Converting OpenAI's Swarm Framework to TypeScript: A Quick Process
OpenAI released their Swarm multi-agent educational framework on Friday. I wanted a TypeScript version. Here's how it went down.
The Conversion Process
Using o1-mini from OpenAI, I effectively one-shotted the entire conversion, resulting in a working repo.
Key points:
- Functions remained identical
- Repo structure was preserved
- Overall functionality matched the original
Accessing the TypeScript Version
The converted framework is now available:
Observations
It's interesting to note that some developers are attempting similar conversions manually. This AI-driven conversion process could significantly reduce the time and effort required for such tasks.
Technical Insight: TypeScript Function Inspection
An interesting challenge emerged during the conversion process. Unlike Python, TypeScript/JavaScript doesn't offer straightforward function inspection for argument types. There are three main workarounds:
- Separate schema declaration
- Decorator with metadata inspection (with limitations)
- JSDoc parsing
After consideration, I opted for separate schema declarations. It's more explicit and potentially less error-prone, though it does add some overhead to tool calls.
Conclusion
This project demonstrates the potential of AI-assisted development in rapidly converting and adapting frameworks. It also highlights some language-specific challenges that arise in such conversions.
The ability to quickly port frameworks between languages opens up new possibilities for cross-language development and tool accessibility. As these capabilities evolve, they're likely to significantly impact how we approach coding tasks and framework adaptations.