diff --git a/cuda_pathfinder/cuda/pathfinder/_dynamic_libs/load_dl_linux.py b/cuda_pathfinder/cuda/pathfinder/_dynamic_libs/load_dl_linux.py
index 24d4d67c9e2..98bcf275be4 100644
--- a/cuda_pathfinder/cuda/pathfinder/_dynamic_libs/load_dl_linux.py
+++ b/cuda_pathfinder/cuda/pathfinder/_dynamic_libs/load_dl_linux.py
@@ -208,6 +208,35 @@ def _work_around_known_bugs(libname: str, found_path: str) -> None:
                     ctypes.CDLL(dep_path, CDLL_MODE)
 
 
+def _retry_load_after_working_around_known_bugs(
+    desc: LibDescriptor, found_path: str, error: OSError
+) -> ctypes.CDLL | None:
+    """Second-chance load for known-broken NVIDIA wheels.
+
+    Returns the loaded library, or None if no workaround applies or the retry
+    also fails. Kept strictly reactive: nothing here runs unless the primary
+    load already failed with the exact signature of the known bug, so it
+    disappears by itself once the offending wheel is fixed.
+    """
+    if desc.name != "cufile" or "shm_open" not in str(error):
+        return None
+    # Work around bug in nvidia-cufile wheels (observed with
+    #   nvidia_cufile_cu13-1.15.1.6-py3-none-manylinux_2_28_aarch64.whl)
+    # Issue: libcufile.so.0 references shm_open() but has no DT_NEEDED entry
+    # for librt, so dlopen() fails with "undefined symbol: shm_open" on
+    # glibc < 2.34, where shm_open lives in librt rather than in libc.
+    # Making librt's symbols globally visible first lets the reference resolve.
+    # See https://github.com/NVIDIA/cuda-python/issues/2313
+    try:
+        ctypes.CDLL("librt.so.1", CDLL_MODE)
+    except OSError:
+        return None  # Nothing gained; defer to the original error.
+    try:
+        return _load_lib(desc, found_path)
+    except OSError:
+        return None  # Defer to the original error, which is the more informative one.
+
+
 def load_with_abs_path(desc: LibDescriptor, found_path: str, found_via: str | None = None) -> LoadedDL:
     """Load a dynamic library from the given path.
 
@@ -226,5 +255,8 @@ def load_with_abs_path(desc: LibDescriptor, found_path: str, found_via: str | No
     try:
         handle = _load_lib(desc, found_path)
     except OSError as e:
-        raise RuntimeError(f"Failed to dlopen {found_path}: {e}") from e
+        retried_handle = _retry_load_after_working_around_known_bugs(desc, found_path, e)
+        if retried_handle is None:
+            raise RuntimeError(f"Failed to dlopen {found_path}: {e}") from e
+        handle = retried_handle
     return LoadedDL(found_path, False, handle._handle, found_via)
diff --git a/cuda_pathfinder/tests/test_load_dl_linux.py b/cuda_pathfinder/tests/test_load_dl_linux.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..79689f5d519
--- /dev/null
+++ b/cuda_pathfinder/tests/test_load_dl_linux.py
@@ -0,0 +1,135 @@
+# SPDX-FileCopyrightText: Copyright (c) 2026 NVIDIA CORPORATION & AFFILIATES. All rights reserved.
+# SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import sys
+
+import pytest
+
+from cuda.pathfinder._dynamic_libs.descriptor_catalog import DescriptorSpec
+
+# load_dl_linux binds dlinfo()/dlerror() from libdl at module scope, which only
+# exists off Windows. platform_loader.py routes every non-win32 platform here.
+pytestmark = pytest.mark.skipif(sys.platform == "win32", reason="Exercises the non-Windows dynamic library loader")
+
+_SHM_OPEN_ERROR = "libcufile.so.0: undefined symbol: shm_open"
+
+CUFILE_DESC = DescriptorSpec(
+    name="cufile",
+    packaged_with="ctk",
+    linux_sonames=("libcufile.so.0",),
+)
+
+
+class FakeHandle:
+    _handle = 0x1234
+
+
+def _record_cdll_calls(monkeypatch, load_dl_linux, *, librt_loadable: bool = True) -> list[str]:
+    """Capture ctypes.CDLL() calls made by the module under test."""
