diff --git a/watch/wearos/app/build.gradle.kts b/watch/wearos/app/build.gradle.kts
index 935dea2..e3514d3 100644
--- a/watch/wearos/app/build.gradle.kts
+++ b/watch/wearos/app/build.gradle.kts
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+import java.util.Properties
+
 plugins {
     alias(libs.plugins.android.application)
     alias(libs.plugins.kotlin.compose)
@@ -18,6 +20,22 @@ android {
         versionCode = 1
         versionName = "1.0"
 
+        testInstrumentationRunner = "androidx.test.runner.AndroidJUnitRunner"
+
+        // Build-time config sourced from local.properties (gitignored).
+        // Falls back to emulator loopback + sentinel key if absent.
+        val localProps = Properties().apply {
+            rootProject.file("local.properties").takeIf { it.exists() }
+                ?.inputStream()?.use { load(it) }
+        }
+        buildConfigField(
+            "String", "SERVER_URL",
+            "\"${localProps.getProperty("doctate.serverUrl", "http://10.0.2.2:3000")}\""
+        )
+        buildConfigField(
+            "String", "API_KEY",
+            "\"${localProps.getProperty("doctate.apiKey", "MISSING_API_KEY")}\""
+        )
     }
 
     buildTypes {
@@ -36,6 +54,7 @@ android {
     useLibrary("wear-sdk")
     buildFeatures {
         compose = true
+        buildConfig = true
     }
 }
 
@@ -55,4 +74,20 @@ dependencies {
     androidTestImplementation(libs.ui.test.junit4)
     debugImplementation(libs.ui.test.manifest)
     debugImplementation(libs.ui.tooling)
+
+    implementation(libs.kotlinx.coroutines.android)
+    implementation(libs.lifecycle.viewmodel.compose)
+    implementation(libs.lifecycle.runtime.compose)
+    implementation(libs.okhttp)
+
+    testImplementation(libs.junit)
+    testImplementation(libs.kotlinx.coroutines.test)
+    testImplementation(libs.okhttp.mockwebserver)
+    testImplementation(libs.truth)
+
+    androidTestImplementation(libs.androidx.test.runner)
+    androidTestImplementation(libs.androidx.test.ext.junit)
+    androidTestImplementation(libs.okhttp.mockwebserver)
+    androidTestImplementation(libs.truth)
+    androidTestImplementation(libs.kotlinx.coroutines.test)
 }
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/watch/wearos/app/src/androidTest/assets/sample.m4a b/watch/wearos/app/src/androidTest/assets/sample.m4a
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f1deb50
Binary files /dev/null and b/watch/wearos/app/src/androidTest/assets/sample.m4a differ
diff --git a/watch/wearos/app/src/androidTest/java/com/doctate/watch/net/UploadClientTest.kt b/watch/wearos/app/src/androidTest/java/com/doctate/watch/net/UploadClientTest.kt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4895442
--- /dev/null
+++ b/watch/wearos/app/src/androidTest/java/com/doctate/watch/net/UploadClientTest.kt
@@ -0,0 +1,91 @@
+package com.doctate.watch.net
+
+import androidx.test.ext.junit.runners.AndroidJUnit4
+import androidx.test.platform.app.InstrumentationRegistry
+import com.doctate.watch.settings.Settings
+import com.google.common.truth.Truth.assertThat
+import kotlinx.coroutines.test.runTest
+import okhttp3.OkHttpClient
+import okhttp3.mockwebserver.MockResponse
+import okhttp3.mockwebserver.MockWebServer
+import org.junit.After
+import org.junit.Before
+import org.junit.Test
+import org.junit.runner.RunWith
+import java.io.File
+
+@RunWith(AndroidJUnit4::class)
+class UploadClientTest {
+    private lateinit var server: MockWebServer
+    private lateinit var client: UploadClient
+    private lateinit var audioFile: File
+
+    @Before fun setUp() {
+        server = MockWebServer().apply { start() }
+        val settings = object : Settings {
+            override val serverUrl = server.url("/").toString().trimEnd('/')
+            override val apiKey = "key-dr_test"
+        }
+        client = UploadClient(OkHttpClient(), settings)
+        audioFile = copyAssetToTempFile("sample.m4a")
+    }
+
+    @After fun tearDown() {
+        server.shutdown()
+        audioFile.delete()
+    }
+
+    @Test fun upload_sends_correct_multipart_and_returns_success_on_200() = runTest {
+        server.enqueue(
+            MockResponse().setResponseCode(200).setBody(
