31–40 of 58 posts
As indicated by the title, I wrote this post almost ten years ago: https://bjoernkw.com/2016/04/03/accounting-in-2016/ While minor aspects have improved since then, the overall problem indeed remains.
em dashes, eww... Looks AI generated. /s
Besides, it's from 2016. Unfortunately, I don't own a time machine.
It is already quite automated to my knowledge. And it is a very poor fit for moderm LLM based AI. Because accuracy. No mistakes or hallucinations allowed.
I disagree on this, there are plenty of problems in accounting that an LLM can help with. I’ve built some software[0] that analyses general ledgers and uses LLMs to call out any compliance issues by looking at transaction and account descriptions. Is it perfect, nope. But it’s a hell of a lot better than sifting through thousands of transactions manually which accountants do and get wrong all the time. [0] - https://…
How can you disagree with the fact?
Some specific examples (like the one you mentioned, _adjacent_ to accounting per se) don't disprove the main point that 100% accuracy is fundamentally impossible with LLMs, while critical for all key accounting aspects.
I’m an accountant (CPA, CMA, Big 4), and while there’s some truth in what you’re saying, you’re significantly underestimating the complexity of applying GAAP, or even tax law. What you’re describing is really bookkeeping, not accounting, and there are plenty of tools that already automate that. There’s a lot of subjectivity in how GAAP is applied and interpreted - creating accruals, deciding when revenue should be re…
LLMs can help to handle the subjectivity in how GAAP is applied and provide justifications, which previous rules-based tax software could not before.
I’m an accountant (CPA, CMA, Big 4), and while there’s some truth in what you’re saying, you’re significantly underestimating the complexity of applying GAAP, or even tax law. What you’re describing is really bookkeeping, not accounting, and there are plenty of tools that already automate that. There’s a lot of subjectivity in how GAAP is applied and interpreted - creating accruals, deciding when revenue should be re…
Isn't that the benefit of LLM-powered accounting over existing rules-based software? LLMs can help to handle the subjectivity in how GAAP is applied and provide justifications, which previous rules-based tax software could not before.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
> At the SMB scale accountants are mostly paid to coach/pester/goade the employees to hand in the necessary paperwork in time. The perfect job for AI.
I'm not sure if you're being sincere or sarcastic, but the whole reason that coaching, pestering, and goading works is that I value my relationship with the human who is doing it.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I weigh the economic value against the lives I believe is going to ruin and the damage I believe is going to do to society and the future of the human race and I do not find value there. I find ruin There might be a way for us to adopt AI as a tool without bringing ruin to many people, but I don't believe that is the goal of anyone building AI. As it stands, I don't believe there is anything ethical about AI in it's…
Why is AI unethical in its current form and what would make it ethical for you?
note: I'm passionate about this too. We're building https://fairlight.app/ as a successor to https://moneyflow.camplight.net/ (an internal tool that helps accounting and book-keeping we use to power our venture studio and agency as it's a real hell)
These are all true statements, but all of those things are solvable with classic software. Quickbooks has done this for decades now. The parts of accounting that aren't solvable with classic computing are generally also not solvable by adding LLMs into the mix.