+    loaded: list[str] = []
+
+    def fake_cdll(name, *args, **kwargs):
+        loaded.append(name)
+        if not librt_loadable:
+            raise OSError(f"{name}: cannot open shared object file")
+        return FakeHandle()
+
+    monkeypatch.setattr(load_dl_linux.ctypes, "CDLL", fake_cdll)
+    return loaded
+
+
+@pytest.mark.agent_authored(model="claude-opus-5")
+def test_cufile_shm_open_failure_is_retried_after_loading_librt(monkeypatch):
+    """nvidia-cufile wheels reference shm_open() without a DT_NEEDED entry for librt.
+
+    See https://github.com/NVIDIA/cuda-python/issues/2313: on glibc < 2.34
+    shm_open lives in librt, so the first dlopen() fails and only succeeds
+    once librt's symbols are globally visible.
+    """
+    from cuda.pathfinder._dynamic_libs import load_dl_linux
+
+    loaded = _record_cdll_calls(monkeypatch, load_dl_linux)
+    attempts: list[str] = []
+
+    def fake_load_lib(desc, filename):
+        attempts.append(filename)
+        if len(attempts) == 1:
+            raise OSError(_SHM_OPEN_ERROR)
+        return FakeHandle()
+
+    monkeypatch.setattr(load_dl_linux, "_load_lib", fake_load_lib)
+
+    loaded_dl = load_dl_linux.load_with_abs_path(CUFILE_DESC, "/site-packages/nvidia/cu13/lib/libcufile.so.0", "conda")
+
+    assert loaded_dl.abs_path == "/site-packages/nvidia/cu13/lib/libcufile.so.0"
+    assert loaded_dl.found_via == "conda"
+    assert loaded_dl._handle_uint == FakeHandle._handle
+    assert loaded == ["librt.so.1"]
+    assert len(attempts) == 2
+
+
+@pytest.mark.agent_authored(model="claude-opus-5")
+def test_cufile_retry_reports_the_original_error_if_librt_does_not_help(monkeypatch):
+    from cuda.pathfinder._dynamic_libs import load_dl_linux
+
+    loaded = _record_cdll_calls(monkeypatch, load_dl_linux)
+
+    def fake_load_lib(desc, filename):
+        raise OSError(_SHM_OPEN_ERROR)
+
+    monkeypatch.setattr(load_dl_linux, "_load_lib", fake_load_lib)
+
+    with pytest.raises(RuntimeError, match="undefined symbol: shm_open"):
+        load_dl_linux.load_with_abs_path(CUFILE_DESC, "/site-packages/nvidia/cu13/lib/libcufile.so.0")
+
+    assert loaded == ["librt.so.1"]
+
+
+@pytest.mark.agent_authored(model="claude-opus-5")
+def test_cufile_retry_is_skipped_if_librt_cannot_be_loaded(monkeypatch):
+    from cuda.pathfinder._dynamic_libs import load_dl_linux
+
+    loaded = _record_cdll_calls(monkeypatch, load_dl_linux, librt_loadable=False)
+    attempts: list[str] = []
+
+    def fake_load_lib(desc, filename):
+        attempts.append(filename)
+        raise OSError(_SHM_OPEN_ERROR)
+
+    monkeypatch.setattr(load_dl_linux, "_load_lib", fake_load_lib)
+
+    with pytest.raises(RuntimeError, match="undefined symbol: shm_open"):
+        load_dl_linux.load_with_abs_path(CUFILE_DESC, "/site-packages/nvidia/cu13/lib/libcufile.so.0")
+
+    assert loaded == ["librt.so.1"]
+    assert len(attempts) == 1
+
+
+@pytest.mark.agent_authored(model="claude-opus-5")
+@pytest.mark.parametrize(
+    ("libname", "message"),
+    [
+        ("cufile", "libcufile.so.0: cannot open shared object file"),  # unrelated cufile failure
+        ("cublas", _SHM_OPEN_ERROR),  # right symptom, wrong library
+    ],
+)
+def test_unrelated_dlopen_failures_do_not_trigger_the_librt_workaround(monkeypatch, libname, message):
+    from cuda.pathfinder._dynamic_libs import load_dl_linux
+
+    loaded = _record_cdll_calls(monkeypatch, load_dl_linux)
+    attempts: list[str] = []
+
+    def fake_load_lib(desc, filename):
+        attempts.append(filename)
+        raise OSError(message)
+
+    monkeypatch.setattr(load_dl_linux, "_load_lib", fake_load_lib)
+
+    desc = DescriptorSpec(name=libname, packaged_with="ctk", linux_sonames=(f"lib{libname}.so.0",))
+    with pytest.raises(RuntimeError, match="Failed to dlopen"):
+        load_dl_linux.load_with_abs_path(desc, f"/site-packages/lib{libname}.so.0")
+
+    assert loaded == []
+    assert len(attempts) == 1