Using AI for Formula Heavy Lifting

This post was inspired by an article in Life Hacker.

At the beginning of this school year, I had an interest in spreadsheets. I was also considered one of the more knowledgeable people in my school about them. 

I was Googling how to do many of the more complicated formulas. I felt like I was moving too slowly and so I tried using AI to help me with those formulas I couldn't figure out.

I remember when the AI boom hit. After I "discovered" ChatGPT, I found a site that would help you with Excel formulas. That site started charging to use it, so I tried using AI.

ChatGPT is better at Google Sheets Formulas than Gemini

There are many AI tools to choose from. I when I first started making this dashboard I started using Google's AI tool, Bard. I liked it, so I tried it with Google Sheets. I thought that since it is also a Google product it would but it was shocking to me how poor it was at handling Google Sheets formulas and solving problems I had. 

I tried ChatGPT because Bard Gemini wasn't cutting it and I didn't look back. I think ChatGPT is simply better than Gemini. I have since tried it, but it's not there yet. 

I never did get around to trying that other AI spreadsheet tool.

Pro Tip - When using AI for spreadsheets, give it the actual range you are using so it can add it to the formula for you.

Know What You Should See

When I work with students in math classes, I often show them that if they can estimate the answer before they solve a problem, they can tell if the answer they got is "in the ballpark" or not based on their estimate.*  

As with anything you do with AI, you should have an idea of what you are looking for - or at least be able to recognize when the result is not what you want. At this point, AI is a thought partner. 

The best results come when I know what to look for in the answer. For example, I often question ChatGPT, or tell ChatGPT when the formula it gives me can be streamlined. Sometimes I even find redundancies in the formula or answer. 

When Caught in a Loop, Start Over

I said before, but I will say it again, when you use AI, you should check the results. AI can give some very inaccurate answers. It can also lead you into a feedback loop where the answer is the same again and again. When this happens, I start the query over and try to break the steps into the smallest chucks I can think of to give the AI some grounding when thinking how to solve the problem.

Over the last couple of months, I have learned a lot more about Google Sheets and visualizing data. I do think that AI helped me to learn faster than I would have learned had I simply been searching for answers one by one.

* I am well aware that sports analogies are an Americanism and I do try to not use them when explaining concepts to people. But, sometimes, it just fits.