Code interpreter
The code interpreter lets an agent execute code in a managed sandbox. Use it for computation, data transformation, format conversion, plotting, and anything else better done in code than in natural language.
Enable it
Toggle Code interpreter in the Agent Builder's capabilities section, then save. The agent decides when to run code based on the user's request and the agent's instructions.
Supported languages
The sandbox is a Unix environment with two general-purpose runtimes and a few shell utilities:
- Python 3 — the default for data tasks.
- Node.js (JavaScript) — when an agent prefers JS for the job.
- Bash and sh — shell scripting for chaining commands and quick I/O.
- AWK and sed — line-oriented text processing.
- bc — arbitrary-precision math.
Agents reach for Python first for anything involving data parsing, transformation, or computation. Reserve the shell tools for tasks that genuinely benefit from a one-liner.
Files
Users can upload files into a conversation; the code interpreter has access to them in the sandbox working directory. Code can also write output files (CSVs, plots, archives) which appear in the conversation as downloadable attachments.
Sandbox isolation
Each execution runs in an ephemeral sandbox with no network access and no persistent storage. Sessions don't share state — variables and files from one run don't carry into the next unless the agent explicitly re-loads them.
Plan-specific resource limits (memory, files per run, monthly request quotas) apply. Errors and stderr are surfaced in the conversation alongside stdout.
When to use it
- Parse a CSV or JSON the user uploaded.
- Compute summary statistics or run a quick simulation.
- Convert between formats (Parquet, JSON, CSV).
- Generate a plot from query results.
- Anything where deterministic computation beats LLM reasoning.
Avoid it for tasks the model can answer directly. Code execution adds latency and consumes quota.
