diff --git a/alembic/versions/0029_drop_artist_copyright_ml_thresholds.py b/alembic/versions/0029_drop_artist_copyright_ml_thresholds.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e6c044b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/alembic/versions/0029_drop_artist_copyright_ml_thresholds.py
@@ -0,0 +1,71 @@
+"""drop artist + copyright ml thresholds; lower general default to 0.50
+
+Revision ID: 0029
+Revises: 0028
+Create Date: 2026-06-01
+
+Operator-flagged 2026-06-01: the view modal's Suggestions panel hides
+most general-category predictions because the default threshold is
+0.95. Lowering the default to 0.50 (matches character) so general
+suggestions surface more aggressively; the value remains tunable in
+Settings → ML.
+
+Same change retires two ML suggestion categories whose Tag.kind
+surfaces are unused:
+
+- `artist`: retired in FC-2d-vii-c — artist identity is acquisition-
+  derived (image_record.artist_id), never ML-inferred. The threshold
+  column was a leftover from before that retirement.
+- `copyright`: retired 2026-06-01 — the app uses `fandom` for the
+  franchise/copyright concept (per TagsView.vue's doc comment); no
+  Tag rows of kind=copyright exist, and the threshold column never
+  fed anything user-visible.
+
+Both columns are dropped from ml_settings; the existing row's
+suggestion_threshold_general value is bumped from 0.95 to 0.50 iff
+it's still at the old default, so deployed installs pick up the new
+UX without overriding any operator tuning.
+"""
+from typing import Sequence, Union
+
+from alembic import op
+from sqlalchemy import text
+
+revision: str = "0029"
+down_revision: Union[str, None] = "0028"
+branch_labels: Union[str, Sequence[str], None] = None
+depends_on: Union[str, Sequence[str], None] = None
+
+
+def upgrade() -> None:
+    # Bump the general threshold for installs still at the old default.
+    op.execute(text(
+        "UPDATE ml_settings "
+        "SET suggestion_threshold_general = 0.50 "
+        "WHERE id = 1 AND suggestion_threshold_general = 0.95"
+    ))
+    op.drop_column("ml_settings", "suggestion_threshold_artist")
+    op.drop_column("ml_settings", "suggestion_threshold_copyright")
+
+
+def downgrade() -> None:
+    # Restore the columns with their prior defaults. The bump from
+    # 0.95 → 0.50 isn't reversible without remembering whether the
+    # operator had explicitly set 0.95 (unlikely — that was just the
+    # default) so we leave the current general value as-is.
+    from sqlalchemy import Column, Float
+
+    op.add_column(
+        "ml_settings",
+        Column(
+            "suggestion_threshold_artist",
+            Float, nullable=False, server_default="0.30",
+        ),
+    )
+    op.add_column(
+        "ml_settings",
+        Column(
+            "suggestion_threshold_copyright",
+            Float, nullable=False, server_default="0.50",
+        ),
+    )
diff --git a/backend/app/api/ml_admin.py b/backend/app/api/ml_admin.py
index a346175..574e6f5 100644
--- a/backend/app/api/ml_admin.py
+++ b/backend/app/api/ml_admin.py
@@ -9,9 +9,7 @@ ml_admin_bp = Blueprint("ml_admin", __name__, url_prefix="/api/ml")
 
 
 _EDITABLE = (
-    "suggestion_threshold_artist",
     "suggestion_threshold_character",
-    "suggestion_threshold_copyright",
     "suggestion_threshold_general",
     "centroid_similarity_threshold",
     "min_reference_images",
@@ -28,9 +26,7 @@ async def get_settings():
         ).scalar_one()
     return jsonify(
         {
-            "suggestion_threshold_artist": s.suggestion_threshold_artist,
             "suggestion_threshold_character": s.suggestion_threshold_character,
-            "suggestion_threshold_copyright": s.suggestion_threshold_copyright,
             "suggestion_threshold_general": s.suggestion_threshold_general,
             "centroid_similarity_threshold": s.centroid_similarity_threshold,
             "min_reference_images": s.min_reference_images,
diff --git a/backend/app/models/ml_settings.py b/backend/app/models/ml_settings.py
index 5ad33ad..de4e476 100644
--- a/backend/app/models/ml_settings.py
+++ b/backend/app/models/ml_settings.py
@@ -15,17 +15,14 @@ class MLSettings(Base):
     __table_args__ = (CheckConstraint("id = 1", name="singleton"),)
 
