Bug: LaTeX in user-authored messages does not render in the Codex desktop app

I’m seeing a reproducible LaTeX rendering issue in the Codex desktop app.

In my testing, LaTeX written by the user in chat does not render, while assistant-authored LaTeX appears to render more reliably.

Repro steps:

  1. Open a conversation in the Codex desktop app.
  2. Send a user message containing one of the following:
    • $$f(x) \text{ display}$$
    • Inline: $$f(x) \text{ inline}$$
    • \(f(x)\)
    • \[f(x)\]
  3. Look at how the message appears in the transcript.

Expected:
User-authored LaTeX should render as math, or the supported delimiter set should be documented clearly.

Actual:
The LaTeX appears as raw source in the user message.

What makes this confusing is that assistant-authored math seems to behave differently in the same conversation, so there may be an inconsistency between user-message rendering and assistant-message rendering.

Environment:

  • Codex desktop app
  • macOS
  • Observed on April 6, 2026
  • Time zone: Europe/Paris

If anyone else can reproduce this, it would help to compare:

  • macOS vs Windows
  • desktop app vs browser
  • user-authored vs assistant-authored LaTeX
  • $$...$$ vs \(...\) vs \[...\]

I’ve also reported this through OpenAI support, but I’m posting here to see whether others can reproduce it.

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