diff --git a/sdks/python-cli/omi_cli/config.py b/sdks/python-cli/omi_cli/config.py
index 02ccd7aef88..3da7fc0fbff 100644
--- a/sdks/python-cli/omi_cli/config.py
+++ b/sdks/python-cli/omi_cli/config.py
@@ -200,6 +200,14 @@ def load(path: Optional[Path] = None) -> Config:
             )
 
     active = data.get("active_profile", DEFAULT_PROFILE_NAME)
+    if not isinstance(active, str):
+        return Config(
+            path=p,
+            active_profile=DEFAULT_PROFILE_NAME,
+            profiles={},
+            load_error=f"'active_profile' must be a string, got {type(active).__name__}",
+        )
+
     profiles_data = data.get("profiles", {})
     
     # Validate that profiles is a table (dict), not a string or other scalar.
diff --git a/sdks/python-cli/tests/test_config.py b/sdks/python-cli/tests/test_config.py
index cd2852a4b77..05ab25d93b7 100644
--- a/sdks/python-cli/tests/test_config.py
+++ b/sdks/python-cli/tests/test_config.py
@@ -415,3 +415,51 @@ def test_no_profiles_section(config_path: Path) -> None:
     config = cfg.load()
     assert not config.was_load_error
     assert config.active_profile == "other"
+
+
+# -- Regression tests for non-string active_profile selector (Issue #13442) --
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize(
+    "invalid_toml,expected_type",
+    [
+        ('active_profile = ["work"]\n', "list"),
+        ("active_profile = 42\n", "int"),
+        ("active_profile = true\n", "bool"),
+        ("[active_profile]\nname = 'work'\n", "dict"),
+    ],
+)
+def test_active_profile_non_string_records_load_error(
+    config_path: Path, invalid_toml: str, expected_type: str
+) -> None:
+    """active_profile must be a string; non-string values should set load_error instead of crashing."""
+    config_path.write_text(invalid_toml, encoding="utf-8")
+    config = cfg.load()
+    assert config.was_load_error
+    assert config.active_profile == cfg.DEFAULT_PROFILE_NAME
+    assert config.profiles == {}
+    assert config.load_error is not None
+    assert f"'active_profile' must be a string, got {expected_type}" in config.load_error
+
+
+def test_active_profile_non_string_refuses_save_overwrite(config_path: Path) -> None:
+    """A config with invalid active_profile type must not be overwritten by save()."""
+    config_path.write_text('active_profile = ["work"]\n[profiles.work]\napi_base = "https://api.omi.me"\n', encoding="utf-8")
+    config = cfg.load()
+    assert config.was_load_error
+
+    with pytest.raises(PermissionError, match="refusing to overwrite"):
+        cfg.save(config)
+
+    # The file on disk is preserved intact
+    assert 'active_profile = ["work"]' in config_path.read_text(encoding="utf-8")
+
+
+def test_active_profile_non_string_diagnostics_succeed(config_path: Path, cli_runner) -> None:
+    """Read-only diagnostics commands must still succeed when active_profile is invalid."""
+    config_path.write_text('active_profile = ["work"]\n', encoding="utf-8")
+    result = cli_runner.invoke(app, ["version"])
+    assert result.exit_code == 0, result.output
+
+    result_path = cli_runner.invoke(app, ["config", "path"])
+    assert result_path.exit_code == 0, result_path.output