AI custom rows with configurable rotation and assistant integration

[LoveMyslf-1]

I’m using Shortlist with a customized Picked for You row. I’d love an optional way to describe my own rows in ordinary language using a connected AI.

For example:

Create a Movie Night row with 15 psychological thrillers with surprising endings. Only include movies already in my Plex library that I haven’t watched. Keep each movie under two hours.

Or:

Find lesser-known sci-fi movies that match my taste. Keep this selection varied and reduce overlap with my main Picked for You row.

The prompt should influence the actual selection. I could then refine it with instructions like “less horror,” “more recent films,” or “include older hidden gems.”

I’d also like this to work automatically. A permanent “AI Picks” row could come up with fresh ideas at an interval I choose — every few days, weekly, fortnightly, etc.

For example, one week it might focus on hidden sci-fi gems, the next on clever crime films, and later on dark comedies, all within my preferences. The same row would keep its identity and position in Plex while its selection and, optionally, its theme evolve.

This could build on Shortlist’s existing refresh schedule, with a choice between:

• Keeping a fixed theme and refreshing the recommendations.
• Letting the AI explore new themes within a broader saved instruction.

Useful controls would include:

• A configurable rotation interval and how much of the selection changes.
• Avoiding recently recommended titles for a chosen period.
• Optionally reducing overlap with selected other rows.
• Previewing a few recommendations and their reasoning before enabling automatic updates.
• Preserving each user’s watch history, access restrictions, parental controls and other filters.
• Keeping AI usage optional, with caching and clear usage controls.

For the AI connection, it would be useful to support the configured provider or local model. An officially supported connection to an existing AI assistant, such as ChatGPT, would also be interesting where feasible. Alternatively, an MCP integration could let someone create and refine these rows from their AI conversation while Shortlist handles matching, filtering and delivery to Plex.

If placeholder support becomes available later, these rows could optionally include recommended titles that aren’t in the library yet. They should be clearly marked as unavailable and work with Watchlist/Seerr requests, without automatically requesting or downloading something simply because the AI recommended it. An “available in my library only” option should remain.

I noticed the early beta release notes mention per-row curation styles/prompts, but I couldn’t find that workflow in my current row editor. Is some of this already supported, or could it be developed as an optional feature?

The goal is to describe what I want once, then let the same row keep discovering relevant and varied things over time.

[stevezau]

Thanks for the detailed write-up, and sorry for the confusion about the beta notes.

You're right that per-row prompts existed. They were in the July betas (tone, guidance and a full custom prompt per row). We removed them on 23 July when AI stopped choosing and ranking picks, and the changelog never said so. That was our mistake, and the beta notes are out of date.

What exists today:

• AI instructions on any row that uses AI web search, per row or as a server-wide default (Settings > Defaults > Title sources > Web search). A row can use the default, add to it, or replace it.
• A new "AI row", which is the "describe it in your own words" feature. You write a brief such as "Films with a twist ending that make you want to watch them again". The AI builds a themed list once, with a one-line reason for each title. Shortlist checks every title against TMDB and your library, enforces limits like running time, year and rating itself, then fills the row for each person every night from that list, ranked by their own taste, with no AI call. You can refine it ("less horror", "more recent") and see what changes before you save. "Try it" runs a practice pass for one person and writes nothing to Plex.
• Explore mode on an AI row: a new theme every N days, chosen for each person from what they watch. The next theme is built a day early so you can change it. You can set how much changes each time, a no-repeat window for titles, and rows to keep titles out of.

What you need to do: update to the latest :dev image (it will be in the next release), go to Rows > Add a row, pick the AI filter and choose "Describe a row". It needs an AI provider set in Settings. Look over the list and use Try it before you add the row; once added it goes live at the next run like any other row. If someone later runs out of titles from the list, Shortlist asks the AI once for more.

Not included: authoring through ChatGPT or MCP, and placeholders for titles that aren't on your server. AI rows only use titles already in your library.

[LoveMyslf-1]

Thanks for the detailed reply! The AI rows and Explore mode sound really close to what I had in mind.

Would you consider a ChatGPT integration in the future, possibly through MCP, so we could create and refine rows directly from a ChatGPT conversation?

[stevezau]

re MCP, I am not sure it's really worth it yet.. tracking here #141 - can you add your use case there and how you'd want to use it?

For now ill close thie discussion since the AI Row was added. pleaase open an isssue (not discussion) if you hit problems etc.