     id: Mapped[int] = mapped_column(Integer, primary_key=True)
-    suggestion_threshold_artist: Mapped[float] = mapped_column(
-        Float, nullable=False, default=0.30
-    )
     suggestion_threshold_character: Mapped[float] = mapped_column(
         Float, nullable=False, default=0.50
     )
-    suggestion_threshold_copyright: Mapped[float] = mapped_column(
-        Float, nullable=False, default=0.50
-    )
+    # Default lowered 0.95 → 0.50 on 2026-06-01 — operator-flagged that
+    # 0.95 hid most general suggestions. Operator-tunable via Settings →
+    # ML if too noisy.
     suggestion_threshold_general: Mapped[float] = mapped_column(
-        Float, nullable=False, default=0.95
+        Float, nullable=False, default=0.50
     )
     centroid_similarity_threshold: Mapped[float] = mapped_column(
         Float, nullable=False, default=0.55
diff --git a/backend/app/services/ml/suggestions.py b/backend/app/services/ml/suggestions.py
index 0b8d805..7c71b0d 100644
--- a/backend/app/services/ml/suggestions.py
+++ b/backend/app/services/ml/suggestions.py
@@ -48,11 +48,11 @@ class SuggestionService:
         ).scalar_one()
 
     def _threshold_for(self, s: MLSettings, category: str) -> float:
-        # 'artist' intentionally absent (FC-2d-vii-c) — falls through to
-        # the 1.01 "never surfaces" default like any unsurfaced category.
+        # 'artist' (FC-2d-vii-c) and 'copyright' (2026-06-01) retired;
+        # both fall through to the 1.01 "never surfaces" default like any
+        # unsurfaced category.
         return {
             "character": s.suggestion_threshold_character,
-            "copyright": s.suggestion_threshold_copyright,
             "general": s.suggestion_threshold_general,
         }.get(category, 1.01)
 
diff --git a/backend/app/services/ml/tagger.py b/backend/app/services/ml/tagger.py
index 5277b44..ddf17b9 100644
--- a/backend/app/services/ml/tagger.py
+++ b/backend/app/services/ml/tagger.py
@@ -38,10 +38,13 @@ STORE_FLOOR = float(os.environ.get("TAGGER_STORE_FLOOR", "0.05"))
 
 # The categories FC-2b surfaces in the UI. Others (meta/rating/year) are
 # still stored but the suggestion service filters them out.
-# FC-2d-vii-c: 'artist' retired — artist identity is acquisition-derived
-# (image_record.artist_id), never ML-inferred. Raw predictions are still
-# stored at STORE_FLOOR but artist never surfaces.
-SURFACED_CATEGORIES = {"character", "copyright", "general"}
+# 'artist' retired in FC-2d-vii-c — artist identity is acquisition-derived
+# (image_record.artist_id), never ML-inferred. 'copyright' retired
+# 2026-06-01 — operator doesn't use the copyright tag-kind; fandom is
+# this app's franchise/series concept (per TagsView.vue's doc comment).
+# Raw predictions for both categories still get stored at STORE_FLOOR but
+# don't surface in suggestions.
+SURFACED_CATEGORIES = {"character", "general"}
 
