Add markdown attribute to Task class (#2865)

* Add markdown attribute to Task class for formatting responses in Markdown

Co-Authored-By: Joe Moura <joao@crewai.com>

* Enhance markdown feature based on PR feedback

Co-Authored-By: Joe Moura <joao@crewai.com>

* Fix lint error and validation error in test_markdown_task.py

Co-Authored-By: Joe Moura <joao@crewai.com>

---------

Co-authored-by: Devin AI <158243242+devin-ai-integration[bot]@users.noreply.github.com>
Co-authored-by: Joe Moura <joao@crewai.com>

src/crewai/task.py

@@ -135,6 +135,10 @@ class Task(BaseModel):
         description="Whether the task should have a human review the final answer of the agent",
         default=False,
     )
+    markdown: Optional[bool] = Field(
+        description="Whether the task should instruct the agent to return the final answer formatted in Markdown",
+        default=False,
+    )
     converter_cls: Optional[Type[Converter]] = Field(
         description="A converter class used to export structured output",
         default=None,
@@ -522,10 +526,14 @@ class Task(BaseModel):
         return guardrail_result
 
     def prompt(self) -> str:
-        """Prompt the task.
-
+        """Generates the task prompt with optional markdown formatting.
+        
+        When the markdown attribute is True, instructions for formatting the
+        response in Markdown syntax will be added to the prompt.
+        
         Returns:
-            Prompt of the task.
+            str: The formatted prompt string containing the task description,
+                 expected output, and optional markdown formatting instructions.
         """
         tasks_slices = [self.description]
 
@@ -533,6 +541,17 @@ class Task(BaseModel):
             expected_output=self.expected_output
         )
         tasks_slices = [self.description, output]
+        
+        if self.markdown:
+            markdown_instruction = """Your final answer MUST be formatted in Markdown syntax.
+Follow these guidelines:
+- Use # for headers
+- Use ** for bold text
+- Use * for italic text
+- Use - or * for bullet points
+- Use `code` for inline code
+- Use ```language for code blocks"""
+            tasks_slices.append(markdown_instruction)
         return "\n".join(tasks_slices)
 
     def interpolate_inputs_and_add_conversation_history(

tests/test_markdown_task.py

@@ -0,0 +1,96 @@
+"""Test the markdown attribute in Task class."""
+
+import pytest
+from pydantic import BaseModel
+
+from crewai import Agent, Task
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize(
+    "markdown_enabled,should_contain_instructions",
+    [
+        (True, True),
+        (False, False),
+    ],
+)
+def test_markdown_option_in_task_prompt(markdown_enabled, should_contain_instructions):
+    """Test that markdown flag correctly controls the inclusion of markdown formatting instructions."""
+    
+    researcher = Agent(
+        role="Researcher",
+        goal="Research a topic",
+        backstory="You're a researcher specialized in providing well-formatted content.",
+        allow_delegation=False,
+    )
+
+    task = Task(
+        description="Research advances in AI in 2023",
+        expected_output="A summary of key AI advances in 2023",
+        markdown=markdown_enabled,
+        agent=researcher,
+    )
+
+    prompt = task.prompt()
+    
+    assert "Research advances in AI in 2023" in prompt
+    assert "A summary of key AI advances in 2023" in prompt
+    
+    if should_contain_instructions:
+        assert "Your final answer MUST be formatted in Markdown syntax." in prompt
+        assert "Use # for headers" in prompt
+        assert "Use ** for bold text" in prompt
+    else:
+        assert "Your final answer MUST be formatted in Markdown syntax." not in prompt
+
+
+def test_markdown_with_empty_description():
+    """Test markdown formatting with empty description."""
+    
+    researcher = Agent(
+        role="Researcher",
+        goal="Research a topic",
+        backstory="You're a researcher.",
+        allow_delegation=False,
+    )
+
+    task = Task(
+        description="",
+        expected_output="A summary",
+        markdown=True,
+        agent=researcher,
+    )
+
+    prompt = task.prompt()
+    
+    assert prompt.strip() != ""
+    assert "A summary" in prompt
+    assert "Your final answer MUST be formatted in Markdown syntax." in prompt
+
+
+def test_markdown_with_complex_output_format():
+    """Test markdown with JSON output format to ensure compatibility."""
+    
+    class ResearchOutput(BaseModel):
+        title: str
+        findings: list[str]
+    
+    researcher = Agent(
+        role="Researcher",
+        goal="Research a topic",
+        backstory="You're a researcher.",
+        allow_delegation=False,
+    )
+
+    task = Task(
+        description="Research topic",
+        expected_output="Research results",
+        markdown=True,
+        output_json=ResearchOutput,
+        agent=researcher,
+    )
+
+    prompt = task.prompt()
+    
+    assert "Your final answer MUST be formatted in Markdown syntax." in prompt
+    assert "Research topic" in prompt
+    assert "Research results" in prompt