FAWK: LLMs can write a language interpreter

(martin.janiczek.cz)

207 points todsacerdoti | 1 comments | 21 Nov 25 10:28 UTC | HN request time: 0s | source

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keepamovin ◴[21 Nov 25 11:09 UTC] No.46003360[source]▶

Yes! I'm currently using copilot + antigravity to implement a language with ergonomic syntax and semantics that lowers cleanly to machine code targeting multiple platforms, with a focus on safety, determinism, auditability and fail-fast bugs. It's more work than I thought but the LLMs are very capable.

I was dreaming of a JS to machine code, but then thought, why not just start from scratch and have what I want? It's a lot of fun.

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lionkor ◴[21 Nov 25 11:37 UTC] No.46003545[source]▶

>>46003360 #

Curious why you do this with AI instead of just writing it yourself?

You should be able to whip up a Lexer, Parser and compiler with a couple weeks of time.

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1. epolanski ◴[21 Nov 25 11:41 UTC] No.46003569[source]▶

>>46003545 #

I'm not the previous user, but I imagine that weeks of investment might be a commitment one does not have.

I have implemented an interpreter for a very basic stack-based language (you can imagine it being one of the simplest interpreters you can have) and it took me a lot of time and effort to have something solid and functional.

Thus I can absolutely relate to the idea of having an LLM who's seen many interpreters lay out the ground for you and make you play as quickly as possible with your ideas while procrastinating delving in details till necessary.

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