diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 09111d1..def64e5 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -128,7 +128,6 @@ services:
       - IMMICH_URL=http://192.168.1.10:2283
       - API_KEY=your-immich-api-key
       - FRIGATE_URL=http://192.168.1.10:5000
-      - AUTO_MODE=true
       - CRON_SCHEDULE=0 3 * * 0   # Every Sunday at 3 AM
     volumes:
       - /path/to/models:/models
@@ -161,7 +160,7 @@ The first run after a fresh install downloads the embedding models (~1-2 GB). Su
 
 | Variable | Default | Description |
 | :--- | :--- | :--- |
-| `AUTO_MODE` | `false` | Run without interactive prompts — required for Docker/cron use |
+| `AUTO_MODE` | *(auto)* | Force non-interactive mode even in a terminal; auto-detected otherwise (no TTY = auto) |
 | `TRAINING_MODE` | `face` | `face` — upload crops to Frigate API; `object` — save crops to disk |
 | `STRATEGY` | `auto` | `auto` (adaptive), `standard` (30 images), `broad` (100 images) |
 | `LIMIT` | *(unset)* | Exact image count — overrides `STRATEGY` |
diff --git a/compose.yml b/compose.yml
index c7bfada..3a4b75b 100644
--- a/compose.yml
+++ b/compose.yml
@@ -9,7 +9,9 @@ services:
       - FRIGATE_URL=${FRIGATE_URL}
 
       # ── Mode & Strategy ───────────────────────────────────────────────────
-      - AUTO_MODE=true
+      # Auto mode is active by default when no TTY is present (Docker/cron).
+      # Run with `docker run -it` or set AUTO_MODE=true to force non-interactive
+      # in a terminal.
       # TRAINING_MODE: face = upload to Frigate face recognition API
       #                object = save crops to output dir for manual Frigate placement
       - TRAINING_MODE=face
@@ -34,7 +36,7 @@ services:
       # - MAX_AUTO_IMAGES=80          # Hard cap on auto-diversity selection (default: 80)
 
       # ── Caching & Models ──────────────────────────────────────────────────
-      - FORCE_CPU=false
+      # - FORCE_CPU=true              # Disable GPU, fall back to CPU
       # - ENABLE_CACHE=false          # Disable embedding cache (default: true)
       - CACHE_DIR=/app/.if_cache
       - HF_HOME=/models/huggingface
@@ -55,8 +57,6 @@ services:
       - /path/to/winnow/models:/models
       - /path/to/winnow/cache:/app/.if_cache
       - /path/to/winnow/output:/app/frigate_train
-    stdin_open: true
-    tty: true
     restart: unless-stopped
     deploy:
       resources:
diff --git a/winnow/cli.py b/winnow/cli.py
index 5da70a4..4ea9fdb 100644
--- a/winnow/cli.py
+++ b/winnow/cli.py
@@ -64,21 +64,18 @@ def main() -> None:
             rprint("[bold red]Could not fetch people from Immich. Check URL/Key.[/bold red]")
             return
 
-        # Check for non-interactive mode; also force auto when stdin has no TTY
-        # (e.g. Docker without -it) to avoid an EOFError crash
-        auto_mode = os.environ.get("AUTO_MODE", "false").lower() == "true" or not sys.stdin.isatty()
+        # Auto mode when no TTY (Docker, cron, pipes) — the primary use case.
+        # A TTY means local interactive use; AUTO_MODE=true overrides that for scripting.
+        auto_mode = not sys.stdin.isatty() or os.environ.get("AUTO_MODE", "").lower() in ("true", "1", "yes")
         dry_run = os.environ.get("DRY_RUN", "false").lower() in ("true", "1", "yes")
 
         if dry_run:
             rprint("[bold yellow]DRY RUN — no images will be downloaded or uploaded[/bold yellow]")
 
         if auto_mode:
-            if not sys.stdin.isatty() and os.environ.get("AUTO_MODE", "false").lower() != "true":
-                rprint("[dim]No TTY detected — running in auto mode. Set AUTO_MODE=true to suppress this.[/dim]")
-            else:
-                rprint("[bold cyan]Running in AUTO mode (non-interactive)[/bold cyan]")
             jobs = auto_configure(people)
         else:
+            rprint("[bold cyan]Interactive mode — set AUTO_MODE=true to skip prompts[/bold cyan]")
             jobs = interactive_configure(people)
 
         if jobs: