Carly Quellman, aka Carly Que, is a multimedia strategist and storyteller at the intersection of technology and the humanities, investigating how perspective can enhance, rather than overstimulate, the world. She can be found online and near the closest south-facing window in Los Angeles.
Admittedly, I'm not the most Excel-savvy person. So I had a real need to find an easier way to navigate spreadsheet software and I was hopeful artificial intelligence could lighten the workload. Reducing mundane busywork is what AI is supposed to be best at, right?
My search led me to GPT Excel (after three failed attempts to integrate ChatGPT for Microsoft Excel, including clearing my cache and cookies), an AI chatbot and virtual assistant with more than 500,000 users, built specifically for Excel and Google Sheets.
With free and paid ($7 a month) versions available, GPT Excel's features include AI Chat, Generate and Understand Formulas, Task Automation Generator, SQL, Data Validation and Filtering and the ability to generate table templates.
While this isn't a sophisticated tool, what it lacks in flashy add-ons, it makes up for in simple and succinct tools -- which for something as robust as data (and its algorithms) makes sense.
Because I was intent on summarizing and understanding the data from the Excel sheet, I focused on the Formulas page of the platform where your data can be input, then generated or explained.
This was my approach when attempting to use AI to summarize the data from my spreadsheet:
Artificial intelligence is a hot topic right now. Its rapid growth speaks to its popularity and success but consequently, it also speaks to the reality of over-saturation.
I can't dismiss the feeling that while AI-generated organizational tools were made to reduce repetitive tasks and problem-solving time, you may spend just as much time navigating between the incredibly niche aspects of each product to find the best one for you.
While articles -- like the one you're reading -- are here to help answer upfront questions, word of mouth doesn't trump experience. Tools, whether literal or digital, will always be up to individual preference and opinion. My personal thoughts on GPT Excel come down to three things:
Microsoft Excel launched in 1982 (under the name Multiplan) as a basic, though reliable, spreadsheet software program -- that's steadily evolved to meet its consumers' needs. So when I found myself sifting through various Excel-focused AI tools more than 40 years later, I naturally gravitated toward the tool with the word "Excel" in it. My artificial intelligence preference is the one with fewer gimmicks and a simpler, streamlined approach.
GPT Excel has six tool functions laid out on its landing page, including an AI Chat button to assist with any spreadsheet question. I turned to the Formulas tab for generating and understanding data. The typography and user design were laid out simply. Learning design integrations adds to the time spent using the tool -- which again, defeats the purpose of the tool itself.
GPT Excel's only difference between the free and paid plans is priority access to customer service and the AI chatbot. I read this as the ability to be in dialogue with someone/thing. Because I accessed the tool solely to summarize my data, I was comfortable with this trade-off. The GPT Excel's free version provides enough without the need to add another subscription service to your list.
While my initial attempt at ChatGPT for Excel failed, I found so many alternatives in the process -- some that are incredibly intentional and articulate about the problem they aim to solve.
Numerous artificial intelligence-powered apps can summarize your data, and below are some of the others I found. While I eventually turned to ChatGPT to have my Excel data summarized, these tools claim to provide the same services for their target audience, which in some cases is the same as ChatGPT.
Wherever you end up on your summarizing data journey, I hope your spreadsheet hassles are a bit easier to handle.
With student and teacher plans available, Knowt is education focused. It has the ability to turn your Excel sheet data into notes and flashcards and will also test you on the information you input -- all in less than 30 seconds. Knowt has a free seven-day trial and monthly plans range from $2 to $13 a month.
Ajelix BI positions itself as an all-in-one platform with 15 productivity tools -- 10 of those being Excel AI tools. Its target audience is for "busy people," which includes small business owners, non-technical teams and Mac and Windows users. The platform claims to reduce problem-solving time by 50% to reveal smarter insights about data, faster. Ajelix BI has a limited access free plan, up to an unlimited $200 per month Business Plus plan.
Julius AI is an AI tool made for dense populations of data. It can turn your data into visualizations, provide answers about your data, perform forecasting, problem solve across math, physics and chemistry and, of course, create analyses and summaries. Julius AI comes in free and upgraded plan versions.
The Rows app presents itself as your "personal data analyst," with a focus on analyzing, summarizing and transforming data. Its website states that Row contains the power of ChatGPT without scripts, add-ons or code. It also says it has the ability to provide insights, classify and tag text, translate text to any language and execute the beginning stages of marketing campaigns. Rows' pricing plans range from free to $30 per month, billed monthly or annually.
