AI Markdown Studio Community

The open-source core of AI Markdown Studio: a VS Code extension for authoring Markdown with a live preview panel, Mermaid diagram support, KaTeX math, syntax highlighting, table formatting, document and presentation preview themes, a slide-based presentation preview, AI-assisted document and presentation generation, AI Paste to Markdown, HTML export, and basic DOCX export.

AI Markdown Studio Community is licensed under the MIT License and is useful entirely on its own. It includes AI-assisted document and presentation generation, AI Paste to Markdown, HTML export, and basic DOCX. PDF/PPTX export, high-fidelity DOCX, broad file conversion, theme AI workflows, shared custom theme folders, agent tools, and corporate PowerPoint template automation are provided separately by AI Markdown Studio Pro.

If AI Markdown Studio Community is useful to you, consider supporting the project through GitHub Sponsors.

For a complete end-user walkthrough, see user-guide.md. For a focused comparison of what Pro adds, see upgrade-to-pro.md.

See It In Action

Preview, zoom Mermaid diagrams, and switch themes in one short loop.

Create AI-generated presentations from a brief and open them directly in slide preview.

Export a Markdown document to HTML and open the standalone browser result.

Export a Markdown presentation to HTML and keep the slide-style experience in the browser.

Sample documents

Open these Markdown files in VS Code to explore the document preview, themes, Mermaid rendering, math, tables, and export workflows:

• Creating Agentic AI Applications — a long-form training guide with structured sections, tables, code examples, and practical explanations.
• Mermaid Diagram Gallery — a collection of diagram types for preview, zoom, and export experimentation.

Sample presentations

Open these files to try slide navigation, filmstrip view, themes, layouts, Mermaid media, and speaker notes:

• Markdown, Made Visible — a 20-slide Community feature showcase and presentation-preview sample.
• Dinosaurs of the Triassic — a colorful, audience-friendly deck demonstrating cover slides, diagrams, notes, and presentation pacing.

Why Markdown Studio Exists

Markdown is an ideal file format for the AI era because it works as a simple common language between humans and AI systems. It is plain text, easy to parse, token-efficient, portable between tools, diffable in Git, and stable over time. AI Markdown Studio exists to keep valuable knowledge in that open format instead of letting it disappear into chat threads, closed editors, or heavyweight document files.

It also keeps content separate from presentation. You can store ideas, documentation, notes, and decks in a clean standard Markdown form, then apply themes as a separate visualization layer when you want a different reading experience, presentation style, or brand. That keeps the source simple while making the output easy to change.

Community is the open-source core of that workflow. It gives you a practical Markdown workspace for authoring, preview, presentation decks, AI-assisted generation, and basic export, so your Markdown knowledge base stays useful to both people and AI every day.

User Guide Index

• Installation
• Features
• Usage & Commands
• See It In Action
• Feature Details
  • Markdown Preview
  • Presentation Preview
  • Table Formatting
  • HTML Export
  • AI-Assisted Generation
  • AI Paste to Markdown
  • Basic DOCX Export
  • Command List
  • Mermaid Diagram Example
• Security
• AI Markdown Studio Pro
• Acknowledgments & Third-Party Licenses

Installation

1. Open VS Code.
2. Go to the Extensions view (Ctrl+Shift+X).
3. Search for AI Markdown Studio Community.
4. Click Install.

Alternatively, install from the command line:

code --install-extension GustavoSerpa.markdown-ai-studio

Or install a packaged build directly from a .vsix file:

code --install-extension markdown-ai-studio-1.0.0.vsix

If you are working on the repository itself, use the workspace root README for build and verification commands.

