diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 644ec5a17..0526927c5 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -13,6 +13,11 @@
 - Cron tool passes `id` to the gateway for update/remove/run/runs (keeps `jobId` input). (#180) — thanks @adamgall
 - macOS: treat location permission as always-only to avoid iOS-only enums. (#165) — thanks @Nachx639
 
+## 2026.1.4-1
+
+### Fixes
+- Control UI: render Markdown in chat messages (sanitized).
+
 
 ## 2026.1.4
 
diff --git a/package.json b/package.json
index a432fe812..94a2b7952 100644
--- a/package.json
+++ b/package.json
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 {
   "name": "clawdbot",
-  "version": "2026.1.4",
+  "version": "2026.1.4-1",
   "description": "WhatsApp gateway CLI (Baileys web) with Pi RPC agent",
   "type": "module",
   "main": "dist/index.js",
diff --git a/pnpm-lock.yaml b/pnpm-lock.yaml
index 9303e34d2..2eb154c0c 100644
--- a/pnpm-lock.yaml
+++ b/pnpm-lock.yaml
@@ -200,9 +200,15 @@ importers:
 
   ui:
     dependencies:
+      dompurify:
+        specifier: ^3.3.1
+        version: 3.3.1
       lit:
         specifier: ^3.3.2
         version: 3.3.2
+      marked:
+        specifier: ^17.0.1
+        version: 17.0.1
     devDependencies:
       '@vitest/browser-playwright':
         specifier: 4.0.16
@@ -1627,6 +1633,9 @@ packages:
   dom-accessibility-api@0.5.16:
     resolution: {integrity: sha512-X7BJ2yElsnOJ30pZF4uIIDfBEVgF4XEBxL9Bxhy6dnrm5hkzqmsWHGTiHqRiITNhMyFLyAiWndIJP7Z1NTteDg==}
 
+  dompurify@3.3.1:
+    resolution: {integrity: sha512-qkdCKzLNtrgPFP1Vo+98FRzJnBRGe4ffyCea9IwHB1fyxPOeNTHpLKYGd4Uk9xvNoH0ZoOjwZxNptyMwqrId1Q==}
+
   dotenv@17.2.3:
     resolution: {integrity: sha512-JVUnt+DUIzu87TABbhPmNfVdBDt18BLOWjMUFJMSi/Qqg7NTYtabbvSNJGOJ7afbRuv9D/lngizHtP7QyLQ+9w==}
     engines: {node: '>=12'}
@@ -2200,6 +2209,11 @@ packages:
     engines: {node: '>= 20'}
     hasBin: true
 
+  marked@17.0.1:
+    resolution: {integrity: sha512-boeBdiS0ghpWcSwoNm/jJBwdpFaMnZWRzjA6SkUMYb40SVaN1x7mmfGKp0jvexGcx+7y2La5zRZsYFZI6Qpypg==}
+    engines: {node: '>= 20'}
+    hasBin: true
+
   math-intrinsics@1.1.0:
     resolution: {integrity: sha512-/IXtbwEk5HTPyEwyKX6hGkYXxM9nbj64B+ilVJnC/R6B0pH5G4V3b0pVbL7DBj4tkhBAppbQUlf6F6Xl9LHu1g==}
     engines: {node: '>= 0.4'}
@@ -4418,6 +4432,10 @@ snapshots:
   dom-accessibility-api@0.5.16:
     optional: true
 
+  dompurify@3.3.1:
+    optionalDependencies:
+      '@types/trusted-types': 2.0.7
+
   dotenv@17.2.3: {}
 
   dunder-proto@1.0.1:
@@ -5032,6 +5050,8 @@ snapshots:
 
   marked@16.4.2: {}
 
+  marked@17.0.1: {}
+
   math-intrinsics@1.1.0: {}
 
   mdurl@2.0.0: {}
diff --git a/ui/package.json b/ui/package.json
index 0a72c92e9..a9300bd12 100644
--- a/ui/package.json
+++ b/ui/package.json
@@ -9,7 +9,9 @@
     "test": "vitest run --config vitest.config.ts"
   },
   "dependencies": {
-    "lit": "^3.3.2"
+    "dompurify": "^3.3.1",
+    "lit": "^3.3.2",
+    "marked": "^17.0.1"
   },
   "devDependencies": {
     "@vitest/browser-playwright": "4.0.16",
diff --git a/ui/src/styles/components.css b/ui/src/styles/components.css
index 98586e949..7665f661f 100644
--- a/ui/src/styles/components.css
+++ b/ui/src/styles/components.css
@@ -569,10 +569,106 @@
 }
 
