diff --git a/AGENTS.md b/AGENTS.md
index 92c1d2d..0cbc58a 100644
--- a/AGENTS.md
+++ b/AGENTS.md
@@ -791,11 +791,23 @@ session with **no other memory of this project**. So:
     (commit `68c12a2`); do NOT re-add Firebase/google-services. Web push
     (VAPID) is live and unaffected. For the APK the only no-Google options are:
     **(a) UnifiedPush** (FOSS distributor the user installs — e.g. ntfy /
-    NextPush; the app registers with the distributor, no Google) or **(b) a
-    foreground service** keeping the relay WebSocket alive (no server, but a
-    sticky notification + battery + custom native code). Both are unbuilt; pick
-    one before attempting native closed-app notifications. (Approach + tradeoffs
-    came from the Numo/Linky/BTCPay review this session.)
+    NextPush) or **(b) a native background poll** of our own service. **Chosen:
+    (b), the Cordn pattern** — Cordn (`Cordn-msg/cordn-web`, package
+    `cordn-background`) does **native background polling** via a custom Capacitor
+    plugin (Kotlin + Rust/UniFFI) with a `standard` (WorkManager ~15 min) and a
+    `fast` (foreground service ~5 min) mode, polling its **ContextVM** coordinator
+    and posting local notifications — **no Google**. We need **less**: our
+    notifications are already content-free, so no Rust/decrypt is needed.
+    **Server side DONE + verified (2026-10-01):** `push-service` has
+    `/native/poll/register` (NIP-98 → poll token; the pubkey is added to the relay
+    watch), `GET /pending?token&since` → `{ seq, at, changed }` (a content-free
+    cursor), and `/native/poll/unregister`; `pushTo()` calls `recordActivity()`.
+    **STILL TODO:** the native `skatespots-background` Capacitor plugin (Kotlin
+    WorkManager + foreground service + local notifications + battery-exemption
+    prompt) — unbuilt, needs a device to verify.
+    ⚠️ **Android `standard` mode is best-effort** (Doze/OEM battery managers
+    defer it); `fast` needs a sticky notification. Never the only path. (Approach
+    + tradeoffs came from the Numo/Linky/BTCPay/Cordn review this session.)
 - **Cordn coordinator support (client-side, 2026-09-29):** Cordn is an **MLS
   delivery coordinator** exposed as a **ContextVM server** over Nostr relays
   (E2EE; it sees ciphertext + *metadata* — who/when/which group). SkateSpots is
diff --git a/push-service/README.md b/push-service/README.md
index c9c6a51..3cc63a0 100644
--- a/push-service/README.md
+++ b/push-service/README.md
@@ -80,6 +80,29 @@ Caddy — copy `Caddyfile` to `/etc/caddy/Caddyfile` and reload once.
 
 Logs: `npm run deploy:push -- --logs`.
 
+## Native background polling (no Google) — the Cordn pattern
+
+For the Android **APK** (a Capacitor WebView has **no Web Push**), the service
+supports a **content-free activity cursor** the app polls from a native background
+worker — no Google, no distributor app.
+
+| Method | Path | Body | Returns |
+| --- | --- | --- | --- |
+| POST | `/native/poll/register` | `{ pubkey, proof }` | `{ token, seq }` |
+| GET | `/pending?token=&since=` | — | `{ seq, at, changed }` |
+| POST | `/native/poll/unregister` | `{ token, proof }` | `{ ok }` |
+
+- `register` is guarded by the same NIP-98 challenge proof; it returns an
+  **unguessable poll token**. The server then **watches the relays for that
+  pubkey** (added to the market subscription) and bumps a per-pubkey `seq` every
+  time something arrives — **the same content-free signal as web push**.
+- `/pending` returns only `{ seq, at, changed }` — never *what* arrived. A native
+  worker polls it (`standard` = WorkManager ~15 min, `fast` = foreground service
+  ~5 min), and when `seq > since` it shows a **local notification** and advances
+  its cursor.
+- **No decryption, no keys, no Google** on the server. Cordn does the same thing
+  with an extra Rust/MLS layer because they decrypt previews; we don't need to.
+
 ## Privacy
 
 The service is **opt-in per device**. It stores a pubkey ↔ push-endpoint map and
diff --git a/push-service/server.ts b/push-service/server.ts
index a42b2ab..ecaa715 100644
--- a/push-service/server.ts
+++ b/push-service/server.ts
@@ -60,15 +60,28 @@ webpush.setVapidDetails(vapidSubject, vapidPublic, vapidPrivate);
 interface StoredSubscription { endpoint: string; pubkey: string; p256dh: string; auth: string }
 interface State {
   subscriptions: Record<string, StoredSubscription>; // endpoint → sub
+  /** Poll token → the pubkey it may read activity for (native background polling). */
+  pollTokens: Record<string, { pubkey: string; createdAt: number }>;
+  /**
+   * Per-pubkey activity cursor, bumped whenever something arrives for a pubkey,
+   * so a native poller can ask "anything new since N?" WITHOUT the server ever
+   * revealing *what* (content-free — the same guarantee as web push).
+   */
+  activity: Record<string, { seq: number; at: number }>;
   challenges: Record<string, { pubkey: string; expiresAt: number }>;
 }
 
