diff --git a/src/cortex-engine/src/streaming.rs b/src/cortex-engine/src/streaming.rs
index 35bfcef..52c2a83 100644
--- a/src/cortex-engine/src/streaming.rs
+++ b/src/cortex-engine/src/streaming.rs
@@ -15,6 +15,10 @@ use futures::Stream;
 use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
 use tokio::sync::mpsc;
 
+/// Maximum number of events to buffer before dropping old ones.
+/// Prevents unbounded memory growth if drain_events() is not called regularly.
+const MAX_BUFFER_SIZE: usize = 10_000;
+
 /// Token usage for streaming.
 #[derive(Debug, Clone, Default, Serialize, Deserialize)]
 pub struct StreamTokenUsage {
@@ -213,7 +217,7 @@ impl StreamProcessor {
         Self {
             state: StreamState::Idle,
             content: StreamContent::new(),
-            buffer: VecDeque::new(),
+            buffer: VecDeque::with_capacity(1024), // Pre-allocate reasonable capacity
             start_time: None,
             first_token_time: None,
             last_event_time: None,
@@ -284,6 +288,10 @@ impl StreamProcessor {
             }
         }
 
+        // Enforce buffer size limit to prevent unbounded memory growth
+        if self.buffer.len() >= MAX_BUFFER_SIZE {
+            self.buffer.pop_front();
+        }
         self.buffer.push_back(event);
     }