diff --git a/entrypoint.sh b/entrypoint.sh
index 4845aff1..1c9f1382 100644
--- a/entrypoint.sh
+++ b/entrypoint.sh
@@ -69,10 +69,6 @@ chown -R soulsync:soulsync /app/config /app/data /app/logs /app/downloads /app/T
 
 echo "✅ Configuration initialized successfully"
 
-# Auto-update yt-dlp — YouTube changes their API frequently and stale versions break downloads
-echo "🔄 Updating yt-dlp..."
-pip install -U yt-dlp --quiet --no-cache-dir 2>/dev/null && echo "   ✅ yt-dlp updated" || echo "   ⚠️ yt-dlp update failed (will use existing version)"
-
 # Display final user info
 echo "👤 Running as:"
 echo "   User: $(id -u soulsync):$(id -g soulsync) ($(id -un soulsync):$(id -gn soulsync))"
diff --git a/requirements.txt b/requirements.txt
index 92cdcc06..107cfa6b 100644
--- a/requirements.txt
+++ b/requirements.txt
@@ -28,7 +28,12 @@ beautifulsoup4>=4.12.0
 psutil>=6.0.0
 
 # YouTube support
-yt-dlp>=2024.12.13
+# Pinned to an exact version for reproducible builds. The Docker
+# entrypoint used to `pip install -U yt-dlp` on every container start,
+# which made startup non-deterministic and depended on PyPI being
+# reachable. Bump this pin in a SoulSync release when yt-dlp ships a
+# YouTube-fix update — that's the supported upgrade path now.
+yt-dlp==2026.3.17
 
 # Lyrics support
 lrclibapi>=0.3.1
diff --git a/webui/static/helper.js b/webui/static/helper.js
index 8c6553c1..0f3233df 100644
--- a/webui/static/helper.js
+++ b/webui/static/helper.js
@@ -3441,6 +3441,11 @@ function closeHelperSearch() {
 // projects that span multiple commits before shipping. Strip the flag at
 // release time and add a real `date:` line at the top of the version block.
 const WHATS_NEW = {
+    '2.4.1': [
+        // --- post-2.4.0 dev work — entries hidden by _getLatestWhatsNewVersion until the build version bumps ---
+        { date: 'Unreleased — 2.4.1 dev cycle' },
+        { title: 'Faster Docker Startup — yt-dlp Pinned', desc: 'docker startup used to run `pip install -U yt-dlp` on every container start. removed that — yt-dlp is now pinned in requirements.txt so startup is fast and reproducible. tradeoff: youtube fixes ship via soulsync releases now instead of next container restart.', page: 'settings' },
+    ],
     '2.4.0': [
         // --- April 26, 2026 — Search & Artists unification + reorganize queue ---
         { date: 'April 26, 2026 — 2.4.0 release' },