diff --git a/cypress/e2e/trendingTopics/trendingTopics.cy.ts b/cypress/e2e/trendingTopics/trendingTopics.cy.ts
index 99242b73e..f3dc7197c 100644
--- a/cypress/e2e/trendingTopics/trendingTopics.cy.ts
+++ b/cypress/e2e/trendingTopics/trendingTopics.cy.ts
@@ -40,8 +40,6 @@ describe('test trending topics', () => {
     // wait for boltwall queue to send tweets to jarvis
     cy.wait(70000)
 
-    cy.get('[data-testid="explore-graph-btn"]').click()
-
     cy.wait('@getTrends').then((interception) => {
       const responseBody = interception.response.body
 
diff --git a/cypress/support/commands.ts b/cypress/support/commands.ts
index d39d8ed7a..b1f0f394c 100644
--- a/cypress/support/commands.ts
+++ b/cypress/support/commands.ts
@@ -64,7 +64,5 @@ Cypress.Commands.add('initialSetup', (username, budget) => {
 
   cy.wait(['@loadAbout', '@loadLatest', '@loadStats'])
 
-  cy.get('[data-testid="explore-graph-btn"]', { timeout: 90000 }).should('be.visible').click()
-
   cy.wait(['@getTrends'])
 })
diff --git a/src/stores/useAppStore/index.ts b/src/stores/useAppStore/index.ts
index 7a68b8e15..370a08756 100644
--- a/src/stores/useAppStore/index.ts
+++ b/src/stores/useAppStore/index.ts
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 import { create } from 'zustand'
 import { TAboutParams } from '~/network/fetchSourcesData'
+import { useFeatureFlagStore } from '~/stores/useFeatureFlagStore'
 
 export type SecondarySidebarActiveTab = '' | 'sentiment' | 'sources' | 'about'
 
@@ -71,7 +72,11 @@ export const useAppStore = create<AppStore>((set, get) => ({
       transcriptIsOpen: !sidebarIsOpen ? false : get().transcriptIsOpen,
     }),
   setTranscriptOpen: (transcriptIsOpen) => set({ transcriptIsOpen }),
-  setUniverseQuestionIsOpen: () => set({ universeQuestionIsOpen: !get().universeQuestionIsOpen }),
+  setUniverseQuestionIsOpen: () => {
+    const { chatInterfaceFeatureFlag } = useFeatureFlagStore.getState()
+
+    set({ universeQuestionIsOpen: chatInterfaceFeatureFlag ? !get().universeQuestionIsOpen : false })
+  },
   setAppMetaData: (appMetaData) => set({ appMetaData }),
   setShowCollapseButton: (showCollapseButton) => set({ showCollapseButton }),
   setSelectedColor: (selectedColor) => set({ selectedColor }),