+                """{"case_id":"550e8400-e29b-41d4-a716-446655440000","recorded_at":"2026-04-23T10:30:00Z","status":"received"}"""
+            )
+        )
+
+        val result = client.upload(
+            caseId = "550e8400-e29b-41d4-a716-446655440000",
+            recordedAt = "2026-04-23T10:30:00Z",
+            audio = audioFile,
+        )
+
+        val req = server.takeRequest()
+        assertThat(req.method).isEqualTo("POST")
+        assertThat(req.path).isEqualTo("/api/upload")
+        assertThat(req.getHeader("X-API-Key")).isEqualTo("key-dr_test")
+        val body = req.body.readUtf8()
+        assertThat(body).contains("name=\"case_id\"")
+        assertThat(body).contains("550e8400-e29b-41d4-a716-446655440000")
+        assertThat(body).contains("name=\"recorded_at\"")
+        assertThat(body).contains("2026-04-23T10:30:00Z")
+        assertThat(body).contains("name=\"audio\"")
+        assertThat(body).contains("Content-Type: audio/mp4")
+        assertThat(result).isInstanceOf(UploadResult.Success::class.java)
+    }
+
+    @Test fun upload_classifies_5xx_as_transient() = runTest {
+        server.enqueue(MockResponse().setResponseCode(500).setBody("oh no"))
+        val result = client.upload("uuid", "2026-04-23T10:30:00Z", audioFile)
+        assertThat(result).isInstanceOf(UploadResult.Transient::class.java)
+    }
+
+    @Test fun upload_classifies_401_as_terminal() = runTest {
+        server.enqueue(MockResponse().setResponseCode(401).setBody("nope"))
+        val result = client.upload("uuid", "2026-04-23T10:30:00Z", audioFile)
+        assertThat(result).isInstanceOf(UploadResult.Terminal::class.java)
+    }
+
+    @Test fun upload_classifies_io_error_as_transient() = runTest {
+        server.shutdown()
+        val result = client.upload("uuid", "2026-04-23T10:30:00Z", audioFile)
+        assertThat(result).isInstanceOf(UploadResult.Transient::class.java)
+    }
+
+    private fun copyAssetToTempFile(assetName: String): File {
+        val ctx = InstrumentationRegistry.getInstrumentation().context
+        val tmp = File.createTempFile("upload-test-", ".m4a", ctx.cacheDir)
+        ctx.assets.open(assetName).use { input ->
+            tmp.outputStream().use { output -> input.copyTo(output) }
+        }
+        return tmp
+    }
+}
diff --git a/watch/wearos/app/src/main/AndroidManifest.xml b/watch/wearos/app/src/main/AndroidManifest.xml
index cc372df..bacb0db 100644
--- a/watch/wearos/app/src/main/AndroidManifest.xml
+++ b/watch/wearos/app/src/main/AndroidManifest.xml
@@ -2,13 +2,18 @@
 <manifest xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android">
 
     <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.WAKE_LOCK" />
+    <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.INTERNET" />
+    <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.RECORD_AUDIO" />
 
     <uses-feature android:name="android.hardware.type.watch" />
+    <uses-feature android:name="android.hardware.microphone" android:required="true" />
 
     <application
+        android:name=".DoctateApp"
         android:allowBackup="true"
         android:icon="@mipmap/ic_launcher"
         android:label="@string/app_name"
+        android:networkSecurityConfig="@xml/network_security_config"
         android:supportsRtl="true"
         android:theme="@android:style/Theme.DeviceDefault">
         <uses-library
diff --git a/watch/wearos/app/src/main/java/com/doctate/watch/DoctateApp.kt b/watch/wearos/app/src/main/java/com/doctate/watch/DoctateApp.kt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1408b1a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/watch/wearos/app/src/main/java/com/doctate/watch/DoctateApp.kt
@@ -0,0 +1,18 @@
+package com.doctate.watch
+
+import android.app.Application
+import com.doctate.watch.net.HttpClientProvider
+import com.doctate.watch.net.UploadClient
+import com.doctate.watch.settings.BuildConfigSettings
+import com.doctate.watch.settings.Settings
+import okhttp3.OkHttpClient
+
+/**
+ * Application-level service locator. Singletons are exposed via lazy properties so
+ * consumers (ViewModelFactories, etc.) pull them through `(applicationContext as DoctateApp)`.