 # ImageNet preprocessing constants (per Camie v2 onnx_inference.py).
 _IMAGENET_MEAN = np.array([0.485, 0.456, 0.406], dtype=np.float32)
diff --git a/frontend/src/components/modal/AliasPickerDialog.vue b/frontend/src/components/modal/AliasPickerDialog.vue
index 2552d31..37fae6f 100644
--- a/frontend/src/components/modal/AliasPickerDialog.vue
+++ b/frontend/src/components/modal/AliasPickerDialog.vue
@@ -48,10 +48,11 @@ function onSearch(q) {
     if (!query) { results.value = []; return }
     loading.value = true
     try {
-      // Scope the autocomplete to the prediction's category where it maps
-      // to a tag kind. 'copyright' has no tag kind; search unscoped there.
-      const kind = ['artist', 'character'].includes(props.category)
-        ? props.category : null
+      // Scope the autocomplete to the prediction's category where it
+      // maps to a tag kind. Only 'character' surfaces as both a
+      // suggestion category and a tag kind now ('artist' + 'copyright'
+      // retired); other categories search unscoped.
+      const kind = props.category === 'character' ? 'character' : null
       const params = { q: query, limit: 20 }
       if (kind) params.kind = kind
       results.value = await api.get('/api/tags/autocomplete', { params })
diff --git a/frontend/src/components/modal/SuggestionsPanel.vue b/frontend/src/components/modal/SuggestionsPanel.vue
index 0ca5cea..68e8040 100644
--- a/frontend/src/components/modal/SuggestionsPanel.vue
+++ b/frontend/src/components/modal/SuggestionsPanel.vue
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@
       <SuggestionsCategoryGroup
         v-if="store.byCategory.general && store.byCategory.general.length"
         label="General" :items="store.byCategory.general"
-        collapsible :default-open="false"
+        collapsible :default-open="true"
         @accept="onAccept" @alias="onAlias" @dismiss="store.dismiss"
       />
     </template>
@@ -47,7 +47,10 @@ import AliasPickerDialog from './AliasPickerDialog.vue'
 const props = defineProps({ imageId: { type: Number, required: true } })
 const store = useSuggestionsStore()
 
-const peopleCats = ['artist', 'character', 'copyright']
+// 'artist' (FC-2d-vii-c) and 'copyright' (2026-06-01) retired as
+// suggestion categories. Only 'character' remains as a people-style
+// category alongside the general bucket.
+const peopleCats = ['character']
 function labelFor(c) { return CATEGORY_LABELS[c] || c }
 
 const isEmpty = computed(() =>
diff --git a/frontend/src/components/modal/TagAutocomplete.vue b/frontend/src/components/modal/TagAutocomplete.vue
index e074488..9767af2 100644
--- a/frontend/src/components/modal/TagAutocomplete.vue
+++ b/frontend/src/components/modal/TagAutocomplete.vue
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 <template>
   <div class="fc-tag-autocomplete">
     <v-text-field
+      ref="inputRef"
       v-model="query"
       placeholder="Add tag (or kind:name — character/fandom/series)"
       density="compact" hide-details
@@ -52,13 +53,21 @@
 </template>
 
 <script setup>
-import { computed, ref, watch } from 'vue'
+import { computed, nextTick, onMounted, ref, watch } from 'vue'
 import { useTagStore } from '../../stores/tags.js'
 import FandomPicker from './FandomPicker.vue'
 
 const emit = defineEmits(['pick-existing', 'pick-new', 'cancel'])
 const store = useTagStore()
 
+// Autofocus on modal open so the operator can type the moment the view
+// modal renders, no extra click required (operator-asked 2026-06-01).
+// Vuetify's v-text-field exposes .focus() on the component instance;
+// nextTick waits for the modal's mount to finish so the inner <input>
+// element exists.
+const inputRef = ref(null)
+onMounted(() => { nextTick(() => inputRef.value?.focus?.()) })
+
 // Single text input; no kind dropdown. Client-side mirror of the
 // backend's parse_kind_prefix lives below — kept in sync with
 // KNOWN_KINDS in backend/app/utils/tag_prefix.py. The backend is the
diff --git a/frontend/src/components/settings/MLThresholdSliders.vue b/frontend/src/components/settings/MLThresholdSliders.vue
index 8919e3b..70f9a37 100644
--- a/frontend/src/components/settings/MLThresholdSliders.vue
+++ b/frontend/src/components/settings/MLThresholdSliders.vue
@@ -22,10 +22,10 @@ import { reactive, watch } from 'vue'
 import { useMLStore } from '../../stores/ml.js'
 
