diff --git a/cmd/gh-aw/main_entry_test.go b/cmd/gh-aw/main_entry_test.go
index 197bc89b33a..ad1be108d93 100644
--- a/cmd/gh-aw/main_entry_test.go
+++ b/cmd/gh-aw/main_entry_test.go
@@ -272,7 +272,7 @@ func TestMainFunctionExecutionPath(t *testing.T) {
 		// Check that it's an ExitError (non-zero exit code)
 		exitError, ok := err.(*exec.ExitError)
 		require.True(t, ok, "invalid command should return an *exec.ExitError, got %T", err)
-		assert.NotEqual(t, 0, exitError.ExitCode(), "invalid command should return a non-zero exit code")
+		assert.NotZero(t, exitError.ExitCode(), "invalid command should return a non-zero exit code")
 	})
 
 	t.Run("main function version info setup", func(t *testing.T) {
diff --git a/pkg/agentdrain/miner_test.go b/pkg/agentdrain/miner_test.go
index f75f350cf26..9917effa120 100644
--- a/pkg/agentdrain/miner_test.go
+++ b/pkg/agentdrain/miner_test.go
@@ -296,7 +296,7 @@ func TestConcurrency(t *testing.T) {
 			for i := range linesEach {
 				line := fmt.Sprintf("stage=work goroutine=%d iter=%d", id, i)
 				_, trainErr := m.Train(line)
-				assert.NoError(t, trainErr, "Train should not error during concurrent access")
+				require.NoError(t, trainErr, "Train should not error during concurrent access")
 			}
 		}(g)
 	}
diff --git a/pkg/cli/audit_expanded_test.go b/pkg/cli/audit_expanded_test.go
index 0457504b8ba..f8da7caeb86 100644
--- a/pkg/cli/audit_expanded_test.go
+++ b/pkg/cli/audit_expanded_test.go
@@ -614,7 +614,7 @@ func TestBuildAuditDataWithExpandedSections(t *testing.T) {
 
 	t.Run("PromptAnalysis", func(t *testing.T) {
 		require.NotNil(t, auditData.PromptAnalysis, "Prompt analysis should be populated")
-		assert.Equal(t, len(promptContent), auditData.PromptAnalysis.PromptSize, "Prompt size should match")
+		assert.Len(t, promptContent, auditData.PromptAnalysis.PromptSize, "Prompt size should match")
 		assert.Equal(t, filepath.Join("activation", "aw-prompts", "prompt.txt"), auditData.PromptAnalysis.PromptFile, "Prompt file should be a relative path")
 	})
 
diff --git a/pkg/cli/health_metrics_test.go b/pkg/cli/health_metrics_test.go
index add5f944c0f..6a87f588159 100644
--- a/pkg/cli/health_metrics_test.go
+++ b/pkg/cli/health_metrics_test.go
@@ -78,7 +78,7 @@ func TestCalculateWorkflowHealth(t *testing.T) {
 			}
 
 			if len(tt.runs) > 0 {
-				assert.Equal(t, len(tt.runs), health.TotalRuns, "Total runs should match")
+				assert.Len(t, tt.runs, health.TotalRuns, "Total runs should match")
 			}
 
 			// Check below threshold flag
diff --git a/pkg/cli/run_workflow_validation_test.go b/pkg/cli/run_workflow_validation_test.go
index a78e31e820e..dedc746b752 100644
--- a/pkg/cli/run_workflow_validation_test.go
+++ b/pkg/cli/run_workflow_validation_test.go
@@ -5,7 +5,6 @@ package cli
 import (
 	"os"
 	"path/filepath"
-	"strings"
 	"testing"
 
