Ben Affleck is once again surprising people with his AI chops.
The movie star conveyed an impressive understanding of generative AI systems in an interview with GQ’s “One More Question” series published Tuesday, in which Affleck said he could write roughly in Python, a popular programming language, and discussed the workings of convolutional neural networks.
“I’ve always been kind of into computers since I was young. Then, when film started to move from analog film to digital, I became more interested in that aspect of it,” Affleck said, adding the “visual-effects workflow for many years has included machine learning.”
He then spent several minutes explaining concepts behind modern AI systems, using words and phrases that are likely unfamiliar to those who don’t know AI terminology: transformers, tensors, and edge detection.
“I appreciate the way you’re talking to me like I understand any of it,” interviewer Zach Baron joked in response. “I’m really flattered and honored by that, so thank you.”
The clip of Affleck talking about AI went viral, sparking surprise, delight, and jokes.
“Turns out he was the real Good Will Hunting all along,” one X user wrote, referring to the 1997 film Affleck wrote with Matt Damon, who plays the genius Will Hunting in the movie.
“TLDR. Ben Afflick admits the movie ‘The Accountant’ was actually semi-autobiographical,” another user said, referencing the 2016 movie where Affleck plays a math savant.
For those paying attention, Affleck’s proficiency with AI shouldn’t come as much of a surprise. The actor has sparked “Ben Affleck knows AI?!” reactions several times over the past few years. He also sold InterPositive, the AI film-tech startup he quietly founded in 2022, to Netflix earlier this year for a reported $587 million, though Affleck said in the GQ interview that figure was “not right.”
Ben Affleck’s AI knowledge has made headlines before
Affleck first drew attention for his AI prowess in November 2024 at a CNBC investor summit, where he explained AI’s limitations in filmmaking.
“AI is a a craftsman at best. Craftsmen can learn to, you know, make Stickley furniture by sitting down next to somebody and seeing what their technique is and imitating them. That’s how large video models, large language models, basically work: a library of vectors of meaning and transformers that interpret in context,” Affleck said. “But they’re just cross-pollinating things that exist. Nothing new is created.”
“Craftsman is knowing how to work, art is knowing when to stop. And I think knowing when to stop is going to be a very difficult thing for AI to learn because it’s taste,” he said.
A clip of Affleck’s remarks went viral on X, racking up over 20 million views.
The actor again went viral in January this year for comments he made about AI on “The Joe Rogan Experience” podcast. Affleck said much of the fear and existential dread connected to AI comes from “people who are trying to justify valuations around companies.”
“Where they go, ‘We’re going to change everything. In two years, there’s going to be no more work.’ Well, the reason they’re saying that is because they need to ascribe a valuation for investment that can warrant the capex spend they’re going to make on these data centers,” he said.
In addition to going viral, a clip of the interview was praised on X by Michael Burry, the “Big Short” investor and AI boom skeptic who had voiced similar doubts about some of the AI hype.
“Ben Affleck is clearly a smart guy. So this does not surprise me. It sounds familiar and on point,” Burry said at the time.
While fans may continually be surprised by Affleck’s AI knowledge, the actor may be used to people underestimating him. He told GQ that after he recently won “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire,” the underlying tone in the texts he got was “slight bafflement.”
“Like, ‘How the fuck does this guy do that?'”
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