fix(memory): flatten multimodal content before provider sync

Multimodal turns carry message content as a list of typed parts
({type: "text"|"image_url", ...}). _sync_external_memory_for_turn
passed that list straight into MemoryManager.sync_all, and providers
feed it to regexes — Honcho's sync_turn calls sanitize_context, where
re.sub raised 'expected string or bytes-like object, got list'. Every
turn with an attached image silently never synced.

Flatten to plain text at the boundary: text parts joined, images noted
as an [N image(s)] marker so the attachment isn't erased from recall.
Fixing here covers all providers instead of patching each plugin.

agent/memory_manager.py

@@ -67,6 +67,45 @@ def sanitize_context(text: str) -> str:
     return text
 
 
+def flatten_message_content(content: Any) -> str:
+    """Flatten message content to plain text for memory providers.
+
+    Multimodal turns carry content as a list of ``{type: "text"|"image_url",
+    ...}`` parts; providers expect a string and feed it to regexes
+    (``sanitize_context``) and text APIs, so a list crashes the sync
+    (``expected string or bytes-like object, got 'list'``). Text parts are
+    joined, images become a ``[N image(s)]`` marker so the turn isn't
+    recorded as if the attachment never existed.
+    """
+    if content is None:
+        return ""
+    if isinstance(content, str):
+        return content
+    if isinstance(content, list):
+        text_bits: List[str] = []
+        image_count = 0
+        for part in content:
+            if isinstance(part, str):
+                if part:
+                    text_bits.append(part)
+                continue
+            if not isinstance(part, dict):
+                continue
+            ptype = str(part.get("type") or "").strip().lower()
+            if ptype in {"text", "input_text", "output_text"}:
+                text = part.get("text")
+                if isinstance(text, str) and text:
+                    text_bits.append(text)
+            elif ptype in {"image_url", "input_image"}:
+                image_count += 1
+        flattened = "\n".join(text_bits).strip()
+        if image_count:
+            note = f"[{image_count} image{'s' if image_count != 1 else ''}]"
+            flattened = f"{note} {flattened}" if flattened else note
+        return flattened
+    return str(content)
+
+
 class StreamingContextScrubber:
     """Stateful scrubber for streaming text that may contain split memory-context spans.
 

run_agent.py

@@ -132,7 +132,7 @@ from tools.browser_tool import cleanup_browser
 
 
 # Agent internals extracted to agent/ package for modularity
-from agent.memory_manager import sanitize_context
+from agent.memory_manager import flatten_message_content, sanitize_context
 from agent.error_classifier import FailoverReason
 from agent.redact import redact_sensitive_text
 from agent.model_metadata import (
@@ -2990,17 +2990,23 @@ class AIAgent:
             return
         if not (self._memory_manager and final_response and original_user_message):
             return
+        # Multimodal turns carry content as a list of typed parts; providers
+        # expect plain strings (see flatten_message_content).
+        user_text = flatten_message_content(original_user_message)
+        response_text = flatten_message_content(final_response)
+        if not (user_text and response_text):
+            return
         try:
             sync_kwargs = {"session_id": self.session_id or ""}
             if messages is not None:
                 sync_kwargs["messages"] = messages
             self._memory_manager.sync_all(
-                original_user_message,
-                final_response,
+                user_text,
+                response_text,
                 **sync_kwargs,
             )
             self._memory_manager.queue_prefetch_all(
-                original_user_message,
+                user_text,
                 session_id=self.session_id or "",
             )
         except Exception:

tests/agent/test_memory_provider.py

@@ -979,6 +979,67 @@ class TestMemoryContextFencing:
         assert combined.index("weather") < fence_start
 
