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Expense receipts shouldn't require a search party
Adam spent 20 minutes looking for a $36 receipt. His finance team sent three Slack messages. Someone made a sticky note.
Ramp would have matched it automatically the moment he swiped. Auto-coded, in-policy, synced. Nobody had to ask Adam for anything.
This is what finance looks like when it runs itself.
Your team can be Adam. Or they can not be Adam.
🔧 FEATURED TOOL: Canopy Tax Workflow Automation
Canopy Ties Intake, Prep, and Delivery Together
Summary: Canopy launched Tax Workflow Automation, an AI system built into its practice management platform that moves a return from document collection through prep to signed delivery without switching tools. Why it matters: Canopy says the intake module alone saves 20 to 50 minutes per client on document chasing — real time back if you're running fifty-plus returns through this season. Catch: every number here — the 20-50 minutes, the "4x faster" prep, the "70% less manual work" — comes from Canopy's own release, with no outside customer or benchmark confirming it yet. Unknowns: pricing for the bundle isn't public, and there's no independent word yet on how the AI-generated review step holds up under a real reviewer's scrutiny — worth pressing both on a call before you pilot it. My take: worth a test if you're already on Canopy, since Smart Intake is live now and low-risk to try. If you're not on Canopy, this isn't a reason to switch platforms mid-season — treat it as a preview of where every practice management vendor is headed. [Read more →]
📰 QUICK HITS
Drake Opens Free Beta For Document Auto-Extract — Drake Software opened a beta of SmartExtract, which pulls data from W-2s, 1099s, and K-1s straight into Drake Tax Online returns at no extra cost during the beta window. Why it matters: worth enrolling now if you're on Drake Tax Online, since testing it on real returns before tax season starts costs nothing and Drake hasn't published independent accuracy numbers yet. [Read more →]
Firm360's AutoPrep Talks To Five Major Tax Platforms — Firm360 announced AutoPrep, an integration with Juno that pulls data from 100+ document types and pushes it directly into Drake, Lacerte, ProConnect, CCH Axcess, and UltraTax. Why it matters: worth getting on the waitlist for if you want automation that doesn't lock you into one tax software vendor — it's not live yet, only available to firms on a Firm360 Premium plan with an active Juno account, and Firm360's own claimed "95% automated" figure is unverified by anyone but Firm360. [Read more →]
Grant Thornton Builds Audit AI With Fieldguide — Grant Thornton Advisors partnered with Fieldguide to build CompliAI, an AI-agent layer for SOX compliance and controls testing embedded directly into engagement work. Why it matters: watch how Grant Thornton documents human sign-off here — if regulators end up treating this as a reference point for agentic AI in controls testing, smaller firms doing SOX work will feel it soon after. Nothing's been tested publicly yet, so treat this as one to track rather than one to copy. [Read more →]
Small Businesses Still Need More AI Training — A Thryv survey of 561 U.S. small businesses found AI adoption rose to 66% from 55% a year ago, though 70% of owners say they still need more training to use it well. Why it matters: ask any client asking about AI tools what training budget they've set aside, since the survey covers small business broadly rather than accounting specifically and adoption without training is exactly where compliance mistakes start. [Read more →]
Better cap table management starts here
Cap table management doesn’t have to be frustrating. From issuing grants to 409A valuations or ASC 718 reporting Pulley can make it simple.
Just ask Linear. They knew they needed a partner who could handle the complexity of their equity management. That’s why they migrated to Pulley.
💡 QUICK TIP
Drake SmartExtract only works on 2025 returns — it won't run against last year's completed files, so there's no zero-stakes way to test it. Instead, run it early on real 2025 returns from clients who aren't rushing to file, and pay attention to how often it throws a "Needs Review" flag — Drake won't let you e-file until every flagged item is cleared, so that flag rate is your best signal for how much it'll actually save you once deadline pressure hits. [Read more →]
⚠️ HEADS UP
AI Is Quietly Closing Midsize Firms' Hiring Edge — Writing in Bloomberg Tax, University of Texas accounting professor Andrew Belnap argues that AI is starting to fill the same talent gap that's had midsize firms turning away business — and in doing so, may erode one of their best recruiting pitches: offering new hires broader, more interesting work sooner than a big firm would. Belnap himself is torn on where this lands — he leans toward AI ultimately growing the profession by freeing junior staff from grunt work, but doesn't dismiss the harder scenario where far fewer accountants are needed at all. Why it matters: if you run a small shop, the same logic cuts your way — the staffing gap between you and a midsize firm just got smaller with AI in the mix. Watch whether midsize firms respond by competing harder on price now that headcount isn't their edge, since that pressure eventually reaches your own pricing conversations. [Read more →]
Audit Governance: A new Center for Audit Quality survey found audit partners naming AI-driven competitive disruption as a top client risk, with nearly 90% describing their largest clients' AI governance as still "developing" or "early stage" — the same immaturity gap Grant Thornton's new CompliAI rollout above is trying to get ahead of. Why it matters: expect more audit findings tied to undocumented AI use next cycle if you do any SOX or controls work, so start asking clients now how their AI tools get logged and reviewed. [Read more →]
Every tool in this issue promises to hand you back your time during tax season. The real test isn't whether the AI extracts a W-2 correctly — it's whether you're still checking its work as carefully as you'd check a new hire's.
—Alex
While your trucks are running, calls are going to voicemail.
Every missed call is a job your competitor just booked. Podium's AI Employee responds in under 2 minutes, qualifies the lead, and schedules the job — while your crew keeps working.
📬 Know an accountant drowning in manual bookkeeping? Forward this.