The role of artificial intelligence in accounting University of Strathclyde

AB – Motivated by calls for further research into the impact of artificial intelligence on accounting, this chapter provides a review of the existing literature on this area. Through this, gaps in the literature are identified and possible avenues for future research are highlighted. Furthermore, an analysis and summary of the existing literature is presented followed by a research plan that could be carried out by future research. N2 – Motivated by calls for further research into the impact of artificial intelligence on accounting, this chapter provides a review of the existing literature on this area. All of the time that artificial intelligence spends completing tasks such as entering figures or balancing double-entry accounts is also time spent gathering huge amounts of data.

For many IT departments, ERP systems have often meant large, costly, and time-consuming deployments that might require significant hardware or infrastructure investments. The advent of cloud computing and software-as-a-service (SaaS) deployments are at the forefront of a change in the way businesses think about ERP. Moving ERP to the cloud allows businesses to simplify their technology requirements, have constant access to innovation, and see a faster return on their investment.

Data Privacy Concerns

AI in accounting can indeed streamline its own day-to-day tasks, and workers are still required with competencies beyond traditional technical accounting. The demand for real-time data is increasing in all areas of business, including accounts payable. A survey by PYMNTS and Amalto found that 84% of firms believe that automating AP processes is key to gaining real-time data visibility. Automation can provide immediate access to data about invoice status, payments, and cash flow. It eliminates repetitive tasks, freeing up the time for AP teams to work on more important and productive assignments.

• What it does mean is that accounts payable departments and businesses can realize new efficiencies while dramatically reducing the strain of manual, repetitive tasks.
• Replacing adaptive human behaviour with AI may result in irrational behaviour within ecosystems of humans and machines.
• Also, it’s critical to check that your IT system can support the new technology and that you have the processing power and storage space required to analyze big volumes of data.
• The future of fully autonomous accounts payable will continue to be shaped by the demand for automated and efficient solutions.
• Technology is rapidly evolving and many industries like the accountancy industry are embracing the advantages it has to offer.

While your clients get an excellent value business current account with in-built accounting software, you can save your practice time on manual admin. Countingup helps your clients keep organised records so that you receive structured data in real-time. The MTD-compatible software enables you to review and manage accounts efficiently, with direct access to clients’ real-time organised data. AI can also help reduce fraud (accidental or otherwise) by providing perpetual financial auditing processes to ensure businesses comply with local, national, and international regulations (where applicable). Using its algorithms to sort through large data sets, AI flags potential fraudulent and suspicious activities. The technology combs through past transactions to highlight odd behaviours, such as withdrawals or deposits from abroad that are larger than regular sums.

Can AI replace accountants?

Professor Bhimani spoke also of the financial rationale for tech start-ups seeking volume growth rather than immediate profitability which underscores the long standing strategy that has been pursued by current tech giants. He told the audience that the financial basis for such a strategy will find further fuel with AI technologies. Meanwhile, the AI-enabled auditing of all data rather than just samples is providing more value to clients. In addition, PwC https://www.metadialog.com/ financial statement auditors are using AI to draw data out of client bank statements to help with substantive testing that’s required for auditing of cash. In both cases, Baccala said, the AI hasn’t resulted in people being taken off the projects; instead, the people are performing different duties. We saw MTD-compatible technology take the industry by storm in 2019, and now it’s advancing even further with MTD for ITSA being introduced in April 2024.

However, with the increased development of cloud computing and SaaS solutions, the AP process has become automated and streamlined. With the use of cloud-based accounting software, businesses can set up automatic workflows that are triggered when invoices are received. Before the rise of cloud computing and SaaS, accounts payable was manual and invoices would have to be collected, reviewed, approved, coded, and finally paid, a process that would take days, if not weeks, to complete. The manual entry of data leaves room for errors, which can be costly and time-consuming to correct.

Understandably, some accountants and bookkeepers might worry that their skills are being outdated by AI. Once AI technologies have located specific items, auditors can devote their attention to the areas most likely to have material misstatements. Cloud accounting providers like Xero and QuickBooks have grand plans to bring accounting AI into the hands of SME customers. Accounting AI is becoming a real part of our everyday lives as the accounting industry slowly transforms. In this section, we explore three areas where AI applications are fast becoming industry standard for the financial sector. Additionally, it’s important to ensure that your data is properly structured and organized so that your AI models can easily access and analyze it.

They are also aware of the risk of errors and bias with AI, a lack of transparency over how it makes decisions, and ethical concerns. Employees report feeling both positive and negative about the advent of advanced AI – they see the potential benefits, but they’re also worried about accountancy jobs being lost. They are concerned about AI’s transparency, errors and ethics, but they also think it will make their working lives easier. Professor Bhimani noted the commercial potential of intelligent automation and spoke on the exponential increase in the application of AI-related systems we are witnessing across different industries. He pointed to the inevitable further acceleration of AI technology adoption in the very near term both by large global firms as well as SMEs. Once you start CIMA®’s CGMA Professional Qualification, you’ll get a thorough grounding in all-things automation and finance.

