DEV Community

Madhankumar Anandan
Madhankumar Anandan

Posted on

Build an AI-Powered SQL Generator Using OpenAI and Spring Boot

Ever wished you could just ask for the SQL query you need instead of writing it? In this project, I built a Java-based backend that lets you do exactly that.

🔗 Project Repo

Check out the full code on GitHub:
👉 github.com/amkumar072/AI-SQL-Generator

🧩 What Is It?

AI-SQL Generator is a backend application that transforms natural language prompts into SQL queries using OpenAI's GPT API. It’s perfect for:

  • Developers building analytics dashboards
  • Business users who aren’t fluent in SQL
  • Teams needing AI-driven query interfaces

🚀 How It Works

You send a POST request with:

  • A natural language prompt
  • The table schema (as a SQL CREATE TABLE string)

And you get back a GPT-generated SQL query that's ready to use.

📦 Sample Request 

POST /query
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "question": "Which seller has delivered the most orders to customers in Rio de Janeiro"
}
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

✅ Sample Response 

{
  "sql": "SELECT * FROM Employee ORDER BY salary DESC LIMIT 5;"
}
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

🔧 Tech Stack

Layer Tech Used
Language Java 17
Framework Spring Boot
API OpenAI GPT (via HTTPS)
Config dotenv-java for secrets
Build Tool Maven
Testing Postman / curl

⚙️ Setup Instructions

  1. Clone the repo: 
git clone https://github.com/amkumar072/AI-SQL-Generator.git
cd AI-SQL-Generator
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode
  1. Add your OpenAI key to a .env file: 
OPENAI_API_KEY=your_openai_api_key
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode
  1. Run the Spring Boot app: 
mvn spring-boot:run
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

📈 Example Use Cases

  • 🔍 Internal tools for data analysts
  • 🧠 Chatbot assistants that answer data questions
  • 🖥️ AI dashboards for business users
  • 🛠️ Dev platforms embedding auto-SQL features

📌 What’s Next?

Here are a few potential enhancements:

  • UI frontend with React or Angular
  • Support for SQL dialects (MySQL, PostgreSQL, etc.)
  • Real-time database validation for generated SQL

🧠 Why I Built This

The idea came from a common pain point: not everyone can write SQL, but everyone needs data. Tools like ChatGPT already understand data requests well—why not bring that power into a dedicated backend app?

This project combines the reliability of Java/Spring Boot with the intelligence of OpenAI GPT to deliver something actually useful for devs and data teams alike.

📬 Let’s Connect

If you liked this or have ideas to improve it, feel free to:

  • ⭐ Star the repo
  • Drop a comment below
  • Connect with me on LinkedIn or GitHub

#java #springboot #openai #sql #gpt #api #backend #ai #devtools #projectshowcase

Top comments (0)

Some comments may only be visible to logged-in visitors. Sign in to view all comments.