AI Is Changing How I Work, Not How I Think
I had a productive “conversation” today about my website’s traffic as measured by Google Analytics. The interaction was mediated by the Google Gemini interface to recent traffic data. The experience has made me think more about how AI tools can accelerate research and analysis when used intelligently.
I was following up on the situation I reported in Google Analytics Thinks I’m Big in Singapore. There I described a situation in which my website’s daily traffic, normally in the low hundreds, was spiking into the thousands. An extended Gemini-mediated conversation about that spike had revealed patterns more consistent with an automated process than with human visits. A subsequent ChatGPT-mediated statistical analysis of the “Singapore” traffic revealed that thousands of hits were originating from thousands of different IP addresses, a pattern consistent with distributed automated traffic.
My recent check of Google Analytics (on 11/9/26) showed that the thousands of hits originating from Singapore had died down. We’re apparently back to normal. By examining Google Analytics’ combination of time-on-site data, bounce rates, and referral sources, I’m now getting a better picture of my website’s traffic. This may help reveal what is generating actual readership, particularly of the “Managing Technology” section of the website. I’ll be using these data to help guide some of my social media-based promotional efforts in the near future.
I’m no slouch when it comes to statistical analysis—I spent almost a decade early in my career researching technology adoption in scientific communication—but my first interaction with Google Analytics via Gemini had not been a happy one. Gemini had suggested fixes to the “Singapore” traffic spike, but at the time I thought implementing its suggestions would have required too much work on my part.
My interaction with Gemini today (11/9/26) about Google Analytics was much more positive. One issue I wanted to explore was Google Analytics’ standard ten-second threshold for measuring engagement. That seemed too high for my website’s index pages, where visitors might spend only a few seconds before clicking through to a full article. Rather than treating all pages alike, I wanted to examine engagement patterns separately for index pages and individual articles.
What surprised me was how readily Gemini accommodated these requests. Instead of requiring me to create new reports or manipulate the underlying data myself, it responded conversationally to requests for alternative calculations and more detailed breakdowns. For example:
“What happens to engagement statistics if we reduce the threshold for measuring ‘usage’ from 10 seconds on-page to 3 or 5 seconds on-page?”
“Please display both mean and median usage data for the top five Managing Technology articles.”
Gemini was not only responsive to my analytical questions; it also suggested next steps in the analysis. It went on to recommend strategies for attracting additional readers to my articles, considering patterns uncovered during the analysis.
This was quite different from my earlier experience, when Gemini’s recommendations seemed primarily to involve additional work on my part. This time, the interaction allowed me to concentrate on asking questions and interpreting the results rather than figuring out how to produce the reports.
Granted, we’re only discussing basic website traffic data here, not “rocket science.” I presume that Gemini and Google Analytics already incorporate an understanding of web traffic patterns, including how to identify channels with a higher probability of generating additional traffic.
I’m also impressed that these tools can make specific recommendations while considering the actual details of my website’s situation.
For me, the situation is straightforward: At this stage of my career, I would much rather spend my time thinking, writing, and consulting about topics that really interest me than dealing with the nitty-gritty details of web traffic analysis. AI tools like ChatGPT and Gemini appear to be helping me do that.
Copyright © 2026 by Dennis D. McDonald