 const store = useMLStore()
+// 'artist' (FC-2d-vii-c) and 'copyright' (2026-06-01) retired as
+// suggestion categories; their threshold rows are gone.
 const fields = [
-  { key: 'suggestion_threshold_artist', label: 'Artist' },
   { key: 'suggestion_threshold_character', label: 'Character' },
-  { key: 'suggestion_threshold_copyright', label: 'Copyright' },
   { key: 'suggestion_threshold_general', label: 'General' },
   { key: 'centroid_similarity_threshold', label: 'Centroid similarity' }
 ]
diff --git a/frontend/src/stores/suggestions.js b/frontend/src/stores/suggestions.js
index 124bee3..574175c 100644
--- a/frontend/src/stores/suggestions.js
+++ b/frontend/src/stores/suggestions.js
@@ -4,12 +4,12 @@ import { ref } from 'vue'
 import { useApi } from '../composables/useApi.js'
 import { useAsyncAction } from '../composables/useAsyncAction.js'
 
-// Category display order: people/sources first, general last.
-export const CATEGORY_ORDER = ['artist', 'character', 'copyright', 'general']
+// Category display order: people first, general last.
+// 'artist' (FC-2d-vii-c) and 'copyright' (2026-06-01) retired — only
+// character and general surface as suggestion categories now.
+export const CATEGORY_ORDER = ['character', 'general']
 export const CATEGORY_LABELS = {
-  artist: 'Artist',
   character: 'Character',
-  copyright: 'Copyright',
   general: 'General'
 }
 
diff --git a/tests/test_api_ml_admin.py b/tests/test_api_ml_admin.py
index d026e5e..547e78e 100644
--- a/tests/test_api_ml_admin.py
+++ b/tests/test_api_ml_admin.py
@@ -19,7 +19,12 @@ async def test_get_and_patch_settings(client):
     resp = await client.get("/api/ml/settings")
     assert resp.status_code == 200
     body = await resp.get_json()
-    assert body["suggestion_threshold_general"] == pytest.approx(0.95)
+    # Default lowered 0.95 → 0.50 on 2026-06-01 (alembic 0029) — 0.95
+    # hid most general suggestions in the view modal.
+    assert body["suggestion_threshold_general"] == pytest.approx(0.50)
+    # Retired threshold columns must not appear in the payload.
+    assert "suggestion_threshold_artist" not in body
+    assert "suggestion_threshold_copyright" not in body
 
     resp = await client.patch(
         "/api/ml/settings", json={"suggestion_threshold_general": 0.90}
diff --git a/tests/test_ml_artist_retired.py b/tests/test_ml_artist_retired.py
index 3bac405..955583a 100644
--- a/tests/test_ml_artist_retired.py
+++ b/tests/test_ml_artist_retired.py
@@ -19,9 +19,9 @@ def test_threshold_for_artist_is_unsurfaced():
 
     class _S:
         suggestion_threshold_character = 0.5
-        suggestion_threshold_copyright = 0.5
         suggestion_threshold_general = 0.5
 
     svc = SuggestionService.__new__(SuggestionService)
-    # 'artist' must fall through to the 1.01 "never surfaces" default
+    # 'artist' and 'copyright' both retired — fall through to 1.01
     assert svc._threshold_for(_S(), "artist") == 1.01
+    assert svc._threshold_for(_S(), "copyright") == 1.01
diff --git a/tests/test_ml_tagger.py b/tests/test_ml_tagger.py
index 17c449c..c36c64a 100644
--- a/tests/test_ml_tagger.py
+++ b/tests/test_ml_tagger.py
@@ -17,10 +17,13 @@ from backend.app.services.ml.tagger import (
 
 
 def test_surfaced_categories():
-    # FC-2d-vii-c: 'artist' retired — artist identity is acquisition-derived
-    # (image_record.artist_id), never ML-inferred.
-    assert SURFACED_CATEGORIES == {"character", "copyright", "general"}
+    # FC-2d-vii-c: 'artist' retired — artist identity is acquisition-
+    # derived (image_record.artist_id), never ML-inferred.
+    # 2026-06-01: 'copyright' retired — fandom serves as the franchise/
+    # copyright concept; operator doesn't use a separate copyright kind.
+    assert SURFACED_CATEGORIES == {"character", "general"}
     assert "artist" not in SURFACED_CATEGORIES
+    assert "copyright" not in SURFACED_CATEGORIES
 
 
 def test_store_floor_is_low():