I entered '1234 (note the apostrophe) into A1 and the formula
=(A1=2000) into A2. I was surprised that A2 results in TRUE.

Why is that?

If I enter the formula =A1+A1 into A3, it results in the number 2468.

So it seems that the text in A1 is being interpreted as a number, at
least sometimes.

Even if that is not the case in A2 (why not?), how is A1 being
interpreted such that the conditional expression returns TRUE?

To rule out human error, if I replace A1 with 1234 (no apostrophe), A2
results in FALSE, as expected.

PS: I am not looking for work-arounds. I know several myself. I am
merely asking why A2 results in TRUE. It's a curiosity.