 
+class TestFlattenMessageContent:
+    """Multimodal message content (list of typed parts) must flatten to a
+    plain string before reaching providers — a raw list crashes their regex
+    sanitization with ``expected string or bytes-like object, got 'list'``."""
+
+    def test_string_passthrough(self):
+        from agent.memory_manager import flatten_message_content
+        assert flatten_message_content("hello") == "hello"
+
+    def test_none_is_empty(self):
+        from agent.memory_manager import flatten_message_content
+        assert flatten_message_content(None) == ""
+
+    def test_text_parts_joined(self):
+        from agent.memory_manager import flatten_message_content
+        content = [
+            {"type": "text", "text": "first"},
+            {"type": "text", "text": "second"},
+        ]
+        assert flatten_message_content(content) == "first\nsecond"
+
+    def test_image_part_becomes_marker(self):
+        from agent.memory_manager import flatten_message_content
+        content = [
+            {"type": "text", "text": "look at this"},
+            {"type": "image_url", "image_url": {"url": "data:image/png;base64,xyz"}},
+        ]
+        assert flatten_message_content(content) == "[1 image] look at this"
+
+    def test_image_only_message(self):
+        from agent.memory_manager import flatten_message_content
+        content = [
+            {"type": "image_url", "image_url": {"url": "data:..."}},
+            {"type": "image_url", "image_url": {"url": "data:..."}},
+        ]
+        assert flatten_message_content(content) == "[2 images]"
+
+    def test_unknown_parts_skipped(self):
+        from agent.memory_manager import flatten_message_content
+        content = [{"type": "audio", "data": "..."}, {"type": "text", "text": "ok"}, 42]
+        assert flatten_message_content(content) == "ok"
+
+    def test_bare_strings_in_list(self):
+        from agent.memory_manager import flatten_message_content
+        assert flatten_message_content(["plain", "strings"]) == "plain\nstrings"
+
+    def test_scalar_fallback(self):
+        from agent.memory_manager import flatten_message_content
+        assert flatten_message_content(42) == "42"
+
+    def test_flattened_output_is_regex_safe(self):
+        """The original failure: sanitize_context(list) raised TypeError."""
+        from agent.memory_manager import flatten_message_content, sanitize_context
+        content = [
+            {"type": "text", "text": "fix this bug"},
+            {"type": "image_url", "image_url": {"url": "data:..."}},
+        ]
+        # Must not raise.
+        assert sanitize_context(flatten_message_content(content))
+
+
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 # AIAgent.commit_memory_session — routes to MemoryManager.on_session_end
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------

tests/run_agent/test_memory_sync_interrupted.py

@@ -207,6 +207,57 @@ class TestSyncExternalMemoryForTurn:
         # sync_all still happened before the prefetch blew up.
         agent._memory_manager.sync_all.assert_called_once()
 
+    # --- Multimodal content flattening ----------------------------------
+
+    def test_multimodal_user_message_is_flattened(self):
+        """A turn with an attached image carries the user message as a
+        list of typed parts.  Providers feed the content to regexes
+        (sanitize_context), so a raw list raised ``expected string or
+        bytes-like object, got 'list'`` and the turn silently never
+        synced.  The boundary must flatten to text first."""
+        agent = _bare_agent()
+        agent._sync_external_memory_for_turn(
+            original_user_message=[
+                {"type": "text", "text": "what is in this screenshot?"},
+                {"type": "image_url", "image_url": {"url": "data:image/png;base64,abc"}},
+            ],
+            final_response="A terminal window showing a stack trace.",
+            interrupted=False,
+        )
+        agent._memory_manager.sync_all.assert_called_once_with(
+            "[1 image] what is in this screenshot?",
+            "A terminal window showing a stack trace.",
+            session_id="test_session_001",
+        )
+        agent._memory_manager.queue_prefetch_all.assert_called_once_with(
+            "[1 image] what is in this screenshot?",
+            session_id="test_session_001",
+        )
+
+    def test_multimodal_response_is_flattened(self):
+        agent = _bare_agent()
+        agent._sync_external_memory_for_turn(
+            original_user_message="describe it",
+            final_response=[{"type": "text", "text": "a cat"}],
+            interrupted=False,
+        )
+        agent._memory_manager.sync_all.assert_called_once_with(
+            "describe it", "a cat",
+            session_id="test_session_001",
+        )
+
+    def test_multimodal_with_no_text_at_all_skips(self):
+        """Unknown-typed parts flatten to an empty string — don't sync a
+        turn with no recoverable text."""
+        agent = _bare_agent()
+        agent._sync_external_memory_for_turn(
+            original_user_message=[{"type": "audio", "data": "..."}],
+            final_response="noted",
+            interrupted=False,
+        )
+        agent._memory_manager.sync_all.assert_not_called()
+        agent._memory_manager.queue_prefetch_all.assert_not_called()
+
     # --- The specific matrix the reporter asked about ------------------
 
     @pytest.mark.parametrize("interrupted,final,user,expect_sync", [