An interactive AI Bible chat

What would David say if you asked him how he dealt with fear? What might Ruth tell you about loyalty? That question sparked the beginning of Bible Chat - a conversational AI experience built to bring scripture to life by allowing users to engage directly with characters from the Bible. For a generation increasingly curious about spirituality but disconnected from traditional study tools, we saw an opportunity to create something meaningful, modern, and immersive.

We noticed two critical gaps in how people — especially younger audiences — engaged with the Bible:

Lack of personalization: Bible apps were built around static reading plans, not dynamic engagement.

Barriers to understanding: Ancient context, language, and lack of relatability made it hard to connect deeply with stories and principles.

We conducted surveys and interviews with over 30 users, from casual readers to avid bible readers. The common thread: “I wish the Bible felt more alive.”

Our hypothesis was simple: Could AI simulate dialogue with Biblical figures in a way that’s both faithful and thought-provoking?

We took a multi-disciplinary approach:

Content Curation: We worked with theologians to craft canonical profiles for each character, grounded in scripture.

Prompt Engineering: We trained GPT on context-aware personas (e.g., Paul post-Damascus, not pre-conversion).

Ethical Design: We implemented safeguards to ensure conversations didn't misrepresent scripture or enable misuse.

We structured our MVP around key Bible figures including David, Ruth, Paul, Esther, and Jesus - each selected for their emotional depth and narrative richness.

Within 8 weeks of launch:

14,000+ conversations were started across 12 countries.

Session time averaged 9 minutes, far exceeding benchmarks for spiritual apps.

Over 65% of users returned within a week.

One user wrote: “I'm enjoying this app already!! What a blessing to come in contact with an app that helps you to stay connected to God ”

Designing for spiritual intimacy required more than good UX—it demanded intentionality, detailed ux mapping, and responsibility. We had to think beyond functionality and consider theological integrity, emotional safety, and the unpredictable nature of open-ended AI.

It also reminded me how design can be a bridge — not just between user and interface, but between past and present, faith and technology.

Bible Chat didn’t just create a new product—it challenged the format of spiritual engagement. It opened doors for religious education, AI ethics in faith, and modern discipleship.

As we scale, we’re exploring multi-lingual support, church integrations, and deeper theological modeling. But more than anything, we’re reminded daily that design can make the sacred feel accessible.