diff --git a/src/frontend/apiserver/backend/convert.go b/src/frontend/apiserver/backend/convert.go
index 997a3c1a..9bff7ea0 100644
--- a/src/frontend/apiserver/backend/convert.go
+++ b/src/frontend/apiserver/backend/convert.go
@@ -17,6 +17,10 @@ static xce_res_reason_t *job_res_reason(xce_job_preason_t *p, int i) { return p-
 // Helper to index into xce_alloc_t** (same CGO limitation as above) -- one
 // host's per-resource allocation list, scanned for the "slots" entry.
 static xce_alloc_t *host_alloc_res(xce_host_alloc_t *h, int i) { return h->allocs[i]; }
+
+// Helpers to index into job_pidinfo_t's pid/pgid arrays (same CGO limitation).
+static unsigned int pidinfo_pid(job_pidinfo_t *p, int i) { return p->pids[i]; }
+static unsigned int pidinfo_pgid(job_pidinfo_t *p, int i) { return p->pgids[i]; }
 */
 import "C"
 
@@ -198,6 +202,22 @@ func cJobToModel(job *C.xce_job_t) *models.JobInfo {
 			}
 		}
 	}
+	// Pidinfo: the worker's start report — pids/pgids plus exdata, whose
+	// {"url": ...} JSON is the interactive session URL (ttyd/XJOB). The
+	// capnp Job wire carries pidinfo (Job.pidinfo@9 / JobPIDInfo.exdata@3)
+	// but the conversion dropped it, so interactive_job_url never reached
+	// the API and xcecli's browser flow could never fire.
+	if job.pidinfo != nil {
+		pi := job.pidinfo
+		p := &rawPidInfo{exdata: goString(pi.exdata)}
+		for i := 0; i < int(pi.npids); i++ {
+			p.pids = append(p.pids, int(C.pidinfo_pid(pi, C.int(i))))
+		}
+		for i := 0; i < int(pi.npgids); i++ {
+			p.pgids = append(p.pgids, int(C.pidinfo_pgid(pi, C.int(i))))
+		}
+		r.pidInfo = p
+	}
 	return rawJobToModel(r)
 }
 
diff --git a/src/frontend/apiserver/backend/convert_pure.go b/src/frontend/apiserver/backend/convert_pure.go
index 1fab2d21..c3d159be 100644
--- a/src/frontend/apiserver/backend/convert_pure.go
+++ b/src/frontend/apiserver/backend/convert_pure.go
@@ -526,6 +526,17 @@ type rawRunUsage struct {
 	peakCPU           float64
 }
 
+// rawPidInfo mirrors the C job_pidinfo_t fields used by the Go model —
+// the worker-reported process bookkeeping a job start carries. Exdata is
+// the worker's start_exdata JSON; for interactive jobs (TTY/XJOB/DISPLAY,
+// xce_job_type in src/include/xce/types.h) the worker packs the session
+// URL into it as {"url": ...} (generate_exdata, xcecd_exdata.c).
+type rawPidInfo struct {
+	pids   []int
+	pgids  []int
+	exdata string
+}
+
 // rawJobData mirrors the C xce_job_t fields used by the Go model.
 type rawJobData struct {
 	jobID      int64
@@ -538,7 +549,8 @@ type rawJobData struct {
 	submit     *rawSubmitData
 	execHosts  []rawHostSlot
 	pendReason *rawPendReason
-	runUsage   *rawRunUsage // nil until the job's first usage report
+	runUsage   *rawRunUsage  // nil until the job's first usage report
+	pidInfo    *rawPidInfo   // nil until the worker's start report
 }
 
 // rawWorkerData mirrors the C xce_worker_t fields used by the Go model.
@@ -574,6 +586,26 @@ type rawResourceData struct {
 	interval int
 }
 
+// interactiveURLFromExdata extracts the interactive session URL from a job
+// start's exdata JSON. The worker packs it as {"url": ...}
+// (generate_exdata, xcecd_exdata.c); anything else — non-JSON, other keys,
+// an empty/non-string url — yields "". The URL reaches the apiserver ONLY
+// via this path: job_pidinfo_t.exdata rides the capnp Job wire (pidinfo@9)
+// but was previously dropped by the conversion, leaving the API's
+// interactive_job_url permanently empty and xcecli's openBrowser flow dead.
+func interactiveURLFromExdata(exdata string) string {
+	if exdata == "" {
+		return ""
+	}
+	var obj struct {
+		URL string `json:"url"`
+	}
+	if err := json.Unmarshal([]byte(exdata), &obj); err != nil {
+		return ""
+	}
+	return obj.URL
+}
+
 // rawJobToModel maps a rawJobData to a models.JobInfo.
 // This pure-Go function contains the field-mapping logic and is tested without CGO.
 func rawJobToModel(r rawJobData) *models.JobInfo {
@@ -676,6 +708,20 @@ func rawJobToModel(r rawJobData) *models.JobInfo {
 		info.AvgCPUEfficiency = u.avgCPUEfficiency
 		info.PeakCPUEfficiency = u.peakCPUEfficiency
 	}
+	if p := r.pidInfo; p != nil {
+		// pid_info is a JSONBJFields entry: processJobData parses the JSONB
+		// string before the row leaves the API, so clients see an object
+		// with pids/pgids. The interactive URL is promoted to its own
+		// top-level field — it is what xcecli's waitForInteractiveURL and
+		// the --browse flow consume.
+		if data, err := json.Marshal(struct {
+			Pids  []int `json:"pids,omitempty"`
+			Pgids []int `json:"pgids,omitempty"`
+		}{Pids: p.pids, Pgids: p.pgids}); err == nil {
+			info.PIDInfo = models.Jsonb{String: string(data)}
+		}
+		info.InteractiveJobURL = interactiveURLFromExdata(p.exdata)
+	}
 	return info
 }
 
