The conversation about AI in accounting, over the past few years, has turned strangely binary. One school of thought believes that AI will replace accountants; the other believes it to be mostly hype.
In reality, none of them are completely accurate. There are layers to both thoughts.
During the webinar on AI for your firm – fluff or ready to implement, hosted by Maanoj Shah and featuring Ben Stein and David Lam, one theme kept coming back.
The firms seeing real results from AI are not using it to eliminate accountants.
They are using it to eliminate low-value work. And that distinction makes a lot of difference. While AI is changing accounting, it is not changing it in the way many people are looking at it.
AI Is Neither Magic Nor Hype
The first question that was posed during the webinar was fairly simple – is AI in accounting overhyped?
Ben’s answer was refreshingly balanced.
“It is in some sense overhyped amongst the people who are going to say that AI is replacing everything immediately. But underhyped by people who think AI is just overhyped.”
And this is exactly where so many firms are facing a dilemma – one that is not easy to overcome unless you are looking at AI from a 360-degree view.
The headlines suggest AI can automate entire accounting functions overnight. At the same time, skeptics dismiss it because they have not yet seen transformational results inside their firms.
The truth lies somewhere in between.
AI is already creating measurable value. But not by running an accounting firm on autopilot. Instead, it is helping firms remove repetitive, time-consuming tasks that have historically consumed a disproportionate amount of staff time.
The firms that are moving ahead and benefiting from AI are not chasing the baseless, futuristic promises. They are staying in the present and solving practical problems. In short, they are leveraging AI to the best of their advantage.
The Real ROI Is Not Full Automation
There are several misconceptions around AI. One of the biggest is that succeeding with AI means removing humans from the process entirely. The firms that are trying to do this is moving backward, instead of forward.
According to Ben, that approach often creates more problems than it solves.
“If you tried to have AI do 100% of the work, the amount of mistakes it would make, fixing those mistakes would cost you more time than you’d save by having the AI replace all the work.”
This observation should be the basis of determining the degree of tasks that are handed over to AI before trying and testing things out. The most successful AI implementation can never replace the entire workflow.
Instead of expecting AI to complete the entire task, firms are using it to get from zero to eighty percent faster.
The accountant still reviews.
The accountant still applies judgment.
The accountant still owns the outcome.
But the starting point is dramatically better than it was before. That is where much of the ROI exists today.
The Work Being Eliminated Is Not Accounting Work
One interesting point discussed in the webinar is that most of the strongest AI use cases had very little to do with accounting.
David Lam shared a surprising insight that comes from conversations with hundreds of accounting firms. Before building Abacor, his team interviewed about 200 firms. And the biggest pain point wasn’t reconciliation or tax or reporting or communication.
“One of the top three pain points we consistently heard was, ‘David, my inbox is a mess.’”
That insight highlights something many firm owners already know – a large portion of an accountant’s day is not spent applying technical expertise.
- It is spent managing information.
- Following up on requests.
- Documenting meetings.
- Preparing summaries.
- Tracking action items.
- Moving information from one place to another.
These are the areas where AI is creating immediate value.
David shared an example of a firm where an accountant spent nearly 70% of her time preparing meeting agendas, taking notes, and drafting meeting summaries.
With AI-assisted workflows, this lost time could be redirected toward higher-value client work.
This means that the role of an accountant has not disappeared, it has evolved. As David put it:
“The role of an accountant just elevates in the world of AI.”
The Future Is Not AI vs People
Perhaps the most important discussion of the webinar centered around a question many firms are currently wrestling with:
Should firms invest in AI or people?
Ben challenged the idea that this is even the right comparison. Instead of replacing employees, he sees firms becoming more productive with the workforce they already have.
He described a future where firms improve capacity ratios rather than reduce headcount. A team that once managed ten clients per accountant may eventually manage fifteen or twenty.
Not because accountants become unnecessary.
Because they become more effective.
That distinction fundamentally changes how firms should think about AI investments.
The goal is not fewer accountants.
The goal is more productive accountants.
This perspective aligns with what many firms are already experiencing. The firms getting the most value from AI are not reducing expertise.
They are amplifying it.
Why Human Judgment Still Matters?