 	"github.com/stretchr/testify/assert"
@@ -431,6 +430,6 @@ jobs:
 	err = validateWorkflowInputs(markdownPath, []string{"issue_ur=https://example.com"})
 	require.Error(t, err)
 	assert.Contains(t, err.Error(), "Invalid input name")
-	assert.True(t, strings.Contains(err.Error(), "issue_ur") && strings.Contains(err.Error(), "issue_url"),
-		"Error should suggest correct input name")
+	assert.Contains(t, err.Error(), "issue_ur", "Error should include invalid input")
+	assert.Contains(t, err.Error(), "issue_url", "Error should suggest correct input name")
 }
diff --git a/pkg/cli/workflows_count_test.go b/pkg/cli/workflows_count_test.go
index 90f669203af..5c309fa687a 100644
--- a/pkg/cli/workflows_count_test.go
+++ b/pkg/cli/workflows_count_test.go
@@ -78,7 +78,7 @@ func TestWorkflowCounting(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 
 	// Verify counts
-	assert.Equal(t, len(mdWorkflowNames), userWorkflowCount, "User workflow count should match .md file count")
+	assert.Len(t, mdWorkflowNames, userWorkflowCount, "User workflow count should match .md file count")
 
 	// Verify message format (internal workflows are never mentioned)
 	var message string
diff --git a/pkg/console/progress_test.go b/pkg/console/progress_test.go
index 5f7f03e452f..0c798d27ca3 100644
--- a/pkg/console/progress_test.go
+++ b/pkg/console/progress_test.go
@@ -4,7 +4,6 @@ package console
 
 import (
 	"fmt"
-	"strings"
 	"testing"
 
 	"github.com/stretchr/testify/assert"
@@ -259,7 +258,7 @@ func TestProgressBarOutputFormat(t *testing.T) {
 
 		// Should contain: percentage, current size, total size
 		assert.Contains(t, output, "%", "Output should contain percentage symbol")
-		assert.True(t, strings.Contains(output, "KB") || strings.Contains(output, "MB"), "Output should contain size units")
+		assert.Regexp(t, `KB|MB`, output, "Output should contain size units")
 		assert.Contains(t, output, "/", "Output should contain separator between current and total")
 	})
 }
diff --git a/pkg/console/verbose_test.go b/pkg/console/verbose_test.go
index 52939bdc57f..a08758ec932 100644
--- a/pkg/console/verbose_test.go
+++ b/pkg/console/verbose_test.go
@@ -65,8 +65,7 @@ func TestLogVerbose(t *testing.T) {
 				// Should contain the message
 				assert.Contains(t, output, tt.message, "Output should contain the message when verbose is enabled")
 				// Should contain the verbose icon (🔍)
-				assert.True(t, strings.Contains(output, "🔍") || strings.Contains(output, tt.message),
-					"Output should contain verbose formatting or message")
+				assert.Contains(t, output, "🔍", "Output should contain verbose formatting")
 			} else {
 				// Should be empty
 				assert.Empty(t, output, "Output should be empty when verbose is disabled")
diff --git a/pkg/parser/frontmatter_helpers_test.go b/pkg/parser/frontmatter_helpers_test.go
index fb88583edf1..97d7bdcf372 100644
--- a/pkg/parser/frontmatter_helpers_test.go
+++ b/pkg/parser/frontmatter_helpers_test.go
@@ -190,7 +190,7 @@ func TestEnsureToolsSection(t *testing.T) {
 
 			// Verify reference identity: mutating the returned map must be visible via frontmatter
 			tools["__probe__"] = true
-			assert.Equal(t, true, frontmatterTools["__probe__"], "returned tools should be the same map stored in frontmatter['tools']")
+			assert.True(t, frontmatterTools["__probe__"].(bool), "returned tools should be the same map stored in frontmatter['tools']")
 			delete(tools, "__probe__")
 
 			// Verify returned tools matches the expected content
diff --git a/pkg/parser/import_cache_test.go b/pkg/parser/import_cache_test.go
index 2a5677386b4..4015dba61f1 100644
--- a/pkg/parser/import_cache_test.go
+++ b/pkg/parser/import_cache_test.go
@@ -288,7 +288,7 @@ func TestValidatePathComponents(t *testing.T) {
 				require.Error(t, err, "should return error for: %s", tt.name)
 				assert.Contains(t, err.Error(), tt.errMsg, "error message should mention: %s", tt.errMsg)
 			} else {
-				assert.NoError(t, err, "should not return error for valid components")
+				require.NoError(t, err, "should not return error for valid components")
 			}
 		})
 	}
diff --git a/pkg/parser/import_conflict_test.go b/pkg/parser/import_conflict_test.go
index 84174a89577..af920761019 100644
--- a/pkg/parser/import_conflict_test.go
+++ b/pkg/parser/import_conflict_test.go
@@ -125,7 +125,7 @@ permissions:
 	}
 