Features

• Preview-first custom editor - opening a Markdown file uses the extension's preview custom editor by default, and switching to edit mode closes the preview surface for that file.
• Live preview - renders standard Markdown documents and presentation-style Markdown decks in a panel as you type.
• Mermaid diagrams - fenced ```mermaid ``` blocks are rendered as diagrams, with strict-mode initialization for untrusted content.
• Mermaid diagram zoom - zoom a rendered diagram in place from the preview through an overlay viewer.
• Syntax highlighting - code blocks highlighted via highlight.js.
• Math equations - KaTeX-rendered inline and block math ($...$ / $$...$$).
• Task lists, footnotes, and emoji - common Markdown extensions are enabled by default.
• Local image resolution - images are resolved relative to the source Markdown file.
• Document themes - standard document preview can follow VS Code automatically or use bundled themes.
• Presentation themes - presentation preview can load bundled slide themes.
• Presentation preview - presentation-style Markdown files open in a slide viewer with slide navigation, a collapsible filmstrip, immersive fullscreen mode, fixed-canvas scaling, and speaker-note display.
• AI-assisted document generation - create Markdown documents from prompts through the GitHub Copilot service already configured in VS Code, with consent gating.
• AI-assisted presentation generation - generate presentation-style Markdown decks from prompts through the same Copilot-backed workflow.
• AI Paste to Markdown - convert clipboard text into a new Markdown file.
• Basic DOCX export - export rendered Markdown to DOCX through the Community DOCX path.
• Front matter toggle - show or hide a rendered front-matter summary in the preview.
• Table formatting and preview layouts - auto-align Markdown tables with a single command, also available through Format Document; preview tables can stay wide and scroll horizontally or wrap to the available width.
• HTML export - save the rendered document as a standalone, self-contained HTML file.
• Command launcher - quick access to the extension's main actions from the editor title bar. The launcher is extensible: when a compatible feature extension such as AI Markdown Studio Pro is installed, its commands appear alongside the Community commands.
• Command palette settings shortcut - jump directly to the extension's settings with Change Settings....
• Single-tab per file - always one tab per file; switching modes closes the other surface.

Usage

Preview-first and mode switching:

• Opening a Markdown file uses the markdownAiStudio.markdownPreview custom editor by default.
• Preview Markdown is available from the editor title bar and command list when a Markdown text editor is active.
• Edit Markdown is available from the preview title bar and the command list. Switching modes closes the other surface for that file.

All commands are available from the Command Palette (Ctrl+Shift+P), and the most common ones appear as icons in the editor title bar when a .md file is open.

Feature Details

Markdown Preview

The live preview renders your Markdown document in real time as you edit. By default, opening a .md file uses the extension's preview custom editor. Only one surface per file is kept open; switching modes closes the other.

To switch between preview and edit modes:

• Use Preview Markdown from the editor title bar or command list when a Markdown text editor is active.
• Use the pencil icon (Edit Markdown) in the preview tab's title bar, or the Explorer file context menu, to switch to edit mode.
• Use the command list (Show AI Markdown Studio Commands) to switch modes from anywhere.

The preview supports:

• Standard Markdown (headings, lists, links, images, bold, italic, etc.)
• Fenced code blocks with syntax highlighting
• Mermaid diagrams (```mermaid ``` blocks)
• Mermaid diagram zoom in-place from the preview via an overlay viewer
• Math equations ($inline$ and $$block$$)
• Task lists, footnotes, and emoji
• Local images resolved relative to the source file
• Theme-aware styling with selectable document themes

Theme selection lives in Settings under the Theme Selection section. Community includes the bundled document themes only; custom theme folders are a Pro feature.

When a Markdown file declares document: presentation in front matter, the preview switches to a slide-based presentation viewer instead of the standard scrolling document preview. Files without that explicit front-matter value stay on the standard text preview path.

Preview-specific settings:

Mermaid diagrams in the standard document preview include a zoom control. Use the on-diagram Zoom button or double-click the rendered diagram to open it in an overlay viewer. Inside the viewer, use +, -, Fit, or the keyboard shortcuts +, -, 0, and Esc.

