diff --git a/package.json b/package.json
index 3493ab591..85d85a300 100644
--- a/package.json
+++ b/package.json
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 {
   "name": "orca",
-  "version": "1.4.52",
+  "version": "1.4.53-rc.0",
   "description": "Next-gen IDE for parallel agentic development",
   "homepage": "https://github.com/stablyai/orca",
   "author": "stablyai",