The problem this user describes is a classic spreadsheet pain point, and the pain is entirely unnecessary. They need to find every location that stocks both "Rock" and "Paper", a straightforward AND filter across rows. But traditional spreadsheets only filter within a single column at a time, defaulting to OR logic when you add multiple values. So Paris and Istanbul are the correct answers, yet getting there requires pivot tables, helper columns, or manual cross-referencing. That is not a skill gap. It is a tool gap.
What this user really needs is a system that understands relationships between rows, not just values within them. A spreadsheet that treats data as connected records, where a location is a group of items, not a single row, makes this query trivial. Ask for locations that contain "Rock" and "Paper," and the tool looks across all rows for that location, checks the set, and returns the match. No pivot. No workaround. The same logic extends to the third column: "Degrees should include 120" simply becomes an additional condition in the same set-based filter. Paris qualifies because it has both items and a 120-degree entry. The tool does the grouping, not the user.
We think this is where the conversation about spreadsheets needs to shift. The default assumption has long been that you must reshape your data to fit the tool's limitations. That assumption is outdated. An AI-native spreadsheet can hold your data as you naturally organize it, locations in one column, items in another, degrees in a third, and let you ask questions about the relationships between them. The filter becomes a logical statement about sets, not a slog through rows. The user's original post is proof that people are ready for this. They are already thinking in terms of "locations that have all these items." They just need a tool that speaks that language.