Witness the future of finance at FloQast TakeControl 2025. Join leaders in finance, accounting, audit, risk, and compliance Sept. 17–18 as they meet to learn from experts. Access cutting-edge AI strategies and practical solutions needed to stay ahead in an ever-changing industry. Join the virtual conference.
It’s no secret that AI is being touted as a boon for the accounting industry, with some saying it could both help overcome the talent shortage and increase productivity. But how much of that is hype, and how much is reality?
A research paper from MIT Sloan and Stanford University Graduate School of Business shows that AI could be delivering on some of its productivity promises for accountants. In partnership with an unnamed AI-based accounting software and a San Francisco accounting firm, researchers analyzed hundreds of thousands of transactions for 79 small and medium-sized companies and surveyed 277 accountants on how they adopted AI.
According to the paper, accountants using generative AI tools managed 55% more clients a week (though, not a significant difference in unique clients overall) and were able to pivot 8.5% of their time from routine, manual tasks to “higher level tasks.” Accountants who used AI tools also shaved 7.5 days off the month end close. That’s as much as 3.5 hours of routine work freed to dedicate to other tasks per 40-hour work week, according to the researchers.
“These patterns indicate that AI integration can improve the timeliness and precision of financial reporting, likely by automating data processing and flagging anomalies in real time,” the researchers wrote.
They noted that these factors suggest “that while AI may enhance processing speed, efficiency, and task automation, its ability to consistently improve financial reporting quality also depends on proactive error management, high-quality input data, and careful human supervision.” They wrote that the data showed accountants using AI had a 12% increase in more detailed reports. The paper defined more detailed as an “increase in general ledger granularity as measured by the number of unique accounts used to categorize transactions.”
“Rather than rendering accountants obsolete, AI appears to be most effective as a collaborative tool that works in tandem with professional judgment,” researchers wrote.