 	_, err := parser.ProcessImportsFromFrontmatterWithSource(frontmatter, tempDir, nil, mainPath, mainContent)
-	assert.NoError(t, err, "Importing the same file twice with identical 'with' values should be allowed")
+	require.NoError(t, err, "Importing the same file twice with identical 'with' values should be allowed")
 }
 
 // TestImportConflict_SameFileTwiceNoWith tests that importing the same file (no 'with')
@@ -166,7 +166,7 @@ permissions:
 	}
 
 	_, err := parser.ProcessImportsFromFrontmatterWithSource(frontmatter, tempDir, nil, mainPath, mainContent)
-	assert.NoError(t, err, "Importing the same file (no 'with') twice should be silently deduplicated")
+	require.NoError(t, err, "Importing the same file (no 'with') twice should be silently deduplicated")
 }
 
 // TestImportConflict_NestedConflict tests that a conflict detected via nested imports
diff --git a/pkg/workflow/codex_logs_test.go b/pkg/workflow/codex_logs_test.go
index f68f9adc345..b261d96e7bd 100644
--- a/pkg/workflow/codex_logs_test.go
+++ b/pkg/workflow/codex_logs_test.go
@@ -92,8 +92,8 @@ func TestCodexParseLogMetricsMultipleToolsWithOutputSizes(t *testing.T) {
 	require.NotNil(t, searchPRTool, "search_pull_requests tool should be found")
 
 	// Verify output sizes
-	assert.Equal(t, len("[]"), listPRTool.MaxOutputSize, "list_pull_requests output size")
-	assert.Equal(t, len("[{\"number\":123,\"title\":\"Test PR\"}]"), searchPRTool.MaxOutputSize, "search_pull_requests output size")
+	assert.Len(t, "[]", listPRTool.MaxOutputSize, "list_pull_requests output size")
+	assert.Len(t, "[{\"number\":123,\"title\":\"Test PR\"}]", searchPRTool.MaxOutputSize, "search_pull_requests output size")
 }
 
 func TestCodexParseLogMetricsNoOutputSize(t *testing.T) {
diff --git a/pkg/workflow/compiler_test.go b/pkg/workflow/compiler_test.go
index 0fcbf90ef85..bf0a4cb84fb 100644
--- a/pkg/workflow/compiler_test.go
+++ b/pkg/workflow/compiler_test.go
@@ -365,8 +365,7 @@ This workflow is missing the required 'on' field.
 
 	// Error should contain file reference
 	errorStr := err.Error()
-	assert.True(t, strings.Contains(errorStr, "invalid.md") || strings.Contains(errorStr, "error"),
-		"Error should reference the file or contain 'error'")
+	assert.Regexp(t, `invalid\.md|error`, errorStr, "Error should reference the file or contain 'error'")
 }
 
 // TestCompileWorkflow_PathTraversal tests that path traversal attempts are handled safely
diff --git a/pkg/workflow/lock_schema_test.go b/pkg/workflow/lock_schema_test.go
index 0af355ae2db..ac1a4582180 100644
--- a/pkg/workflow/lock_schema_test.go
+++ b/pkg/workflow/lock_schema_test.go
@@ -214,7 +214,7 @@ name: test
 					assert.Contains(t, err.Error(), tt.errorText, "Error message should contain expected text")
 				}
 			} else {
-				assert.NoError(t, err, "Should not error on compatible schema")
+				require.NoError(t, err, "Should not error on compatible schema")
 			}
 		})
 	}
diff --git a/pkg/workflow/mcp_gateway_entrypoint_mounts_e2e_test.go b/pkg/workflow/mcp_gateway_entrypoint_mounts_e2e_test.go
index 6212ca6beca..a3c6b93598e 100644
--- a/pkg/workflow/mcp_gateway_entrypoint_mounts_e2e_test.go
+++ b/pkg/workflow/mcp_gateway_entrypoint_mounts_e2e_test.go
@@ -269,7 +269,7 @@ Test that entrypoint with special characters in args is properly handled.
 	// Verify args with special characters are properly handled
 	assert.Contains(t, yamlStr, "bash", "Compiled YAML should contain bash arg")
 	// The exact format of the shell-quoted command may vary, but it should contain the key parts
-	assert.True(t, strings.Contains(yamlStr, "Hello World") || strings.Contains(yamlStr, "Hello\\ World"),
+	assert.Regexp(t, `Hello(?: |\\ )World`, yamlStr,
 		"Compiled YAML should contain the command string (possibly escaped)")
 }
 
