135: Complete Beginner's Guide to OpenAI’s Codex App

Get AI-Ready with Kyle’s 5-Day Challenge: https://aiwithkyle.com/join

Kyle’s AI Canon — Curated list of AI learning essentials: https://aiwithkyle.com/ai-canon

Subscribe and turn on notifications to catch the next live stream: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChlLglbHDASnoGkbjDeHnQg

This video is from the ‘AI with Kyle Live Stream’

First aired: 4 February 2026

Summary: I spent the morning walking through OpenAI's new Codex Mac app, which is essentially their AI coding tool wrapped in a chat interface rather than a traditional development environment. The big news is it's free for the next two months, even on free ChatGPT accounts, which makes it properly accessible for people who've never touched code before. I wanted to show the complete setup process because whilst tools like Lovable are still easier, they cost £25 a month—and Codex being free removes that barrier entirely.

The tutorial covers the awkward bits that trip people up: setting up GitHub (using the desktop app, not the terminal—much simpler), getting your project deployed so you can actually see what you're building, and the general workflow of chatting with the AI to build something functional. I built a pattern-tracking app that analyses your daily habits over time, nothing fancy but it demonstrates the process. It's not the most technical guide out there, but it's designed to get beginners past those initial stumbling blocks so they can start making things.

Watch full edited live stream: https://youtu.be/H9HoL70WdPQ

—— Time Stamps ——

00:00 Introduction: What is OpenAI Codex? 00:35 Why Codex is Flying Under the Radar 01:13 Free AI Coding: Lovable vs Antigravity vs Codex 02:17 Codex Interface: Chat-Based Coding 03:06 INSIDER: Codex FREE for 2 Months 03:47 Windows Users: Bad News 03:58 Demo App: Building a Pattern Finder 05:44 Starting Your First Codex Project 06:52 Plan Mode: Stop AI From Rushing 07:31 Describing Your App with Voice Input 10:03 Choosing Model Intelligence Levels 11:40 Feature Design: Binary vs Intensity Tracking 15:40 Tech Stack: React, Supabase & Firebase Explained 19:00 Gamification: Streaks, Badges & User Retention 21:34 Forcing Codex to Actually Build 22:45 Codex Automations vs Claude Bot 24:08 The Truth About "Scary" AI Bots 26:08 Running Multiple AI Agents Simultaneously 27:58 Deploying Your App: Beginner Guide 29:48 Understanding Local Host 30:01 First Look: The Working App 31:50 Debugging Crashes with Codex 35:05 GitHub Explained: Cloud Saves for Code 37:17 GitHub Desktop: The Easy Setup Method 40:48 AI Coding: Gateway to Real Development 41:55 Join AI With Kyle Community

—— More Useful Resources ——

Find everything else at https://aiwithkyle.com/