+ */
+class DoctateApp : Application() {
+    val settings: Settings by lazy { BuildConfigSettings() }
+    val httpClient: OkHttpClient by lazy { HttpClientProvider.create() }
+    val uploadClient: UploadClient by lazy { UploadClient(httpClient, settings) }
+}
diff --git a/watch/wearos/app/src/main/java/com/doctate/watch/domain/CaseId.kt b/watch/wearos/app/src/main/java/com/doctate/watch/domain/CaseId.kt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..33c955f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/watch/wearos/app/src/main/java/com/doctate/watch/domain/CaseId.kt
@@ -0,0 +1,13 @@
+package com.doctate.watch.domain
+
+import java.util.UUID
+
+/**
+ * Each recording session generates a fresh case id. The server treats every unknown
+ * UUID as a new case directory (server/src/routes/upload.rs:71). Reusing a case id
+ * across recordings (e.g. caching) would silently merge unrelated dictations into
+ * one case.
+ */
+object CaseId {
+    fun new(): String = UUID.randomUUID().toString()
+}
diff --git a/watch/wearos/app/src/main/java/com/doctate/watch/net/HttpClientProvider.kt b/watch/wearos/app/src/main/java/com/doctate/watch/net/HttpClientProvider.kt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..57c0352
--- /dev/null
+++ b/watch/wearos/app/src/main/java/com/doctate/watch/net/HttpClientProvider.kt
@@ -0,0 +1,17 @@
+package com.doctate.watch.net
+
+import okhttp3.OkHttpClient
+import java.util.concurrent.TimeUnit
+
+/**
+ * Single shared OkHttpClient. OkHttp pools connections and threads internally;
+ * sharing one instance is the recommended pattern (creating new clients leaks pools).
+ */
+object HttpClientProvider {
+    fun create(): OkHttpClient = OkHttpClient.Builder()
+        .connectTimeout(15, TimeUnit.SECONDS)
+        .readTimeout(60, TimeUnit.SECONDS)
+        .writeTimeout(60, TimeUnit.SECONDS)
+        .retryOnConnectionFailure(true)
+        .build()
+}
diff --git a/watch/wearos/app/src/main/java/com/doctate/watch/net/UploadClient.kt b/watch/wearos/app/src/main/java/com/doctate/watch/net/UploadClient.kt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3d6a5c6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/watch/wearos/app/src/main/java/com/doctate/watch/net/UploadClient.kt
@@ -0,0 +1,77 @@
+package com.doctate.watch.net
+
+import com.doctate.watch.settings.Settings
+import kotlinx.coroutines.Dispatchers
+import kotlinx.coroutines.withContext
+import okhttp3.MediaType.Companion.toMediaType
+import okhttp3.MultipartBody
+import okhttp3.OkHttpClient
+import okhttp3.Request
+import okhttp3.RequestBody.Companion.asRequestBody
+import org.json.JSONObject
+import java.io.File
+import java.io.IOException
+
+/**
+ * POST a recorded audio file to the Doctate server. Wire format mirrors
+ * doctate-common/src/constants.rs and doctate-client-core/src/server_sync.rs:344-399.
+ * If the server contract changes, both this client and server/tests/upload_test.rs
+ * fail independently — that coupling is intentional.
