OpenAI Codex App

Published

OpenAI released a macOS Codex desktop app (I’m pretty sure Codex was CLI only until now). It packages together a ChatGPT-like UI and integrates codex running in a sandbox, rendered nicely in the UI (diffs, code, etc.).

What I like about it

  • Workspace = directory = repo is pretty straightforward
  • There’s a built-in terminal that seems to use my zsh config by default
  • Runs in a sandbox by default (have to click a toggle to have full access)
  • One click undo button for file diffs
  • Diff side panel to comment on changes and reference in the thread
  • “Automations” are cron jobs with a project, prompt, and schedule
  • Parallelism = conversation threads running at the same time

What I don’t like

  • Have to choose to use working tree, this should be a default and an implementation detail
  • Typing $ for skill is a little odd to me, I would have stuck with [at] or / for an overlay to choose from a list and encode the value
  • No way to change the API host URL
  • No cursor pointer on hover :shrug:
  • Naming is a bit all over the place, a “workspace”, “project” “repo” and “environment” are used interchangeably in different places in the app