Presentation Preview

When the current Markdown file declares document: presentation in front matter, the preview switches into a slide-based presentation mode.

Presentation preview features include:

• slide-by-slide navigation with previous and next controls
• keyboard navigation with arrow keys, Page Up, Page Down, Home, and End
• a collapsible filmstrip of slides for quick navigation
• immersive fullscreen mode, toggled with the on-screen control or the F key
• fixed-canvas scaling so fullscreen preserves the same slide composition you see in the smaller preview panel
• template-aware layouts for supported slide types such as cover, default, two-columns, image-right, and divider
• speaker notes displayed below the active slide when notes are present

Presentation preview themes are bundled only in Community (black, galaxy, modern-blue). Custom presentation theme folders are available in Pro.

Use Esc to exit immersive mode.

The presentation preview follows the same Markdown structure used by AI Markdown Studio Pro's PPTX export:

• top-level YAML front matter must include document: presentation, plus optional deck metadata like title, author, theme, and ratio
• --- separates slides
• <!--slide: template-name--> optionally overrides the renderer layout for a slide
• <!--notes: ...--> and <!--speaker notes: ...--> comments become speaker notes for that slide

Table Formatting

The Format Markdown Tables command automatically aligns all Markdown tables in the active file for consistent, readable source formatting. If you want tables formatted automatically on save, enable markdownAiStudio.formatTablesOnSave in the settings.

1. Open a .md file containing one or more Markdown tables.
2. Run Format Markdown Tables from the Command Palette or the command list.
3. All tables in the file are reformatted in place.

This command is also registered as a document formatter, so it can be invoked via Format Document (Shift+Alt+F) when a .md file is active.

Table Preview Layout

Document preview has two table layouts. Wide (the default) keeps each cell on one line and lets a table scroll horizontally when needed. Wrap fits the table to the preview width by wrapping cell text.

Set the resource-scoped markdownAiStudio.documentTableLayout setting to choose the default for a document. You can also use the control that appears over a preview table to switch that table between Wrap table text and Use wide table layout for the current preview session. Wide tables expose left and right scrolling controls when they overflow.

HTML Export

Run Export Markdown as HTML from the Command Palette or the command list to save the current Markdown file as a self-contained .html file. The exported file includes the extension's styling and rendered content for sharing outside VS Code.

The setting markdownAiStudio.allowRemoteResources controls whether remote http(s) resources referenced in your Markdown may be loaded. Set it to false in privacy-sensitive environments.

AI-Assisted Generation

When GitHub Copilot is configured in VS Code, AI Markdown Studio Community can create new Markdown documents or presentation decks from prompts. With the default markdownAiStudio.aiAccess: "ask" state, the commands stay visible and the disclosure appears only when an AI feature actually tries to run. If markdownAiStudio.aiAccess is denied, the AI commands hide again except for Enable AI Features....

AI actions are user-triggered and use the model made available through the user's VS Code/Copilot setup. The preferred model is configurable with markdownAiStudio.aiModel; if it is unavailable or unsuccessful, the extension tries gpt-5.4-mini and then the first available Copilot model. Depending on the Copilot plan or configured AI provider, requests may consume token quota or incur usage charges. The Enable AI Features... authorization notice explains this and requires the user to accept responsibility for those costs before AI features are enabled.

• Generate Document (AI) creates a new Markdown document from a prompt.
• Generate Presentation (AI) creates a new presentation-style Markdown deck from a prompt.

Use Enable AI Features... if you need to review or re-enable the AI data-sharing notice, or change markdownAiStudio.aiAccess directly in Settings.

AI Paste to Markdown

Use Paste as New Markdown File to turn clipboard text into a new Markdown file. This follows the same AI consent workflow as document generation: it is visible when Copilot is configured unless markdownAiStudio.aiAccess is denied, and it prompts on first real AI use while the state is ask.