 .chat-text {
-  white-space: pre-wrap;
   overflow-wrap: anywhere;
   word-break: break-word;
   color: var(--chat-text);
+  line-height: 1.5;
+}
+
+.chat-text :where(p, ul, ol, pre, blockquote, table) {
+  margin: 0;
+}
+
+.chat-text :where(p + p, p + ul, p + ol, p + pre, p + blockquote, p + table) {
+  margin-top: 0.75em;
+}
+
+.chat-text :where(ul, ol) {
+  padding-left: 1.1em;
+}
+
+.chat-text :where(li + li) {
+  margin-top: 0.25em;
+}
+
+.chat-text :where(a) {
+  color: var(--accent);
+  text-decoration-thickness: 2px;
+  text-underline-offset: 2px;
+}
+
+.chat-text :where(a:hover) {
+  text-decoration-thickness: 3px;
+}
+
+.chat-text :where(blockquote) {
+  border-left: 2px solid rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.14);
+  padding-left: 12px;
+  color: var(--muted);
+}
+
+:root[data-theme="light"] .chat-text :where(blockquote) {
+  border-left-color: rgba(16, 24, 40, 0.16);
+}
+
+.chat-text :where(hr) {
+  border: 0;
+  border-top: 1px solid var(--border);
+  opacity: 0.6;
+  margin: 0.9em 0;
+}
+
+.chat-text :where(code) {
+  font-family: var(--font-mono);
+  font-size: 0.92em;
+}
+
+.chat-text :where(:not(pre) > code) {
+  padding: 0.15em 0.35em;
+  border-radius: 8px;
+  border: 1px solid var(--border);
+  background: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2);
+}
+
+:root[data-theme="light"] .chat-text :where(:not(pre) > code) {
+  background: rgba(16, 24, 40, 0.05);
+}
+
+.chat-text :where(pre) {
+  margin-top: 0.75em;
+  padding: 10px 12px;
+  border-radius: 14px;
+  border: 1px solid var(--border);
+  background: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.22);
+  overflow: auto;
+}
+
+:root[data-theme="light"] .chat-text :where(pre) {
+  background: rgba(16, 24, 40, 0.04);
+}
+
+.chat-text :where(pre code) {
+  font-size: 12px;
+  white-space: pre;
+}
+
+.chat-text :where(table) {
+  margin-top: 0.75em;
+  border-collapse: collapse;
+  width: 100%;
+  font-size: 12px;
+}
+
+.chat-text :where(th, td) {
+  border: 1px solid var(--border);
+  padding: 6px 8px;
+  vertical-align: top;
+}
+
+.chat-text :where(th) {
+  font-family: var(--font-mono);
+  font-weight: 600;
+  color: var(--muted);
 }
 
