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Hi Reader,

Welcome to the Google Sheets Tips newsletter #377, your Monday morning espresso, in spreadsheet form!

Coming to your inbox on a Tuesday this week, because it was a public holiday here in the US yesterday.

Today I'm pondering whether it makes sense to write your own formulas anymore. AI tools are getting so good at writing formula syntax (and Apps Script code) that it doesn't make sense (economically at least) to spend hours crafting complex formulas yourself, if an AI tool can do it in mere minutes.

Find the essay below and let me know whether you agree.

➜ News

I.
​I've been using Gemini a lot recently, to build automations and agents in Workspace.

For example, using NotebookLM, Apps Script, and Gems, I've built a workflow with access to my archive of online content (over 1,200 articles, newsletters, and videos).

It can then generate draft articles or video scripts, in my voice. I use it as a starting point or sparring partner on ideas, which is amazingly helpful.

​Here's how I built a content engine using Apps Script, NotebookLM, and Gems.​

(And psst, I'm working on a new course about... mastering Gemini to build automations and agents in Workspace. Coming this Spring!)

II.
​Maybe a little overkill for writing our XLOOKUP formulas, but Google just announced Gemini 3 Deep Think for advanced science, research, and engineering.

​Read more here >>​

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➜ Sheets Tip #377: Should you write formulas yourself in 2026?

For the better part of two decades, I've viewed my spreadsheet work through the lens of a craftsperson, rather than as a corporate analyst. The grid of cells was my canvas and the formula my brush. I pushed the limits of what formulas could do, creating clocks, chess games, etch-a-sketch, and join-the-dots games, using only built-in formula logic.

But recently, over the past few months, something has shifted.

We’re seeing the "formula syntax barrier" dissolve in real-time. Years of experience and a deep knowledge of the function landscape is no longer required to write complex formulas.

The true impact of this realization hit me while I was experimenting with a new formula game: building a Minesweeper demo in Google Sheets, using only formulas. (Spoiler: I don't believe it's possible to do fully, without using code to control the game play.)

I started the traditional way, experimenting with various OFFSET functions to "see" what was in the adjacent cell to the formula. It was intellectually satisfying, but also slow going.

Once I had a very basic outline formula, I decided to see what Gemini would do. Truthfully, I couldn't justify the time doing it myself when I had "real" work to do (or, was I too lazy to do that much hard thinking?).

So I plugged the formula into Gemini with this prompt:

The formula Gemini generated was complex:

And guess what? It worked. It just plain worked!

It extended the logic to check if there was an "A" in any of the cells surrounding the formula cell.

I like to think I would have got there, but it would have taken me a LOT longer than the minute that Gemini took.

After more back-and-forth with Gemini, where I only directed Gemini and didn't write any more formulas myself, I had a working demo of Minesweeper:

It's running entirely from a single formula in cell B8, the top left of the grid. (Explore the formula here in this template.)

Now, it's not playable in the traditional sense (that would require some coding) but it shows sort of how Minesweeper works.

What used to take me hours of deep-focus was delivered in minutes. And instead of getting stuck on syntax, I was free to focus on the high-level problem and design.

And here's the thing. I could have just as well started with a text only prompt and skipped creating that first formula, and Gemini (or another AI tool) would have gotten the answer for me.

The Economic Argument

When time is money, writing complex formulas manually does not make economic sense. If it takes you an hour to figure out a complex array formula but only 30 seconds for an AI tool to generate it, then the "hand-crafted" version is no longer a demonstration of skill but instead a waste of resources.

Writing formulas today feels increasingly like hand-washing laundry when you own a functional washing machine.

Changing Nature of Work

Our role is shifting (has shifted?) from creator to director.

We now iterate our way to a solution through a conversation with an AI tool, refining logic and debugging via prompts.

However...

Being "formula literate" remains a superpower.

My Minesweeper experiment succeeded because of my years of honing my craft. I knew that the OFFSET function was key to making it work, so that gave me a big head start. And then I knew how to write the best prompts to get the solution I wanted.

So although you don't necessarily need to master every function, parentheses, or comma anymore, it helps enormously to be able to audit the logic and spot mistakes.

I'd also make the case that for simpler formulas (e.g. a simple XLOOKUP to join data tables), it's quicker to write the formula yourself, rather than switching to an AI tool.

The Verdict

The goal is never to write the perfect formula; the goal is always to solve the problem.

If we reach the answer ten times faster by delegating formula syntax to Gemini, we haven't lost our craft or diminished our work. Rather, we're being smart with our time and opening ourselves up to solving more advanced problems

So don't mourn the manual formula.

Instead, use the hours you claw back to tackle the problems that AI can’t solve: your business strategy and the human impact of the data on your customers.

And a Closing Caveat

AI is very good at generating formulas and fixing formula syntax.

But you are still much better at building entire spreadsheets, managing data, communicating with your clients, and solving complex problems.

So don't get too drawn into the AI hype. By all means, work faster by leveraging AI tools for specific tasks, but lean into your human experience to solve the bigger problems.

Now go forth and conquer those complex formulas! (With a little help from Gemini.)

If you enjoyed this newsletter, please forward it to a friend who might enjoy it.

Have a great week!

Cheers,
Ben

P.S. Here's a wild chart explaining how crazy our winter was in the US.​