Basic DOCX Export

Use Export Markdown as DOCX (Basic) to save the current Markdown file as a DOCX document. This is the Community DOCX path; AI Markdown Studio Pro provides the higher-fidelity DOCX export workflow.

Command List

The Show AI Markdown Studio Commands action is available from the editor title bar when a Markdown file is open.

Use it as a single entry point to:

• open the preview
• edit the current Markdown file
• toggle front matter when the active preview has front matter
• format tables
• generate a document or presentation with AI
• export HTML
• export basic DOCX
• enable AI features
• open extension settings

When a compatible feature extension such as AI Markdown Studio Pro is installed, its registered commands appear in the same launcher, so Pro features look integrated without Community depending on Pro.

Security

Security & Privacy Notice: This extension renders and exports Markdown content, including embedded HTML, images, and diagrams. Untrusted Markdown may reference remote or local resources. If AI features are enabled, user-supplied prompts or clipboard content may also be sent to the GitHub Copilot service already configured in VS Code. See below for safe usage and risk-mitigation guidance.

Risk mitigation:

• For privacy-sensitive or secure environments, set markdownAiStudio.allowRemoteResources to false to prevent outbound network requests for remote resources.
• Avoid opening Markdown files from untrusted sources, as they may reference local files or remote resources.
• The extension does not collect or transmit user data on its own. AI features stay locked until the user explicitly enables them and accepts that AI requests use the GitHub Copilot service already configured in VS Code.
• Rendered and exported documents may include content from referenced resources.
• HTML sanitization and a restrictive webview Content Security Policy (CSP) are applied to reduce XSS and script-injection risks. Mermaid runs in securityLevel: 'strict' mode.
• All dependencies are permissively licensed and regularly audited for vulnerabilities. If you discover a security issue, please report it via the project repository.

See security-review.md for a detailed security assessment and mitigation strategies.

AI Markdown Studio Pro

AI Markdown Studio Community is the open-source core. AI Markdown Studio Pro extends Community with advanced, proprietary features:

• AI-assisted Convert to Markdown and AI theme generation
• Adds PDF and PPTX export; Improved DOCX export.
• Corporate PowerPoint template-backed export with manifest inference/validation/generation and placeholder mapping
• GitHub Copilot agent-mode tools and prompt builders

Pro is packaged as a standalone extension built from a pinned Community revision plus a private Pro overlay, and it consumes Community's public CommunityApiV1 surface internally. Installing Pro therefore gives you the complete AI Markdown Studio experience without a separate Community install. Community remains MIT-licensed; Pro features and assets are governed by the AI Markdown Studio Pro EULA, and nothing in that EULA limits the rights granted under the MIT License for Community components.

Disclaimer

This software is provided "as is", without warranty of any kind, express or implied, including but not limited to the warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and noninfringement. In no event shall the authors or copyright holders be liable for any claim, damages, or other liability, whether in an action of contract, tort, or otherwise, arising from, out of, or in connection with the software or the use or other dealings in the software. See the LICENSE file for more details.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License. See the LICENSE file for details.

Acknowledgments & Third-Party Licenses

This extension is built on the following open-source libraries:

• markdown-it (MIT License)
• markdown-it-anchor (MIT License)
• markdown-it-emoji (MIT License)
• markdown-it-footnote (MIT License)
• markdown-it-task-lists (ISC License)
• markdown-it-texmath (MIT License)
• mermaid (MIT License)
• sanitize-html (MIT License)
• DOMPurify (Apache-2.0 OR MPL-2.0)
• highlight.js (BSD 3-Clause License)
• katex (MIT License)
• html-to-docx (MIT License)
• jsdom (MIT License)
• yaml (ISC License)
• Inter, Fraunces, and JetBrains Mono fonts (SIL Open Font License 1.1)

All libraries are used in accordance with their license terms. See THIRD_PARTY_NOTICES.md and package-lock.json for the authoritative dependency and version list. Bundled font license texts are distributed under packages/md-preview-web/assets/fonts.