As a startup reviewer, not a week goes by when I’m not introduced to a new solution intent on burying the spreadsheet forever. Like weeds, however, spreadsheets keep turning up.

That comparison may sound unfair, but, aside from email, it’s hard to think of a more reviled tool than the spreadsheet. And maybe it’s time to let go of our loathing. After all, if spreadsheets have enough inherent value that we continue to use them, couldn’t they be improved instead of abandoned? Is it possible for us to move beyond regarding the spreadsheet as a necessary evil?

If you’re thinking it would take no less than magic to invoke such a change of heart, you’re close to the mark. The Magic Spreadsheet, developed by HEAT Intelligence, uses a dash of AI sor...