+ */
+class UploadClient(
+    private val http: OkHttpClient,
+    private val settings: Settings,
+) {
+    suspend fun upload(caseId: String, recordedAt: String, audio: File): UploadResult =
+        withContext(Dispatchers.IO) {
+            val body = MultipartBody.Builder()
+                .setType(MultipartBody.FORM)
+                .addFormDataPart(FIELD_CASE_ID, caseId)
+                .addFormDataPart(FIELD_RECORDED_AT, recordedAt)
+                .addFormDataPart(
+                    FIELD_AUDIO,
+                    audio.name,
+                    audio.asRequestBody(CONTENT_TYPE_AUDIO_MP4.toMediaType()),
+                )
+                .build()
+            val request = Request.Builder()
+                .url(settings.serverUrl.trimEnd('/') + UPLOAD_PATH)
+                .header(API_KEY_HEADER, settings.apiKey)
+                .post(body)
+                .build()
+            try {
+                http.newCall(request).execute().use { response ->
+                    classify(response.code, response.body?.string().orEmpty())
+                }
+            } catch (e: IOException) {
+                UploadResult.Transient("network: ${e.message}")
+            }
+        }
+
+    private fun classify(code: Int, body: String): UploadResult = when {
+        code in 200..299 -> parseAck(body)
+        code == 408 || code == 429 || code in 500..599 -> UploadResult.Transient("HTTP $code: $body")
+        else -> UploadResult.Terminal("HTTP $code: $body")
+    }
+
+    private fun parseAck(body: String): UploadResult = try {
+        val json = JSONObject(body)
+        UploadResult.Success(
+            caseId = json.getString("case_id"),
+            recordedAt = json.getString("recorded_at"),
+            status = json.getString("status"),
+        )
+    } catch (e: Exception) {
+        UploadResult.Terminal("parse ack: ${e.message}")
+    }
+
+    companion object {
+        // Wire-protocol constants. Source of truth: doctate-common/src/constants.rs:1-14.
+        const val API_KEY_HEADER = "X-API-Key"
+        const val UPLOAD_PATH = "/api/upload"
+        const val FIELD_CASE_ID = "case_id"
+        const val FIELD_RECORDED_AT = "recorded_at"
+        const val FIELD_AUDIO = "audio"
+        const val CONTENT_TYPE_AUDIO_MP4 = "audio/mp4"
+    }
+}
diff --git a/watch/wearos/app/src/main/java/com/doctate/watch/net/UploadResult.kt b/watch/wearos/app/src/main/java/com/doctate/watch/net/UploadResult.kt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..59e7d4e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/watch/wearos/app/src/main/java/com/doctate/watch/net/UploadResult.kt
@@ -0,0 +1,11 @@
+package com.doctate.watch.net
+
+/**
+ * Outcome of [UploadClient.upload]. Mirrors UploadOutcome in
+ * doctate-client-core/src/server_sync.rs (Succeeded / Transient / Terminal).
+ */
+sealed interface UploadResult {
+    data class Success(val caseId: String, val recordedAt: String, val status: String) : UploadResult
+    data class Transient(val reason: String) : UploadResult
+    data class Terminal(val reason: String) : UploadResult
+}
diff --git a/watch/wearos/app/src/main/java/com/doctate/watch/settings/Settings.kt b/watch/wearos/app/src/main/java/com/doctate/watch/settings/Settings.kt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..645431d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/watch/wearos/app/src/main/java/com/doctate/watch/settings/Settings.kt
@@ -0,0 +1,17 @@
+package com.doctate.watch.settings
+
+import com.doctate.watch.BuildConfig
+
+/**
+ * Read-only access to runtime configuration. Future implementations (e.g. DataStore-backed
+ * for a user-facing settings screen) can replace [BuildConfigSettings] without touching consumers.
