From Excel to Insight Maker: Visualizing System Dynamics with AI

Spreadsheets revolutionized how we work with data - they made computation accessible and practical for everyone. But tables full of numbers often hide the bigger picture: the systemic relationships between variables.

What if you could see your spreadsheet not just as numbers, but as an interactive diagram that reveals how everything connects?

That’s exactly what this project demonstrates. Using ChatGPT 5.2, I transformed a traditional Excel model into a stock and flow diagram ready for simulation in Insight Maker.

Here’s how it worked. I prompted ChatGPT to:

• "Convert the attached spreadsheet into a stock and flow diagram to be imported as a JSON file into Insight Maker. Parameters (M11, M12, etc.) should be adjustable via sliders, time unit is MONTHS, and use Euler integration."

After a few refinements in the chat, I imported the generated JSON directly - no manual tweaks. The resulting diagram is shown here exactly as created by AI. It’s admittedly a bit rough, but intentionally so: it shows the raw potential of AI-assisted modeling.

The best part? The simulation output matched the original spreadsheet values exactly - validated in the "Table from Insight Maker" and "Validation" tabs.

This isn’t just a technical experiment. It’s a step toward making System Dynamics more intuitive and spreadsheets more insightful. By visualizing data flows and feedback loops, we can communicate complex models more clearly and make better decisions.

I hope this inspires you to explore similar integrations between spreadsheets, AI, and simulation tools. Have you tried something like this? I’d love to hear about your experiments!

Let’s push how we model, visualize, and communicate systems. If you find this useful, feel free to share and connect in LinkedIn.

📝 Full ChatGPT Conversation – See the prompt and AI workflow

📊 Original Google Spreadsheet – View the source data and validation

📈 Interactive Stock-Flow Model – Explore the diagram in Insight Maker

𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗘𝘅𝗰𝗲𝗹 𝘁𝗼 𝗜𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗠𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗿: 𝗩𝗶𝘀𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘇𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗦𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺 𝗗𝘆𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗰𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗔𝗜

Spreadsheets revolutionized how we work with data - they made computation accessible and practical for everyone. But tables full of numbers often hide the bigger picture: the systemic relationships between variables.

What if you could see your spreadsheet not just as numbers, but as an interactive diagram that reveals 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀?

That’s exactly what this project demonstrates. Using 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝘁𝗚𝗣𝗧 𝟱.𝟮, I transformed a traditional Excel model into a 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗰𝗸 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗱𝗶𝗮𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺 ready for simulation in 𝗜𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗠𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗿.

Here’s how it worked. I prompted ChatGPT to: 
• 𝘊𝘰𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘥 𝘴𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘦𝘵 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘢 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘤𝘬 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘭𝘰𝘸 𝘥𝘪𝘢𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘮 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘑𝘚𝘖𝘕 𝘧𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘐𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘔𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘳. 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴 (𝘔11, 𝘔12, 𝘦𝘵𝘤.) 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘣𝘦 𝘢𝘥𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘷𝘪𝘢 𝘴𝘭𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴, 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘔𝘖𝘕𝘛𝘏𝘚, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘌𝘶𝘭𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯.

After a few refinements in the chat, I imported the generated JSON directly - 𝗻𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝘁𝘄𝗲𝗮𝗸𝘀. The resulting diagram is shown here exactly as created by AI. It’s admittedly a bit rough, but intentionally so: it shows the raw potential of AI-assisted modeling.

The best part? The simulation output matched the original spreadsheet values exactly - validated in the "𝘛𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘐𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘔𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘳" and "𝘝𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘥𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯" tabs.

This isn’t just a technical experiment. It’s a step toward making 𝗦𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺 𝗗𝘆𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗰𝘀 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝘂𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 and 𝘀𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘀𝗵𝗲𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝗳𝘂𝗹. By visualizing data flows and feedback loops, we can communicate complex models more clearly and make better decisions.

I hope this inspires you to explore similar integrations between spreadsheets, AI, and simulation tools. Have you tried something like this? I’d love to hear about your experiments!

Let’s push how we model, visualize, and communicate systems. If you find this useful, feel free to share and connect.

📝 Full ChatGPT Conversation – See the prompt and AI workflow
https://lnkd.in/14y08o75

📊 Original Google Spreadsheet – View the source data and validation
https://lnkd.in/u5levi1w

📈 Interactive Stock-Flow Model – Explore the diagram in Insight Maker
https://lnkd.in/238swvx0