diff --git a/backend/alwrity_utils/production_optimizer.py b/backend/alwrity_utils/production_optimizer.py
index 6ea87a2f..5fc3b9a3 100644
--- a/backend/alwrity_utils/production_optimizer.py
+++ b/backend/alwrity_utils/production_optimizer.py
@@ -39,9 +39,10 @@ class ProductionOptimizer:
     def _set_production_env_vars(self) -> None:
         """Set production-specific environment variables."""
         production_vars = {
+            # Note: PORT is NOT set here - it's provided by the deployment platform (e.g., Render)
+            # Don't override PORT as it must come from the environment
             # Note: HOST is not set here - it's auto-detected by start_backend()
             # Based on deployment environment (cloud vs local)
-            'PORT': '8000',
             'RELOAD': 'false',
             'LOG_LEVEL': 'INFO',
             'DEBUG': 'false',
diff --git a/backend/app.py b/backend/app.py
index 88d5a68a..3ee7b05b 100644
--- a/backend/app.py
+++ b/backend/app.py
@@ -14,9 +14,12 @@ from pathlib import Path
 from dotenv import load_dotenv
 backend_dir = Path(__file__).parent
 project_root = backend_dir.parent
-load_dotenv(backend_dir / '.env')
-load_dotenv(project_root / '.env')
-load_dotenv()
+
+# Load .env but DON'T override existing environment variables (especially PORT from Render)
+# Use override=False to preserve Render-provided PORT
+load_dotenv(backend_dir / '.env', override=False)
+load_dotenv(project_root / '.env', override=False)
+load_dotenv(override=False)
 
 # Set LOG_LEVEL early to WARNING to suppress DEBUG persona logs in podcast mode
 import os
diff --git a/backend/services/persona_analysis_service.py b/backend/services/persona_analysis_service.py
index a8082ad8..b6832588 100644
--- a/backend/services/persona_analysis_service.py
+++ b/backend/services/persona_analysis_service.py
@@ -18,9 +18,12 @@ import json
 from services.database import get_db_session
 from models.onboarding import OnboardingSession, WebsiteAnalysis, ResearchPreferences
 from models.persona_models import WritingPersona, PlatformPersona, PersonaAnalysisResult
-from services.persona.core_persona import CorePersonaService, OnboardingDataCollector
-from services.persona.linkedin.linkedin_persona_service import LinkedInPersonaService
-from services.persona.facebook.facebook_persona_service import FacebookPersonaService
+
+def _get_podcast_mode():
+    """Check if running in podcast-only mode to skip heavy initialization."""
+    import os
+    env_val = os.getenv("ALWRITY_ENABLED_FEATURES", "").strip().lower()
+    return env_val == "podcast"
 
 class PersonaAnalysisService:
     """Service for analyzing onboarding data and generating writing personas using Gemini AI."""
@@ -37,12 +40,40 @@ class PersonaAnalysisService:
     def __init__(self):
         """Initialize the persona analysis service (only once)."""
         if not self._initialized:
+            # Skip heavy initialization in podcast-only mode
+            if _get_podcast_mode():
+                logger.debug("PersonaAnalysisService: Skipping heavy init in podcast mode")
+                self._initialized = True
+                return
+            
+            # Only initialize heavy services when needed (not at import time)
+            self._heavy_init_done = False
+    
+    def _ensure_heavy_init(self):
+        """Lazily initialize heavy services only when first used."""
+        if self._heavy_init_done:
+            return
+            
+        # Check again in case mode changed
+        if _get_podcast_mode():
+            logger.debug("PersonaAnalysisService: Skipping heavy init in podcast mode")
+            self._heavy_init_done = True
+            return
+            
+        try:
+            from services.persona.core_persona import CorePersonaService, OnboardingDataCollector
+            from services.persona.linkedin.linkedin_persona_service import LinkedInPersonaService
+            from services.persona.facebook.facebook_persona_service import FacebookPersonaService
+            
             self.core_persona_service = CorePersonaService()
             self.data_collector = OnboardingDataCollector()
             self.linkedin_service = LinkedInPersonaService()
             self.facebook_service = FacebookPersonaService()
-            logger.debug("PersonaAnalysisService initialized")
-            self._initialized = True
+            self._heavy_init_done = True
+            logger.debug("PersonaAnalysisService initialized (lazy)")
+        except Exception as e:
+            logger.warning(f"PersonaAnalysisService: Failed to initialize heavy services: {e}")
+            self._heavy_init_done = True
     
     def generate_persona_from_onboarding(self, user_id: str, onboarding_session_id: int = None) -> Dict[str, Any]:
         """
@@ -55,6 +86,13 @@ class PersonaAnalysisService:
         Returns:
             Generated persona data with platform adaptations
         """
+        # Ensure heavy services are initialized
+        self._ensure_heavy_init()
+        
+        # Check if heavy init failed (podcast mode)
+        if not getattr(self, '_heavy_init_done', False):
+            return {"error": "Persona service unavailable in podcast-only mode"}
+            
         try:
             logger.info(f"Generating persona for user {user_id}")
             
diff --git a/backend/start_alwrity_backend.py b/backend/start_alwrity_backend.py
index 6efae468..97254bcf 100644
--- a/backend/start_alwrity_backend.py
+++ b/backend/start_alwrity_backend.py
@@ -225,11 +225,12 @@ from pathlib import Path
 backend_dir = Path(__file__).parent
 load_dotenv(backend_dir / '.env')
 
-# Debug: Print what PORT is set to
+# Debug: Print what PORT is set to - IMMEDIATELY at startup
 import os
-print(f"[DEBUG] PORT env: {os.getenv('PORT')}")
-print(f"[DEBUG] RENDER env: {os.getenv('RENDER')}")
-print(f"[DEBUG] ALWRITY_ENABLED_FEATURES: {os.getenv('ALWRITY_ENABLED_FEATURES')}")
+print(f"[STARTUP] PORT env: {os.getenv('PORT')}", flush=True)
+print(f"[STARTUP] RENDER env: {os.getenv('RENDER')}", flush=True)
+print(f"[STARTUP] ALWRITY_ENABLED_FEATURES: {os.getenv('ALWRITY_ENABLED_FEATURES')}", flush=True)
+print(f"[STARTUP] HOST env: {os.getenv('HOST')}", flush=True)
 
 if __name__ == "__main__":
     enabled_features = get_enabled_features()