Build a Django Coding Agent with OpenAI Tools | Prompt Engineering and Function Calling Tutorial
Learn how to build a Python-based coding agent that can plan, write, and edit code inside a Django application, powered by OpenAI function calling. In this hands-on session, you’ll see how to combine prompt engineering, tool definitions, and automated file system control to create a real working agent that builds and styles a full-stack app.
What You'll Learn
How to build an AI coding agent that interacts with your local codebase
Difference between chatbots and agents (and why tools matter)
How to define custom tools in Python for reading, writing, and executing code
How to design effective system prompts that guide model reasoning
How to connect OpenAI API, Django, and Tailwind CSS
How to debug and iterate prompts to improve agent performance
Technologies Used
Python, Django, Tailwind CSS, Font Awesome
OpenAI API with function calling
UV for environment and dependency management
Join the next cohort of the AI Dev Tools Zoomcamp, our free online course that helps you use AI tools to write better code, faster: https://airtable.com/appJRFiWKHBgmEt7...
Resources:
Workshop materials: https://github.com/alexeygrigorev/wor...
Advanced workshop: https://maven.com/p/3cf911/build-your...
AI Dev Tools course: https://github.com/DataTalksClub/ai-d...
Vibe coding workshop: • AI Coding Tools Compared: ChatGPT, Claude,...
Agents workshop: https://github.com/alexeygrigorev/rag...
TIMESTAMPS
0:00 Workshop introduction and goal of building a Django coding agent
0:29 Course context and connection to the AI Dev Tools course
2:52 Demonstration of the Lovable tool and project inspiration
6:07 Explanation of the difference between agents and chatbots
11:14 Creation of a simple chatbot using the OpenAI client
13:33 Demonstration of tool use with the make_joke function
19:01 Setup of the development environment and installation of dependencies
24:45 Finalization of the Django template with Tailwind CSS and Font Awesome
35:06 Definition of coding agent tools for file system operations
40:04 Testing of file tools and implementation of file tree filtering
45:42 Configuration of the agent interface and tool description generation
46:36 Design of the system prompt for the coding agent
52:51 First execution attempt to build the To-Do list application
1:03:43 Successful creation of the styled To-Do list application
1:17:28 Exploration of alternative project ideas (Tic Tac Toe, Tomato Timer)
1:23:47 Summary of results and next steps for improving the agent
👋🏼 Support/inquiries
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