diff --git a/python/build_sidecar.py b/python/build_sidecar.py
index 57149b8..a1d65ab 100644
--- a/python/build_sidecar.py
+++ b/python/build_sidecar.py
@@ -119,8 +119,11 @@ def create_venv_and_install(cpu_only: bool) -> Path:
             "--index-url", "https://download.pytorch.org/whl/cpu",
         )
     else:
-        print("[build] Installing PyTorch (default, may include CUDA)")
-        pip_install("torch", "torchaudio")
+        print("[build] Installing PyTorch (CUDA 12.6)")
+        pip_install(
+            "torch", "torchaudio",
+            "--index-url", "https://download.pytorch.org/whl/cu126",
+        )
 
     # Install project and dev deps (includes pyinstaller)
     print("[build] Installing project dependencies")