 .chat-tool-card {
diff --git a/ui/src/ui/markdown.test.ts b/ui/src/ui/markdown.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..da2c4aca0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/ui/src/ui/markdown.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,33 @@
+import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+
+import { toSanitizedMarkdownHtml } from "./markdown";
+
+describe("toSanitizedMarkdownHtml", () => {
+  it("renders basic markdown", () => {
+    const html = toSanitizedMarkdownHtml("Hello **world**");
+    expect(html).toContain("<strong>world</strong>");
+  });
+
+  it("strips scripts and unsafe links", () => {
+    const html = toSanitizedMarkdownHtml(
+      [
+        "<script>alert(1)</script>",
+        "",
+        "[x](javascript:alert(1))",
+        "",
+        "[ok](https://example.com)",
+      ].join("\n"),
+    );
+    expect(html).not.toContain("<script");
+    expect(html).not.toContain("javascript:");
+    expect(html).toContain("https://example.com");
+  });
+
+  it("renders fenced code blocks", () => {
+    const html = toSanitizedMarkdownHtml(["```ts", "console.log(1)", "```"].join("\n"));
+    expect(html).toContain("<pre>");
+    expect(html).toContain("<code");
+    expect(html).toContain("console.log(1)");
+  });
+});
+
diff --git a/ui/src/ui/markdown.ts b/ui/src/ui/markdown.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..6c638d22f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/ui/src/ui/markdown.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,66 @@
+import DOMPurify from "dompurify";
+import { marked } from "marked";
+
+marked.setOptions({
+  gfm: true,
+  breaks: true,
+  headerIds: false,
+  mangle: false,
+});
+
+const allowedTags = [
+  "a",
+  "b",
+  "blockquote",
+  "br",
+  "code",
+  "del",
+  "em",
+  "h1",
+  "h2",
+  "h3",
+  "h4",
+  "hr",
+  "i",
+  "li",
+  "ol",
+  "p",
+  "pre",
+  "strong",
+  "table",
+  "tbody",
+  "td",
+  "th",
+  "thead",
+  "tr",
+  "ul",
+];
+
+const allowedAttrs = ["class", "href", "rel", "target", "title"];
+
+let hooksInstalled = false;
+
+function installHooks() {
+  if (hooksInstalled) return;
+  hooksInstalled = true;
+
+  DOMPurify.addHook("afterSanitizeAttributes", (node) => {
+    if (!(node instanceof HTMLAnchorElement)) return;
+    const href = node.getAttribute("href");
+    if (!href) return;
+    node.setAttribute("rel", "noreferrer noopener");
+    node.setAttribute("target", "_blank");
+  });
+}
+
+export function toSanitizedMarkdownHtml(markdown: string): string {
+  const input = markdown.trim();
+  if (!input) return "";
+  installHooks();
+  const rendered = marked.parse(input) as string;
+  return DOMPurify.sanitize(rendered, {
+    ALLOWED_TAGS: allowedTags,
+    ALLOWED_ATTR: allowedAttrs,
+  });
+}
+
diff --git a/ui/src/ui/views/chat.ts b/ui/src/ui/views/chat.ts
index 2003dc3df..830cccf58 100644
--- a/ui/src/ui/views/chat.ts
+++ b/ui/src/ui/views/chat.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,8 @@
 import { html, nothing } from "lit";
+import { unsafeHTML } from "lit/directives/unsafe-html.js";
 
 import type { SessionsListResult } from "../types";
+import { toSanitizedMarkdownHtml } from "../markdown";
 import { resolveToolDisplay, formatToolDetail } from "../tool-display";
 
 export type ChatProps = {
@@ -178,13 +180,19 @@ function renderMessage(message: unknown, opts?: { streaming?: boolean }) {
   const extractedText = extractText(message);
   const contentText = typeof m.content === "string" ? m.content : null;
   const fallback = hasToolCards ? null : JSON.stringify(message, null, 2);
-  const text = !isToolResult
-    ? extractedText?.trim()
-      ? extractedText
-      : contentText?.trim()
-        ? contentText
-        : fallback
-    : null;
+
+  const display =
+    !isToolResult && extractedText?.trim()
+      ? { kind: "text" as const, value: extractedText }
+      : !isToolResult && contentText?.trim()
+        ? { kind: "text" as const, value: contentText }
+        : !isToolResult && fallback
+          ? { kind: "json" as const, value: fallback }
+          : null;
+  const markdown =
+    display?.kind === "json"
+      ? ["```json", display.value, "```"].join("\n")
+      : display?.value ?? null;
 
   const timestamp =
     typeof m.timestamp === "number" ? new Date(m.timestamp).toLocaleTimeString() : "";
@@ -194,7 +202,9 @@ function renderMessage(message: unknown, opts?: { streaming?: boolean }) {
     <div class="chat-line ${klass}">
       <div class="chat-msg">
         <div class="chat-bubble ${opts?.streaming ? "streaming" : ""}">
-          ${text ? html`<div class="chat-text">${text}</div>` : nothing}
+          ${markdown
+            ? html`<div class="chat-text">${unsafeHTML(toSanitizedMarkdownHtml(markdown))}</div>`
+            : nothing}
           ${toolCards.map((card) => renderToolCard(card))}
         </div>
         <div class="chat-stamp mono">