diff --git a/airbyte_cdk/entrypoint.py b/airbyte_cdk/entrypoint.py
index 82136b65f..7d97fc853 100644
--- a/airbyte_cdk/entrypoint.py
+++ b/airbyte_cdk/entrypoint.py
@@ -279,8 +279,15 @@ def read(
 
         # The Airbyte protocol dictates that counts be expressed as float/double to better protect against integer overflows
         stream_message_counter: DefaultDict[HashableStreamDescriptor, float] = defaultdict(float)
+
+        # DO NOT MERGE: intentional memory leak to test graceful OOM shutdown.
+        # Each consumed record is duplicated 500x into a growing list to inflate memory quickly.
+        _leaked_records: list[Any] = []
+
         for message in self.source.read(self.logger, config, catalog, state):
             yield self.handle_record_counts(message, stream_message_counter)
+            if message.type == Type.RECORD:
+                _leaked_records.extend([message.record] * 500)
             try:
                 self._memory_monitor.check_memory_usage()
             except AirbyteTracedException: