The Future of Accounting: AI Tools and Economic Indicators

Could AI be doing a day's work in just minutes for accountants? In this episode, Blake and David explore how accounting technology is revolutionizing traditional workflows, from Xero's new AI protocol that connects chatbots directly to accounting data, to Google's game-changing "I" function in Sheets that lets you analyze data with natural language. You'll discover why deep research tools might replace entire teams of analysts and why revealing your AI usage might actually hurt your professional reputation. Plus, hear about unusual recession indicators (men's underwear sales are down!), what Americans consider financial success versus reality, and why accountants everywhere are buzzing about Baker Tilly's merger with Moss Adams. Whether you're curious about automating journal entries or simply wondering if you should disclose your AI wizardry, this episode delivers practical insights for the modern finance professional.

Sponsors
Payhawk - http://accountingpodcast.promo/payhawk
Relay - http://accountingpodcast.promo/relay
Cloud Accountant Staffing - http://accountingpodcast.promo/cas
RoboDebit - http://accountingpodcast.promo/robodebit

• (00:00) - Introduction and Podcast Overview
• (00:39) - App News and Intuit Updates
• (07:53) - Intuit's AI and Bitcoin Controversy
• (11:10) - Xero Innovations
• (20:16) - Paychex Acquires Paycor
• (21:11) - Flowcast's AI Agents
• (25:17) - Pipe Acquires Glean AI
• (26:28) - Google Sheets AI Formula
• (34:30) - Google Agent Space
• (42:29) - AI's Impact on High-Level Jobs
• (43:12) - Testing AI with Investment Analysis
• (44:25) - Mother Road Brewery Investment Evaluation
• (49:31) - Canva's New Sheets Feature
• (54:31) - Google's Monopoly and Data Breach News
• (58:22) - AI Disclosure in the Workplace
• (01:05:51) - Mega Merger of Accounting Firms
• (01:11:26) - Signs of a Recession
• (01:17:45) - Upcoming Events and CPE Opportunities

Show Notes

Accelerating Money Innovation with Deserve Technology Platform and Talent

https://www.intuit.com/blog/news-social/accelerating-money-innovation-with-deserve-technology-platform-and-talent/

WARNING: Quickbooks Checking

https://quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-us/banking/warning-quickbooks-checking/00/1516063

Green Dot considers sale as CEO exits

https://www.paymentsdive.com/news/green-dot-citi-strategic-review-sale-ceo-exit-gresham/742096/

Intuit Enterprise Suite Spring update features more efficient multi-entity accounting, enhanced reporting, and more

https://quickbooks.intuit.com/r/enterprise/intuit-enterprise-suite-spring-2025-release-notes/

Strive targets Intuit for Bitcoin buys after orange-pilling GameStop

https://cointelegraph.com/news/strive-targets-intuit-bitcoin-buys-after-gamestop

Xero Rolls Out New "Reconcile Period" Feature

https://insightfulaccountant.com/accounting-tech/general-ledger/xero-rolls-out-new-reconcile-period-feature/

Xero introduces new Model Context Protocol server for smarter accounting

https://devblog.xero.com/xero-introduces-new-model-context-protocol-server-for-smarter-accounting-4d195ccaeda5

Paychex Acquires Paycor in $4.1 Billion Deal

https://www.pymnts.com/acquisitions/2025/paychex-acquires-paycor-in-4-1-billion-deal/

Introducing FloQast AI Agents: Revolutionizing Accounting Automation

https://www.floqast.com/blog/introducing-floqast-ai-agents-revolutionizing-accounting-automation

Pipe Acquires Glean.ai to Add Spend Management to Suite of Embedded Financial Solutions

https://pipe.com/resources/press-releases/pipe-acquires-glean-ai-to-add-spend-management-to-suite-of-embedded-financial-solutions

​

Google Sheets Introduces AI-Powered =AI() Formula for Enhanced Productivity​
https://yourstory.com/2025/04/google-sheets-ai-formula-gemini

Scale enterprise search and agent adoption with Google Agentspace

https://cloud.google.com/blog/products/ai-machine-learning/google-agentspace-enables-the-agent-driven-enterprise

Sarah Friar’s LinkedIn Post … 

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/sarah-friar_what-an-ai-powered-finance-function-of-the-activity-7259765674506399744-IKQD

OpenAI CFO Sarah Friar: We are building a lot of IP down into the data center layer

https://www.cnbc.com/video/2025/03/20/openai-cfo-sarah-friar-we-are-building-a-lot-of-ip-down-into-the-data-center-layer.html

Introducing Visual Suite 2.0: Productivity, meet creativity

https://www.canva.com/newsroom/news/canva-create-2025/

Department of Justice Prevails in Landmark Antitrust Case Against Google

https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/department-justice-prevails-landmark-antitrust-case-against-google

Dark Web Digest – Lessons Learned from the Wolters Kluwer Data Breach

https://www.purevpn.com/blog/dark-web-digest-issue-4-wolters-kluwer/

New HEC Paris research suggests that shadow adoption of ChatGPT could benefit employees but not the firms

https://www.hec.edu/en/news-room/new-hec-p...