 function load(): State {
   try {
     const parsed = JSON.parse(readFileSync(STORAGE_PATH, 'utf8')) as Partial<State>;
-    return { subscriptions: parsed.subscriptions ?? {}, challenges: parsed.challenges ?? {} };
+    return {
+      subscriptions: parsed.subscriptions ?? {},
+      pollTokens: parsed.pollTokens ?? {},
+      activity: parsed.activity ?? {},
+      challenges: parsed.challenges ?? {},
+    };
   } catch {
-    return { subscriptions: {}, challenges: {} };
+    return { subscriptions: {}, pollTokens: {}, activity: {}, challenges: {} };
   }
 }
 const state = load();
@@ -113,7 +126,15 @@ function subsFor(pubkey: string): StoredSubscription[] {
   return Object.values(state.subscriptions).filter((s) => s.pubkey === pubkey);
 }
 
+/** Bump the content-free activity cursor for a pubkey (native pollers read it). */
+function recordActivity(pubkey: string): void {
+  const cur = state.activity[pubkey];
+  state.activity[pubkey] = { seq: (cur?.seq ?? 0) + 1, at: Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000) };
+  save();
+}
+
 async function pushTo(pubkey: string, payload: Record<string, unknown>): Promise<void> {
+  recordActivity(pubkey);
   for (const s of subsFor(pubkey)) {
     try {
       await webpush.sendNotification(
@@ -146,7 +167,10 @@ const SHIPMENT_STATUS_KIND = 34967; // shipped / received / issue (self-reported
 const MARKET_KINDS = [OFFER_KIND, TRADE_CONFIRM_KIND, TRADE_REQUEST_KIND, SHIPMENT_STATUS_KIND];
 
 function subscribedPubkeys(): string[] {
-  return [...new Set(Object.values(state.subscriptions).map((s) => s.pubkey))];
+  // Web subscribers AND native poll-token holders — we watch for both.
+  const web = Object.values(state.subscriptions).map((s) => s.pubkey);
+  const poll = Object.values(state.pollTokens).map((t) => t.pubkey);
+  return [...new Set([...web, ...poll])];
 }
 
 /** Content-free body — no amounts, no item text (that stays out of the push). */
@@ -339,6 +363,52 @@ Bun.serve({
       return json({ ok: true }, 200, headers);
     }
 
+    // ── Native background polling (no Google) ─────────────────────────────
+    // The device registers once (NIP-98 proof) and receives an unguessable poll
+    // token; it then polls `/pending` and shows a LOCAL notification when the
+    // content-free activity cursor moves. The server never reveals what arrived.
+    if (req.method === 'POST' && url.pathname === '/native/poll/register') {
+      const body = (await req.json().catch(() => null)) as { pubkey?: string; proof?: NostrEvent } | null;
+      if (!body?.pubkey || !body?.proof) return json({ error: 'pubkey and proof required' }, 400, headers);
+      const check = verifyProof(body.proof, body.pubkey);
+      if (!check.ok) return json({ error: check.error }, 401, headers);
+      const token = crypto.randomUUID();
+      state.pollTokens[token] = {
+        pubkey: body.pubkey.toLowerCase(),
+        createdAt: Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000),
+      };
+      save();
+      refreshMarketSubscription();
+      console.log(`[push] 🔁 poll token for ${body.pubkey.slice(0, 12)}…`);
+      return json({ token, seq: state.activity[body.pubkey.toLowerCase()]?.seq ?? 0 }, 200, headers);
+    }
+
+    if (req.method === 'POST' && url.pathname === '/native/poll/unregister') {
+      const body = (await req.json().catch(() => null)) as { token?: string; proof?: NostrEvent } | null;
+      if (!body?.token || !body?.proof) return json({ error: 'token and proof required' }, 400, headers);
+      const entry = state.pollTokens[body.token];
+      if (!entry) return json({ ok: true }, 200, headers);
+      const check = verifyProof(body.proof, entry.pubkey);
+      if (!check.ok) return json({ error: check.error }, 401, headers);
+      delete state.pollTokens[body.token];
+      save();
+      refreshMarketSubscription();
+      return json({ ok: true }, 200, headers);
+    }
+
+    if (req.method === 'GET' && url.pathname === '/pending') {
+      const token = url.searchParams.get('token') ?? '';
+      const entry = state.pollTokens[token];
+      if (!entry) return json({ error: 'unknown token' }, 401, headers);
+      const since = Number(url.searchParams.get('since') ?? 0);
+      const activity = state.activity[entry.pubkey] ?? { seq: 0, at: 0 };
+      return json(
+        { seq: activity.seq, at: activity.at, changed: activity.seq > (Number.isFinite(since) ? since : 0) },
+        200,
+        headers,
+      );
+    }
+
     return json({ error: 'not found' }, 404, headers);
   },
 });