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Pretzel

AI‑enhanced Jupyter alternative with seamless code assistance

Pretzel upgrades Jupyter with AI‑driven code generation, inline tab completion, and an interactive AI sidebar, while preserving all existing configs, extensions, and keybindings for a frictionless transition.

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Overview

Highlights

Integrated AI code generation and editing directly in notebook cells
Inline tab completion with variable and function suggestions
AI sidebar for chat, code search, and on‑demand generation
Full compatibility with existing Jupyter configs, extensions, and keybindings

Pros

  • Seamless migration from Jupyter; no reconfiguration needed
  • AI assistance accelerates development and debugging
  • Supports multiple model backends (OpenAI, Anthropic, Ollama, Groq)
  • Simple pip or Docker deployment

Considerations

  • AI features depend on external model APIs, which may incur costs
  • Limited to Python notebooks; other kernels are not mentioned
  • Advanced collaboration features are still on the roadmap
  • Inline completion can add latency on slower connections

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Fit guide

Great for

  • Data scientists who already use Jupyter and want AI help
  • Educators looking for interactive coding assistance
  • Teams needing quick prototyping without changing tooling
  • Developers who prefer pip or Docker setup for notebooks

Not ideal when

  • Users requiring built‑in real‑time multi‑user collaboration now
  • Projects that need extensive language support beyond Python
  • Environments with strict offline policies (AI models need internet)
  • Organizations that cannot expose notebook ports due to security constraints

How teams use it

Rapid prototype generation

Generate boilerplate functions or visualizations in seconds using the AI prompt, reducing initial coding time.

Debugging and error fixing

Ask the AI to explain errors or suggest fixes directly within the cell, streamlining troubleshooting.

Data exploration assistance

Use the AI sidebar to request plots or summary statistics for dataframes, receiving ready‑to‑run code snippets.

Consistent environment migration

Switch existing Jupyter notebooks to Pretzel without reinstalling extensions, preserving workflow continuity.

Tech snapshot

TypeScript86%
Python5%
CSS5%
JavaScript2%
Jupyter Notebook1%
Shell1%

Tags

open-sourceanalyticsdata-visualizationsql-editor-onlinewasmvisualizationartificial-intelligencedata-analysisdashboardreportingdata-analyticssqlbusinessintelligenceprqlduckdbnotebooksbusiness-intelligencedatadata-sciencesql-editor

Frequently asked questions

How do I install Pretzel?

Run `pip install pretzelai` and start with `pretzel lab`; alternatively use the Dockerfile provided in the repository.

Can I use my own LLM?

Yes, Pretzel supports OpenAI, Anthropic/Claude, Ollama, and Groq models via the configuration settings.

Will my existing Jupyter extensions work?

All Jupyter configs, settings, keybindings, and extensions are compatible out of the box.

What if installation fails on Windows?

Install the required build tools (Microsoft Build Tools, or gcc via Homebrew on macOS) as described in the README.

Is there a hosted version?

A free hosted instance is available at pretzelai.app for quick evaluation.

Project at a glance

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Forks
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Repo age1 year old
Last commitlast year
Primary languageTypeScript

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