diff --git a/app/routes/telemetry.py b/app/routes/telemetry.py
index 0aa28c1..65b8b0f 100644
--- a/app/routes/telemetry.py
+++ b/app/routes/telemetry.py
@@ -7,7 +7,6 @@ It validates authentication, stores metrics, and updates instance state.
 import hashlib
 import logging
 import secrets
-from uuid import UUID
 
 from fastapi import APIRouter, Header, HTTPException, status
 from sqlalchemy import select
@@ -27,7 +26,7 @@ router = APIRouter(prefix="/api/v1/instances", tags=["Telemetry"])
 
 @router.post("/{instance_id}/telemetry", response_model=TelemetryResponse)
 async def receive_telemetry(
-    instance_id: UUID,
+    instance_id: str,
     payload: TelemetryPayload,
     db: AsyncSessionDep,
     hub_api_key: str = Header(..., alias="X-Hub-Api-Key"),
@@ -64,8 +63,8 @@ async def receive_telemetry(
             },
         )
 
-    # Find instance by UUID (id column, not instance_id string)
-    result = await db.execute(select(Instance).where(Instance.id == instance_id))
+    # Find instance by instance_id string (e.g., "letsbe-orchestrator")
+    result = await db.execute(select(Instance).where(Instance.instance_id == instance_id))
     instance = result.scalar_one_or_none()
 
     if instance is None:
@@ -114,8 +113,9 @@ async def receive_telemetry(
 
     # Store telemetry sample
     # Use PostgreSQL upsert to handle duplicates gracefully
+    # Note: instance_id in DB is the UUID (instance.id), not the string instance_id
     telemetry_data = {
-        "instance_id": instance_id,
+        "instance_id": instance.id,
         "window_start": payload.window_start,
         "window_end": payload.window_end,
         "uptime_seconds": payload.uptime_seconds,
diff --git a/app/schemas/telemetry.py b/app/schemas/telemetry.py
index b9993f1..3dfb2b4 100644
--- a/app/schemas/telemetry.py
+++ b/app/schemas/telemetry.py
@@ -6,7 +6,6 @@ unknown fields, preventing accidental PII leaks.
 
 from datetime import datetime
 from typing import Optional
-from uuid import UUID
 
 from pydantic import BaseModel, ConfigDict, Field
 
@@ -87,7 +86,7 @@ class TelemetryPayload(BaseModel):
 
     model_config = ConfigDict(extra="forbid")
 
-    instance_id: UUID = Field(..., description="Instance UUID (must match path)")
+    instance_id: str = Field(..., description="Instance ID string (must match path)")
     window_start: datetime = Field(..., description="Start of telemetry window")
     window_end: datetime = Field(..., description="End of telemetry window")
     uptime_seconds: int = Field(ge=0, description="Orchestrator uptime in seconds")