Despite all the excitement around AI, both Ben and David repeatedly returned to the importance of human oversight. This becomes especially important in accounting, where accuracy, compliance, and liability matter.
When asked about risk and governance, David was clear.
“The human still plays a really important role.”
He went on to explain that every AI-generated output still requires review.
Whether it is tax research, financial analysis, or documentation, accountability remains with the professional, not the technology.
This is why the concept of “human in the loop” continues to resonate across the profession.
AI can generate.
AI can summarize.
AI can recommend.
But accountability still sits with the accountant. And that is unlikely to change anytime soon.
The Firms That Will Win Are the Curious Ones
One of the most interesting observations from the discussion had nothing to do with technology. It had to do with mindset.
When asked how accountants should prepare for an AI-enabled future, Ben focused less on technical skills and more on attitude.
“The people who were great in the pre-AI world will continue to be great in the post-AI world.”
The differentiator is not necessarily expertise in prompts or automation tools.
It is curiosity. It is the willingness to experiment.
To test.
To learn.
To rethink existing workflows.
David echoed a similar sentiment.
“The future is here, but it’s not evenly distributed.”
The tools already exist. The opportunity already exists. What varies is how willing firms are to explore them.
Stop Asking Whether AI Will Replace Accountants
The webinar began with a question about hype. It ended with something far more practical.
The firms seeing meaningful results from AI are not trying to replace accountants. They are trying to remove friction. They are reducing administrative work – improving efficiency, eliminating repetitive tasks, creating capacity.
And allowing accountants to spend more time where they create the most value.
The conversation should no longer be about whether AI will replace accountants.
The more important question is this:
What work are your accountants doing today that they shouldn’t have to do tomorrow?
The firms that answer that question well will be the ones that benefit most from AI.
Watch the recorded webinar here: https://youtu.be/DGJB39kUMss?si=duUhLJORHsD6Gh6S
FAQs
AI is most effective at handling repetitive administrative tasks such as meeting notes, email management, document summaries, data collection, and workflow coordination. This allows accountants to spend more time on client-facing and advisory work.
The webinar highlighted use cases such as drafting meeting summaries, organizing inboxes, creating action items, conducting research, and streamlining internal communication rather than fully automating accounting functions.
No. AI can accelerate work and improve efficiency, but human oversight remains essential. Accountants are still responsible for reviewing outputs, applying professional judgment, and ensuring compliance and accuracy.
Firms should focus on time saved, improved productivity, increased client capacity, and reduced administrative workload rather than measuring success by headcount reduction or full automation.
The webinar concluded that this is the wrong question. AI and people are complementary. The goal is to make accountants more productive, not replace them, enabling firms to serve more clients with greater efficiency. These FAQs are much more aligned with the actual discussion points from the webinar and can also help capture long-tail SEO searches around AI adoption in accounting firms.
In this Article
editor
Maanoj Shah is the Co-founder & Director of Growth Strategy & Alliances at Finsmart Accounting, where he pioneered the “Accounting Seat” model—a revolutionary offshore embedded staffing solution purpose-built for Accounting and CPA firms. Widely recognized as an outsourcing and offshoring expert, Maanoj’s insights have been featured in leading accounting publications, and he regularly speaks at premier industry conferences including Scaling New Heights, Bridging the Gap, BKX, and Women Who Count.
A dynamic growth leader with over two decades of experience, Maanoj has incubated, scaled, and exited ventures across Fintech, HR, and Consulting sectors, holding various CXO roles throughout his career. His passion for scaling businesses is matched by his commitment to social impact. He is the Co-founder of Mission ICU, a national healthcare initiative that installs critical care units in underserved areas of India, and was recognized by the World Economic Forum for its last-mile impact.
Outside of work, Maanoj leads an active lifestyle as an avid tennis player and passionate golfer, blending strategy and agility on and off the court.
CONTENT DISCLAIMER
The content in this article is for general information and education purposes only and should not be construed as legal or tax advice. Finsmart Accounting does not warrant or guarantee the accuracy, completeness, adequacy, or currency of the information in the article. You should seek the advice of a competent lawyer or accountant licensed to practise in your jurisdiction for advice on your particular situation.
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