0.55.1
+v0.55.2