Finance & adminBeginnerAgricultureHas numbers

Ask AI to explain other people's spreadsheet formulas in plain language

The CEO of a Vermont maple syrup company uses AI to explain complex formulas in spreadsheets built by others, to understand assumptions and find errors. He also uses NotebookLM to make infographics of the company's legal structure.

Reported results

  • The source reports 30% of e-commerce sales came from Google Ads in the last year (separate from the spreadsheet use).

Source: Google Public Policy story (Source checked 2026-11-03)

How to try it

  1. Select the formula and ask 'explain this in plain language'.
  2. Ask what assumptions it makes and where it could break.
  3. Fix and document the formula.

⚠️ Watch out

Verify the explanation against a test case.

Results are as reported by the source and have not been independently verified. Steps are our own suggestions. We are not affiliated with the vendors named and earn nothing from these links.

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