> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://thethirdpenco-feat-tool-lifecycle-events.mintlify.site/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Message

> Represents a message in a conversation

Messages represent individual turns in a conversation history. They support both simple text content and multimodal content (text, images, files).

## Structure

```python theme={null}
# Simple text message
{"role": "user", "content": "Hello!"}

# Multimodal message
{
    "role": "user",
    "content": [
        {"type": "text", "text": "What's in this image?"},
        {"type": "image", "image": image_data, "media_type": "image/png"}
    ]
}
```

## Fields

<ParamField path="role" type="string" required>
  The role of the message sender. One of:

  * `"user"` - Message from the user
  * `"assistant"` - Message from the AI
  * `"tool"` - Tool execution results
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="content" type="string | list" required>
  The message content. Can be:

  * A simple string for text-only messages
  * A list of content parts for multimodal messages
</ParamField>

<Note>
  System instructions should use the `system` parameter in `generate_text()`, not a message with `role: "system"`.
</Note>

## Content Part Types

### Text Part

```python theme={null}
{"type": "text", "text": "Your text here"}
```

### Image Part

Images can be **base64-encoded data**, **raw bytes**, or a **URL**:

```python theme={null}
# Base64-encoded image
{"type": "image", "image": base64_string, "media_type": "image/png"}

# Image URL
{"type": "image", "image": "https://example.com/image.jpg"}
```

| Field        | Type           | Description                              |
| ------------ | -------------- | ---------------------------------------- |
| `type`       | `"image"`      | Required literal                         |
| `image`      | `str \| bytes` | Base64 string, bytes, or URL             |
| `media_type` | `str`          | Optional MIME type (e.g., `"image/png"`) |

### File Part

```python theme={null}
{"type": "file", "data": base64_string, "media_type": "application/pdf"}
```

| Field        | Type           | Description                           |
| ------------ | -------------- | ------------------------------------- |
| `type`       | `"file"`       | Required literal                      |
| `data`       | `str \| bytes` | Base64 string or bytes                |
| `media_type` | `str`          | MIME type (e.g., `"application/pdf"`) |

## Using the Message Class

While the dict interface is recommended, you can also use the `Message` class:

```python theme={null}
from ai_query import Message, TextPart, ImagePart, FilePart

# Dict style (recommended)
message = {"role": "user", "content": "Hello!"}

# Class style
message = Message(role="user", content="Hello!")
```

## Provider Support

| Feature         | OpenAI  | Anthropic | Google |
| --------------- | ------- | --------- | ------ |
| Text            | Yes     | Yes       | Yes    |
| Images (base64) | Yes     | Yes       | Yes    |
| Images (URL)    | Yes     | Yes       | Yes    |
| Files/PDFs      | Limited | Yes       | Yes    |

## See Also

* [Conversations Guide](/core/conversations) - Multi-turn conversation patterns
* [Multimodal Chatbot](/tutorials/multimodal-chatbot) - Complete multimodal examples