diff --git a/pkg/workflow/safe_outputs_call_workflow_test.go b/pkg/workflow/safe_outputs_call_workflow_test.go
index 58b26c3e3ae..49e965f381a 100644
--- a/pkg/workflow/safe_outputs_call_workflow_test.go
+++ b/pkg/workflow/safe_outputs_call_workflow_test.go
@@ -580,10 +580,6 @@ Analyse the issue and determine which worker to run.
 	assert.Contains(t, yamlOutput, "call_workflow_payload", "Should reference call_workflow_payload")
 
 	// Verify if conditions
-	assert.True(t, strings.Contains(yamlOutput, "call_workflow_name == 'worker-a'") ||
-		strings.Contains(yamlOutput, "call_workflow_name == \"worker-a\""),
-		"Should contain if condition for worker-a")
-	assert.True(t, strings.Contains(yamlOutput, "call_workflow_name == 'worker-b'") ||
-		strings.Contains(yamlOutput, "call_workflow_name == \"worker-b\""),
-		"Should contain if condition for worker-b")
+	assert.Regexp(t, `call_workflow_name == ['"]worker-a['"]`, yamlOutput, "Should contain if condition for worker-a")
+	assert.Regexp(t, `call_workflow_name == ['"]worker-b['"]`, yamlOutput, "Should contain if condition for worker-b")
 }
diff --git a/pkg/workflow/safe_outputs_config_generation_test.go b/pkg/workflow/safe_outputs_config_generation_test.go
index c7552008fba..fa2eb6b3b7e 100644
--- a/pkg/workflow/safe_outputs_config_generation_test.go
+++ b/pkg/workflow/safe_outputs_config_generation_test.go
@@ -89,11 +89,11 @@ func TestGenerateSafeOutputsConfigActions(t *testing.T) {
 	// registers it. Names are normalized (hyphens converted to underscores).
 	uploadVal, hasUploadReport := parsed["upload_report"]
 	assert.True(t, hasUploadReport, "Expected upload_report key in config")
-	assert.Equal(t, true, uploadVal, "upload_report value should be true")
+	assert.True(t, uploadVal.(bool), "upload_report value should be true")
 
 	publishVal, hasPublishResults := parsed["publish_results"]
 	assert.True(t, hasPublishResults, "Expected publish_results key in config (hyphen normalized to underscore)")
-	assert.Equal(t, true, publishVal, "publish_results value should be true")
+	assert.True(t, publishVal.(bool), "publish_results value should be true")
 }
 
 // TestGenerateSafeOutputsConfigActionsCollisionReturnsError tests that a custom action
@@ -181,8 +181,8 @@ func TestGenerateSafeOutputsConfigMentions(t *testing.T) {
 
 	mentions, ok := parsed["mentions"].(map[string]any)
 	require.True(t, ok, "Expected mentions key in config")
-	assert.Equal(t, true, mentions["enabled"], "enabled should be true")
-	assert.Equal(t, false, mentions["allowTeamMembers"], "allowTeamMembers should be false")
+	assert.True(t, mentions["enabled"].(bool), "enabled should be true")
+	assert.False(t, mentions["allowTeamMembers"].(bool), "allowTeamMembers should be false")
 	assert.InDelta(t, float64(5), mentions["max"], 0.0001, "max should be 5")
 }
 