diff --git a/src/frontend/apiserver/backend/convert_test.go b/src/frontend/apiserver/backend/convert_test.go
index ac415e86..b10ccc05 100644
--- a/src/frontend/apiserver/backend/convert_test.go
+++ b/src/frontend/apiserver/backend/convert_test.go
@@ -523,6 +523,91 @@ func TestPendReasonName(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+// Interactive URL: a worker start report's exdata {"url": ...} must surface
+// as JobInfo.InteractiveJobURL (the field xcecli's waitForInteractiveURL
+// polls and the --browse flow opens). Before this mapping the capnp wire
+// carried pidinfo.exdata but the conversion dropped it, so the API's
+// interactive_job_url was permanently empty.
+func TestRawJobToModel_InteractiveURLFromPidInfoExdata(t *testing.T) {
+	r := rawJobData{
+		jobID: 11,
+		state: 2, // JOB_STAT_RUN
+		pidInfo: &rawPidInfo{
+			pids:   []int{4321},
+			pgids:  []int{4320},
+			exdata: `{"url": "http://10.0.1.5:7681"}`,
+		},
+	}
+
+	info := rawJobToModel(r)
+
+	if want := "http://10.0.1.5:7681"; info.InteractiveJobURL != want {
+		t.Errorf("InteractiveJobURL: got %q, want %q", info.InteractiveJobURL, want)
+	}
+	var decoded struct {
+		Pids  []int `json:"pids"`
+		Pgids []int `json:"pgids"`
+	}
+	if err := json.Unmarshal([]byte(info.PIDInfo.String), &decoded); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("PIDInfo should be valid JSON, got err: %v", err)
+	}
+	if len(decoded.Pids) != 1 || decoded.Pids[0] != 4321 {
+		t.Errorf("PIDInfo.pids: got %v, want [4321]", decoded.Pids)
+	}
+	if len(decoded.Pgids) != 1 || decoded.Pgids[0] != 4320 {
+		t.Errorf("PIDInfo.pgids: got %v, want [4320]", decoded.Pgids)
+	}
+}
+
+// A normal (non-interactive) job's start report carries no exdata at all:
+// no URL, and an empty pids/pgids payload marshals no keys at all.
+func TestRawJobToModel_NonInteractivePidInfo(t *testing.T) {
+	r := rawJobData{
+		jobID:   12,
+		state:   2,
+		pidInfo: &rawPidInfo{exdata: ""},
+	}
+
+	info := rawJobToModel(r)
+
+	if info.InteractiveJobURL != "" {
+		t.Errorf("InteractiveJobURL: got %q, want empty for a non-interactive job", info.InteractiveJobURL)
+	}
+	if info.PIDInfo.String != "{}" {
+		t.Errorf("PIDInfo: got %q, want {}", info.PIDInfo.String)
+	}
+}
+
+// Malformed exdata must yield "" — never an error path that breaks the
+// whole job row (the exdata is worker-supplied JSON, only the URL key is
+// meaningful here).
+func TestInteractiveURLFromExdata_Malformed(t *testing.T) {
+	cases := []string{
+		"",
+		"not json",
+		`{"other": 1}`,
+		`{"url": 42}`,
+	}
+	for _, ex := range cases {
+		if got := interactiveURLFromExdata(ex); got != "" {
+			t.Errorf("interactiveURLFromExdata(%q): got %q, want empty", ex, got)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+// No pidinfo at all (PEND job, or a start report that predates the exdata
+// plumbing): URL and PIDInfo stay empty.
+func TestRawJobToModel_NilPidInfo(t *testing.T) {
+	info := rawJobToModel(rawJobData{jobID: 13, state: 1})
+
+	if info.InteractiveJobURL != "" {
+		t.Errorf("InteractiveJobURL: got %q, want empty without pidinfo", info.InteractiveJobURL)
+	}
+	if info.PIDInfo.String != "" {
+		t.Errorf("PIDInfo: got %q, want empty without pidinfo", info.PIDInfo.String)
+	}
+}
+
 func TestRawJobToModel_Timestamps(t *testing.T) {
 	r := rawJobData{
 		jobID:      1,
diff --git a/src/frontend/apiserver/models/jobs.go b/src/frontend/apiserver/models/jobs.go
index b06d0451..8b743d78 100644
--- a/src/frontend/apiserver/models/jobs.go
+++ b/src/frontend/apiserver/models/jobs.go
@@ -573,6 +573,13 @@ type JobInfo struct {
 	PendingReason     Jsonb   `json:"pending_reason"` //change type,  JSONB as []byte
 	PIDInfo           Jsonb   `json:"pid_info"`       // JSONB as []byte
 	JobRusage         Jsonb   `json:"job_rusage"`     // JSONB as []byte
+	// InteractiveJobURL is the ttyd/XJOB session URL the worker reported at
+	// job start (job_pidinfo_t.exdata's {"url": ...} JSON, extracted by the
+	// backend conversion). Empty for non-interactive jobs and for jobs whose
+	// start report predates the exdata plumbing. InteractiveJobURL in
+	// JobAdditionalFields (the query-field whitelist) must stay in sync with
+	// this name.
+	InteractiveJobURL string `json:"interactive_job_url"`
 }
 
 type JobExecHosts struct {