What is a custom GPT and how can I create one?

Custom GPTs are versions of ChatGPT that you can tailor for specific tasks or topics by combining instructions, knowledge and capabilities. They boost productivity in a significant way and are tailored to your business and use-case. Read more about how to create custom GPTs in this guide by OpenAI.

Why are calculations in ChatGPT so unreliable to begin with?

ChatGPT is a Large Language Model (LLM) capable of performing some calculations on its own. While it handles simple arithmetic reasonably well and continues to improve, it frequently makes mistakes—and worse, it is “unaware” of them. This means it presents incorrect results with the same confidence as correct ones.

To address this limitation, ChatGPT includes an integrated Python runtime environment (Code Interpreter). When asked to perform calculations, it often writes Python code to execute them. These calculations are generally reliable, provided the language model correctly understands the user’s instructions. However, the types of calculations commonly found in spreadsheets can be difficult to describe in natural language and surprisingly tricky to replicate with traditional programming.

In many ways, spreadsheets act as a specialized programming language for business calculations, and a vast amount of business data and logic is already encoded in this format. Unfortunately, ChatGPT cannot directly access or understand spreadsheet models, including their formulas, references, and calculation methods. Worse still, when users upload spreadsheets, ChatGPT attempts to interpret them using its Code Interpreter, essentially inventing logic on the fly.

By integrating GRID with ChatGPT, we combine strengths: ChatGPT excels at language, while GRID ensures reliable and accurate handling of numbers. Let ChatGPT handle the words and leave the calculations to us.

How can I verify the calculations from GRID?

GRID ensures precise and dependable calculations, and we've made it possible to ask GPTs to explain their calculations. To build trust and transparency, you can enable GRID-powered GPTs to explain their calculations directly. This feature, designed for debugging and internal use, provides step-by-step details of how results are derived. By default, this capability is off, offering control over whether to display calculations, especially for external users.

Can I connect a spreadsheet from Google Sheets to GRID and keep it in sync?

Yes. Changes to a connected spreadsheet will automatically update in GRID and your GPT via cloud integration. There’s no need to re-upload or replace the file!