diff --git a/src/state/CallViewModel/localMember/Publisher.test.ts b/src/state/CallViewModel/localMember/Publisher.test.ts
index 21775c58d..fe44fdd79 100644
--- a/src/state/CallViewModel/localMember/Publisher.test.ts
+++ b/src/state/CallViewModel/localMember/Publisher.test.ts
@@ -286,6 +286,53 @@ describe("Publisher", () => {
     expect(track!.isUpstreamPaused).toBe(true);
   });
 
+  it("Resumes upstream for tracks published after startPublishing was called (slow camera)", async () => {
+    videoEnabled$.next(true);
+
+    // Simulate that the upstream ended up paused by the time the track gets
+    // published (e.g. paused while it was still unpublished).
+    const originalPublishTrack = localParticipant.publishTrack;
+    vi.mocked(localParticipant).publishTrack = vi
+      .fn()
+      .mockImplementation(async (track: LocalTrack) => {
+        await track.pauseUpstream();
+        return originalPublishTrack(track);
+      });
+
+    const resolvers = Promise.withResolvers<void>();
+    createTrackLock = resolvers.promise;
+
+    // Track creation is slow (e.g. camera hardware takes time to open)
+    await publisher.createAndSetupTracks();
+    // startPublishing runs before the camera track exists, so its
+    // resumeUpstreams call finds nothing to resume
+    await publisher.startPublishing();
+    expect(
+      localParticipant.getTrackPublication(Track.Source.Camera),
+    ).toBeUndefined();
+
+    // The camera opens and the track gets published
+    resolvers.resolve();
+    await flushPromises();
+
+    const track = localParticipant.getTrackPublication(
+      Track.Source.Camera,
+    )?.track;
+    expect(track).toBeDefined();
+    expect(track!.resumeUpstream).toHaveBeenCalled();
+    expect(track!.isUpstreamPaused).toBe(false);
+  });
+
+  it("Does not pause tracks published after the publisher was destroyed", async () => {
+    await publisher.destroy();
+
+    const track = createMockLocalTrack(Track.Source.Camera);
+    await localParticipant.publishTrack(track);
+    await flushPromises();
+
+    expect(track.pauseUpstream).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+  });
+
   it("Ensure resume upstream when published is called", async () => {
     videoEnabled$.next(true);
     await publisher.createAndSetupTracks();
diff --git a/src/state/CallViewModel/localMember/Publisher.ts b/src/state/CallViewModel/localMember/Publisher.ts
index 0d5f263a6..cf6fb9fe8 100644
--- a/src/state/CallViewModel/localMember/Publisher.ts
+++ b/src/state/CallViewModel/localMember/Publisher.ts
@@ -80,11 +80,15 @@ export class Publisher {
 
     this.connection.livekitRoom.localParticipant.on(
       ParticipantEvent.LocalTrackPublished,
-      this.onLocalTrackPublished.bind(this),
+      this.onLocalTrackPublished,
     );
   }
 
   public async destroy(): Promise<void> {
+    this.connection.livekitRoom.localParticipant.off(
+      ParticipantEvent.LocalTrackPublished,
+      this.onLocalTrackPublished,
+    );
     this.scope.end();
     this.logger.info("Scope ended -> unset handler");
     this.muteStates.audio.unsetHandler();
@@ -106,9 +110,9 @@ export class Publisher {
   // So for that we use pauseUpStream():  Stops sending media to the server by replacing
   // the sender track with null, but keeps the local MediaStreamTrack active.
   // The user can still see/hear themselves locally, but remote participants see nothing.
-  private onLocalTrackPublished(
+  private onLocalTrackPublished = (
     localTrackPublication: LocalTrackPublication,
-  ): void {
+  ): void => {
     this.logger.info("Local track published", localTrackPublication);
     const lkRoom = this.connection.livekitRoom;
     if (!this.shouldPublish) {
@@ -116,6 +120,17 @@ export class Publisher {
       this.pauseUpstreams(lkRoom, [localTrackPublication.source]).catch((e) => {
         this.logger.error(`Failed to pause upstreams`, e);
       });
+    } else {
+      // If startPublishing() ran before this track existed (track creation is
+      // not awaited and e.g. camera hardware can take a while to open), its
+      // resumeUpstreams() call found no track and did nothing. Resume here so
+      // that a track published after startPublishing() actually sends media.
+      // This is a no-op if the upstream is not paused.
+      this.resumeUpstreams(lkRoom, [localTrackPublication.source]).catch(
+        (e) => {
+          this.logger.error(`Failed to resume upstreams`, e);
+        },
+      );
     }
     if (localTrackPublication.source === Track.Source.Microphone) {
       const muteState = this.muteStates.audio;