How can I extract and render markdown formatting from the Assistants API response?

The API returns the model’s response as a plain text string that happens to include markdown syntax (including newlines, bullet points, etc.). In other words, the formatting isn’t “lost”—it’s embedded as markdown in the text. The Playground simply renders that markdown so you see the formatted output.

How to Get the Formatting

• Markdown Markup:
  When the API response includes markdown (for example, newlines as \n, lists with - or numbers), that formatting information lives in the plain text string itself. Your extraction code (e.g. my_msg = messages.data[0].content[0].text.value) is returning that string. If you print it in a plain text console, you will see \n characters and markdown symbols rather than formatted lists or paragraphs.

• Rendering:
  To display the formatted response (with paragraphs, bullet points, etc.) in your application, use a markdown parser or renderer. Many libraries are available (for example, in Python you might use markdown2 or in a web app use a JavaScript markdown library).

Example Usage in Python

PYTHONCopied
import markdown2  # Install with: pip install markdown2

# Assume my_msg is the raw markdown string extracted from the API
formatted_html = markdown2.markdown(my_msg)
print(formatted_html)

This will convert the markdown string into HTML, preserving paragraphs, lists, and other formatting.

Optional Parameter for Output Format

Some endpoints allow a response_format parameter where you can request the output in specific formats (like JSON or an object that might include additional structure). However, even when using that parameter, note that the core response is still rendered as markdown. The main difference is whether the response is wrapped in additional structure.

In Summary

• The API embeds formatting as markdown within the plain text string.
• The Playground renders the markdown, but your extraction shows raw markdown.
• To display formatted text, use a markdown parser/renderer in your application.

This is the recommended approach to “extract” and display the formatting as it was intended.