Deep Dive: AI’s play in Accounting, Fintech & Banking

In this Deep Dive edition of Fintech Wrap Up, I’m unpacking how generative AI is reshaping financial operations—from tax prep and bookkeeping to corporate finance and even business process outsourcing (BPO)

TL: DR

AI is coming for accounting, fintech, and banking, and honestly? It’s about time. In this Deep Dive edition of Fintech Wrap Up, I’m unpacking how generative AI is reshaping financial operations—from tax prep and bookkeeping to corporate finance and even business process outsourcing (BPO) based on a16z’s experience and insights. With 75% of CPAs set to retire in the next decade and fewer accounting graduates entering the field, the profession is staring down a serious talent crunch. But AI is stepping in, automating everything from data ingestion and reconciliation to financial reporting and client advisory, giving finance teams superpowers they didn’t have before.

Beyond accounting, we’re seeing AI disrupt the $300B BPO industry, where offshore teams have traditionally handled repetitive finance and customer support tasks. Now, AI-powered agents are proving they can do the same work—faster, cheaper, and without human error. This shift is setting up a battle between AI-native startups and legacy BPO giants clinging to outdated models.

And then there’s voice AI, which is quietly revolutionizing banking. AI voice agents are already replacing call center reps, slashing response times, and delivering 24/7 customer service with zero wait times. It’s no longer a question of "if" AI will take over customer interactions—it’s happening right now.

Finally, we’re diving into the long-promised (but never quite delivered) world of self-driving money. AI is moving beyond just offering insights—it’s automating financial decisions in real time, from optimizing savings to automated debt refinancing (hello, "Refi Robots"). Imagine an AI that scans the market for the best loan rates, handles the paperwork, and refinances your mortgage while you sleep. That future isn’t far off.

The bottom line? AI is no longer just an efficiency play—it’s fundamentally changing how finance operates. Whether you’re an accountant, a fintech builder, or an enterprise finance leader, the AI wave is here. The only question is: Are you ready?

?? By the way, my team and I are working on an AI-powered financial infrastructure for fintechs

We want to help companies in fintech vertical with automated reconciliation, bookkeeping, and operational ledger management, on top of all financial products.

But before we launch, I’d love to hear from you! What challenges do you face, and what solutions would make a difference for you?

?? Drop me a message on LinkedIn or Twitter, or Book a Slot with Me if you’d like to learn more or get an early peek!

Death, Taxes, and AI: How Generative AI Will Change Accounting

As Ben Franklin famously said, there are only two certainties in life: death and taxes. a16z teams would argue AI should be added to that list. As LLMs continue to advance, AI is working its way into everything, from marketing to voice agents to professional services at large. Whether it’s PWC announcing a $1 billion investment into AI solutions, or Reuters setting aside $8 billion for AI dealmaking and development, firms are eager to establish themselves as market leaders in implementing this new technology — especially those that serve the accounting market.

This shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. Bookkeeping, accounting, tax preparation and auditing are fields full of largely formulaic and repetitive exercises that would immensely benefit from generative AI’s gift of efficiency and time savings. And there are real, quantitative tailwinds that make this a particularly critical moment for accounting firms to lean into AI and machine learning. For starters, 75% of CPAs could retire in the next 10 years. Simultaneously, the profession is attracting fewer job entrants, with the number of U.S. students who complete accounting degrees falling. This means in the coming years, far fewer professionals will be available to handle existing client demand — and firms are already struggling to keep up.?

Luckily, genAI has hit the scene, and corporate finance and accounting workflows should benefit greatly from its capabilities. It is, however, important to be prescriptive about where specifically this new wave of LLM-based AI can help. At their core, LLMs are best at working with natural language. They are adept at summarizing research, answering questions, and delivering information that gets their prompter ~70% of the way to a definitive result. What they lack (for now!) is the ability to do complex calculations and quantitative analyses — two skills crucial to the accounting profession.

Despite this, accounting workflows are still ripe for disruption: the industry is filled with highly paid professionals who spend many hours per week ingesting data from disparate sources to make recommendations based on the recognition of patterns observed over countless hours of educational training and professional experience. While there are many nuanced subspecialties within the fields of finance and accounting (e.g., bookkeeping, tax preparation, auditing, outsourced CFO duties) as well as vertical-specific needs, we’ve identified several high-level jobs to be done that are prevalent throughout most, if not all, of the category. The key difference in many cases will be the relative level of emphasis on one aspect of the job vs. others (e.g., bookkeeping focuses more on data ingestion while giving tax advice requires complex analysis and output). Moreover, many of these workflows apply both to in-house accounting functions and to external accountants.

Credits: Credits: ?This article was originally authored by Andreessen Horowitz’s dedicated teams and published on their website.

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