How AI and machine learning is transforming the finance function

With NLP, businesses can now extract data from invoices much faster than humans can, and with higher accuracy, eliminating the need for manual data entry. These products may include financial analysis software, automated tax preparation artificial intelligence in accounting and finance tools, and even chatbots that can handle basic customer inquiries. The use of Chat GPT in these products can improve efficiency and streamline processes for accountants and CPAs, making their jobs easier and more efficient.

For example, using ChatGPT for guidance when it comes to methodology and standards could run the risk of inaccurate results, as the chatbot may not know that UK financial reporting standards differ to other places. Human beings are far better at putting information into context, as well as deciphering which information is relevant today. The best way of getting around this is to always check the results before trusting them. With the recent rise of generative artificial intelligence (AI), which is now at the fingertips of many, professionals across a range of industries, including accountancy, are worried about the threat AI might have on their jobs. Take OpenAI’s sophisticated chatbot ChatGPT for instance; it’s a widely accessible AI tool that is beginning to change society as we know it. By ensuring that their hosting is suitable, accountants can ensure that they are able to use AI-powered tools to their full potential, and deliver the best possible service to their clients.

Automation is simply alleviating many cumbersome processes, such as bookkeeping and transaction coding, enabling accountants to focus on advisory services and other higher-value work. The rise in AI has also had an overwhelmingly positive impact on accuracy and efficiency. As AI continues to automate routine tasks, the role of accountants is shifting towards more strategic and advisory roles.

Technologies like optical character recognition (OCR) and machine learning are able to carry out these tasks by ‘learning’ from data they’ve been exposed to before. AI powered accounting software like Xero makes it easy to enjoy the many benefits of artificial intelligence. With intuitive features like Xero Analytics and bank reconciliation predictions, you can adopt AI at your own pace.

The pros and cons of the digital pound AKA ‘Britcoin’

Being able to work with and understand data will be a vital part of the future accountant’s role, says Kirit Patel, regional managing director (UK & Europe) at technology implementation consultancy EOH. Cloud computing is the only way to collate and make massive amounts of data freely available that machine learning needs. The next two areas where AI will help your accountancy practice are also enabled by machine learning.

Over the coming years, the ability of technology to discover these rules and predictively plan will help to remove a significant component of your daily workload. Both smart assistants (natural language bots) and scripted bots have their uses and it shouldn’t be seen that one is necessarily better than the other from a business perspective. Are you an accountant who, during crunch time when seemingly every client is sending through their accounts, considers turning off your phone or email so you can get some work done? Additionally, cloud computing simply means we’re able to generate more useful data. Ask 100 experts what artificial intelligence is and you’ll get a variety of answers. It’s a technology that sparks most people’s imagination – or fear – by calling to mind futuristic, sci-fi concepts.

It is now drastically altering the financial services industry’s operating model, benefiting clients and the financial sector. They are wealth management services in which artificial intelligence (AI) creates portfolio recommendations based on an investor’s personal goals (both short and long-term), risk preferences, and disposable income. The investor only needs to deposit money monthly (or set up an automatic transfer).

• By striking the right balance between technology and human intuition, accountants can successfully navigate the future of their industry.
• Now, you might think AI is all about robots and sci-fi, but it’s much more than that.
• There are several apps that read your purchase invoices with

  data capture such as Hubdoc and Dext Prepare.

Once acknowledging the various risks, it’s important to assess the ways accountants can adapt to, and work alongside, AI, since it shows no signs of going anywhere any time soon. The value of AI is that it augments human capabilities and frees your employees up for more strategic tasks. Oracle’s AI is directly interactive with user behavior, for example, showing a list of the most likely values that an end-user would pick.

With AI, that time is down to three or four hours per contract, and it’s continuing to decline. Approaching the challenges around data in accounting is often complex and difficult to tackle head on. For those working within in-house positions or bookkeepers, the use of AI should lead to greater efficiency in the accounts team. “Managers can have visibility on when invoices arrive, regardless of the format, and have them queued for immediate processing,” says Neil Murphy, VP of global business development at ABBYY. Removing some of the more time-consuming, process-driven and mundane tasks will not only reduce the chance of errors but also allow accountants to focus on high priority projects, says James Dening, VP at Automation Anywhere. “This type of work in return drives added value for the business, which is ultimately equal to organisational success,” he says.

However, their day-to-day work will increasingly focus less on crunching the numbers and more on data interpretation, business analysis, and communication with key stakeholders. Skills, such as business strategy, leadership, risk management, negotiation, and data-based communication and storytelling, will help to complement the abilities of AI in finance. Although the changes to the way accounts payable operates remain under discussion, there’s no doubt that accounts payable stands to become one of the biggest beneficiaries of artificial intelligence.