diff --git a/apps/api/src/app.test.ts b/apps/api/src/app.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..cbd4c9d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/apps/api/src/app.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,65 @@
+jest.mock('puppeteer-extra', () => ({
+  use: jest.fn(),
+  launch: jest.fn(),
+}));
+
+jest.mock('puppeteer-extra-plugin-stealth', () => () => ({}));
+
+jest.mock('puppeteer-extra-plugin-adblocker', () => () => ({}));
+
+jest.mock('puppeteer', () => ({
+  DEFAULT_INTERCEPT_RESOLUTION_PRIORITY: 0,
+}));
+
+jest.mock('./config/db', () => ({
+  isDbConnected: jest.fn(() => false),
+}));
+
+jest.mock('./config/logger', () => ({
+  __esModule: true,
+  default: {
+    info: jest.fn(),
+    warn: jest.fn(),
+    error: jest.fn(),
+  },
+  setupErrorHandlers: jest.fn(),
+}));
+
+jest.mock('./client/Instagram', () => ({
+  getIgClient: jest.fn(),
+  closeIgClient: jest.fn(),
+  scrapeFollowersHandler: jest.fn(),
+  getIgClientStatus: jest.fn(() => ({ connected: false })),
+  getIgClientsSnapshot: jest.fn(() => ({})),
+}));
+
+jest.mock('./services/actionLog', () => ({
+  logAction: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue(undefined),
+  getActionSummary: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue({}),
+  listActionLogs: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue([]),
+}));
+
+jest.mock('./services/metrics', () => ({
+  metricsMiddleware: jest.fn((_req, _res, next) => next()),
+  getMetrics: jest.fn(() => ({
+    uptime: 120,
+    uptimeFormatted: '2m 0s',
+    requests: 0,
+  })),
+}));
+
+jest.mock('./config/accounts', () => ({
+  getAccount: jest.fn(),
+  getAccountsMap: jest.fn(() => ({})),
+}));
+
+import request from 'supertest';
+import app from './app';
+
+describe('Root App Routes', () => {
+  test('GET /hello returns { ok: true }', async () => {
+    const res = await request(app).get('/hello');
+    expect(res.status).toBe(200);
+    expect(res.body).toEqual({ ok: true });
+  });
+});
diff --git a/apps/api/src/app.ts b/apps/api/src/app.ts
index 958beb1..3445fc7 100644
--- a/apps/api/src/app.ts
+++ b/apps/api/src/app.ts
@@ -58,6 +58,11 @@ app.use(express.static('frontend/dist'));
 // API Routes
 app.use('/api', apiRoutes);
 
+// Hello world test endpoint for bot detection verification
+app.get('/hello', (_req, res) => {
+  res.status(200).json({ ok: true });
+});
+
 // Admin dashboard
 app.get('/dashboard', (_req, res) => {
   res.type('html').send(dashboardHtml);
diff --git a/apps/api/src/routes/api.test.ts b/apps/api/src/routes/api.test.ts
index 68a2e30..ac172c9 100644
--- a/apps/api/src/routes/api.test.ts
+++ b/apps/api/src/routes/api.test.ts
@@ -55,6 +55,12 @@ app.use('/api', apiRoutes);
 
 describe('API routes', () => {
   describe('public endpoints', () => {
+    test('GET /api/hello returns { ok: true }', async () => {
+      const res = await request(app).get('/api/hello');
+      expect(res.status).toBe(200);
+      expect(res.body).toEqual({ ok: true });
+    });
+
     test('GET /api/ping returns pong', async () => {
       const res = await request(app).get('/api/ping');
       expect(res.status).toBe(200);
diff --git a/apps/api/src/routes/api.ts b/apps/api/src/routes/api.ts
index ff9f3f2..17ec3c6 100644
--- a/apps/api/src/routes/api.ts
+++ b/apps/api/src/routes/api.ts
@@ -70,6 +70,12 @@ router.use(generalLimiter);
 // API Documentation endpoint - lists all available endpoints
 const apiEndpoints = [
   // Public endpoints
+  {
+    method: 'GET',
+    path: '/api/hello',
+    auth: false,
+    description: 'Hello world test endpoint for bot detection verification (returns { ok: true })',
+  },
   {
     method: 'GET',
     path: '/api/ping',
@@ -268,6 +274,11 @@ const apiEndpoints = [
 // Track server start time for uptime calculation
 const serverStartTime = Date.now();
 
+// Hello world test endpoint for bot detection verification
+router.get('/hello', (_req: Request, res: Response) => {
+  return res.json({ ok: true });
+});
+
 // Simple ping endpoint for load balancers and uptime monitors
 router.get('/ping', (_req: Request, res: Response) => {
   return res.send('pong');