diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 8b2e00bd6..24fcf953a 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -2,6 +2,8 @@
 
 All notable changes to Bambuddy will be documented in this file.
 
+## [0.1.9b] - Not released
+
 ## [0.1.8.1] - 2026-02-07
 
 ### Fixed
diff --git a/backend/app/core/config.py b/backend/app/core/config.py
index e1faffd7b..58274035e 100644
--- a/backend/app/core/config.py
+++ b/backend/app/core/config.py
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ from pathlib import Path
 from pydantic_settings import BaseSettings
 
 # Application version - single source of truth
-APP_VERSION = "0.1.8.1"
+APP_VERSION = "0.1.9b"
 GITHUB_REPO = "maziggy/bambuddy"
 
 # App directory - where the application is installed (for static files)