+ */
+interface Settings {
+    val serverUrl: String
+    val apiKey: String
+}
+
+class BuildConfigSettings : Settings {
+    override val serverUrl: String = BuildConfig.SERVER_URL
+    override val apiKey: String = BuildConfig.API_KEY
+}
diff --git a/watch/wearos/app/src/main/res/xml/network_security_config.xml b/watch/wearos/app/src/main/res/xml/network_security_config.xml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..555630d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/watch/wearos/app/src/main/res/xml/network_security_config.xml
@@ -0,0 +1,14 @@
+<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
+<network-security-config>
+    <base-config cleartextTrafficPermitted="false">
+        <trust-anchors>
+            <certificates src="system" />
+        </trust-anchors>
+    </base-config>
+    <!-- Allow cleartext only for the Android emulator's host loopback,
+         where the local Axum dev server runs. Production HTTPS targets
+         remain locked down by base-config. -->
+    <domain-config cleartextTrafficPermitted="true">
+        <domain includeSubdomains="false">10.0.2.2</domain>
+    </domain-config>
+</network-security-config>
diff --git a/watch/wearos/app/src/test/java/com/doctate/watch/domain/CaseIdTest.kt b/watch/wearos/app/src/test/java/com/doctate/watch/domain/CaseIdTest.kt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..af78c87
--- /dev/null
+++ b/watch/wearos/app/src/test/java/com/doctate/watch/domain/CaseIdTest.kt
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+package com.doctate.watch.domain
+
+import com.google.common.truth.Truth.assertThat
+import org.junit.Test
+
+class CaseIdTest {
+    private val uuidV4Pattern =
+        "^[0-9a-f]{8}-[0-9a-f]{4}-4[0-9a-f]{3}-[89ab][0-9a-f]{3}-[0-9a-f]{12}$"
+
+    @Test fun new_returns_uuid_v4_string() {
+        val id = CaseId.new()
+        assertThat(id).matches(uuidV4Pattern)
+    }
+
+    @Test fun new_returns_distinct_uuids() {
+        val a = CaseId.new()
+        val b = CaseId.new()
+        assertThat(a).isNotEqualTo(b)
+    }
+}
diff --git a/watch/wearos/gradle/libs.versions.toml b/watch/wearos/gradle/libs.versions.toml
index 83e638b..3a408fa 100644
--- a/watch/wearos/gradle/libs.versions.toml
+++ b/watch/wearos/gradle/libs.versions.toml
@@ -9,6 +9,13 @@ composeUiTooling = "1.5.6"
 wearToolingPreview = "1.0.0"
 activityCompose = "1.8.0"
 coreSplashscreen = "1.2.0"
+okhttp = "4.12.0"
+coroutines = "1.8.1"
+lifecycle = "2.8.6"
+junit = "4.13.2"
+truth = "1.4.4"
+androidxTestRunner = "1.6.2"
+androidxTestExtJunit = "1.2.1"
 
 [libraries]
 play-services-wearable = { group = "com.google.android.gms", name = "play-services-wearable", version.ref = "playServicesWearable" }
@@ -25,6 +32,16 @@ compose-ui-tooling = { group = "androidx.wear.compose", name = "compose-ui-tooli
 wear-tooling-preview = { group = "androidx.wear", name = "wear-tooling-preview", version.ref = "wearToolingPreview" }
 activity-compose = { group = "androidx.activity", name = "activity-compose", version.ref = "activityCompose" }
 core-splashscreen = { group = "androidx.core", name = "core-splashscreen", version.ref = "coreSplashscreen" }
+okhttp = { group = "com.squareup.okhttp3", name = "okhttp", version.ref = "okhttp" }
+okhttp-mockwebserver = { group = "com.squareup.okhttp3", name = "mockwebserver", version.ref = "okhttp" }
+kotlinx-coroutines-android = { group = "org.jetbrains.kotlinx", name = "kotlinx-coroutines-android", version.ref = "coroutines" }
+kotlinx-coroutines-test = { group = "org.jetbrains.kotlinx", name = "kotlinx-coroutines-test", version.ref = "coroutines" }
+lifecycle-viewmodel-compose = { group = "androidx.lifecycle", name = "lifecycle-viewmodel-compose", version.ref = "lifecycle" }
+lifecycle-runtime-compose = { group = "androidx.lifecycle", name = "lifecycle-runtime-compose", version.ref = "lifecycle" }
+junit = { group = "junit", name = "junit", version.ref = "junit" }
+truth = { group = "com.google.truth", name = "truth", version.ref = "truth" }
+androidx-test-runner = { group = "androidx.test", name = "runner", version.ref = "androidxTestRunner" }
+androidx-test-ext-junit = { group = "androidx.test.ext", name = "junit", version.ref = "androidxTestExtJunit" }
 
 [plugins]
 android-application = { id = "com.android.application", version.ref = "agp" }