@@ -263,7 +263,7 @@ func TestGenerateCustomJobToolDefinition(t *testing.T) {
 				schema, ok := result["inputSchema"].(map[string]any)
 				require.True(t, ok, "inputSchema should be a map")
 				assert.Equal(t, "object", schema["type"], "schema type should be object")
-				assert.Equal(t, false, schema["additionalProperties"], "additionalProperties should be false")
+				assert.False(t, schema["additionalProperties"].(bool), "additionalProperties should be false")
 				props, ok := schema["properties"].(map[string]any)
 				require.True(t, ok, "properties should be a map")
 				titleProp, ok := props["title"].(map[string]any)
@@ -474,7 +474,7 @@ func TestGenerateSafeOutputsConfigCreatePullRequestTargetRepo(t *testing.T) {
 	assert.Equal(t, "caido/other-repo", allowedRepos[0], "allowed_repos should match")
 
 	assert.Equal(t, "dev", prConfig["base_branch"], "base_branch should be set")
-	assert.Equal(t, true, prConfig["draft"], "draft should be true")
+	assert.True(t, prConfig["draft"].(bool), "draft should be true")
 
 	reviewers, ok := prConfig["reviewers"].([]any)
 	require.True(t, ok, "reviewers should be an array")
@@ -487,7 +487,7 @@ func TestGenerateSafeOutputsConfigCreatePullRequestTargetRepo(t *testing.T) {
 	assert.Equal(t, "platform-reviewers", teamReviewers[0], "team reviewer should match")
 
 	assert.Equal(t, "[refactor] ", prConfig["title_prefix"], "title_prefix should be set")
-	assert.Equal(t, false, prConfig["fallback_as_issue"], "fallback_as_issue should be false")
+	assert.False(t, prConfig["fallback_as_issue"].(bool), "fallback_as_issue should be false")
 }
 
 // TestGenerateSafeOutputsConfigCreatePullRequestBackwardCompat tests that config without
@@ -516,8 +516,8 @@ func TestGenerateSafeOutputsConfigCreatePullRequestBackwardCompat(t *testing.T)
 	require.True(t, ok, "Expected create_pull_request key in config")
 
 	assert.InDelta(t, float64(2), prConfig["max"], 0.0001, "max should be 2")
-	assert.Equal(t, true, prConfig["allow_empty"], "allow_empty should be true")
-	assert.Equal(t, true, prConfig["auto_merge"], "auto_merge should be true")
+	assert.True(t, prConfig["allow_empty"].(bool), "allow_empty should be true")
+	assert.True(t, prConfig["auto_merge"].(bool), "auto_merge should be true")
 	assert.InDelta(t, float64(24), prConfig["expires"], 0.0001, "expires should be 24")
 
 	// target-repo and allowed_repos should not be present when not configured
@@ -611,7 +611,7 @@ func TestGenerateSafeOutputsConfigCreatePullRequestAutoCloseIssue(t *testing.T)
 	prConfig, ok := parsed["create_pull_request"].(map[string]any)
 	require.True(t, ok, "Expected create_pull_request key in config")
 
-	assert.Equal(t, false, prConfig["auto_close_issue"], "auto_close_issue should be false")
+	assert.False(t, prConfig["auto_close_issue"].(bool), "auto_close_issue should be false")
 }
 
 // TestGenerateSafeOutputsConfigCreatePullRequestAutoCloseIssueExpression tests that
@@ -825,7 +825,7 @@ func TestGenerateSafeOutputsConfigReplyToPullRequestReviewCommentWithTarget(t *t
 	assert.Len(t, allowedRepos, 1, "Should have 1 allowed repo")
 	assert.Equal(t, "org/other-repo", allowedRepos[0], "allowed_repos entry should match")
 
-	assert.Equal(t, true, replyConfig["footer"], "footer should be true")
+	assert.True(t, replyConfig["footer"].(bool), "footer should be true")
 }
 
 // TestGenerateSafeOutputsConfigClosePullRequest tests that generateSafeOutputsConfig correctly
@@ -901,6 +901,6 @@ func TestGenerateSafeOutputsConfigClosePullRequestStaged(t *testing.T) {
 	closePRConfig, ok := parsed["close_pull_request"].(map[string]any)
 	require.True(t, ok, "Expected close_pull_request key in config.json")
 
-	assert.Equal(t, true, closePRConfig["staged"], "staged should be true")
+	assert.True(t, closePRConfig["staged"].(bool), "staged should be true")
 	assert.Nil(t, closePRConfig["github-token"], "github-token should not be set when empty")
 }