- Businesses have made the most progress piloting or using AI for financial planning (78%), followed closely by accounting (76%). Less than half of companies (45%) say they are testing or using AI for tax and operational purposes.
- While cloud technology remains the No. 1 priority for U.S. companies looking to improve their financial reporting, non-generative AI has moved to second place and is seeing rapid adoption.
- When it comes to financial reporting practices, progress is most rapid in the area of cloud migration and cybersecurity, where approximately three-quarters of companies have reached intermediate or full implementation and are actively seeing results.
New York, December 3, 2024 – The use of AI in the finance function has reached its highest levels to date, with 62% of US companies using AI to a moderate or significant degree, with 58% piloting or deploying generative AI (GenAI ) and 52% using AI specifically in financial reporting. according to a new report released today by KPMG LLP, the US audit, tax and advisory firm. Importantly, 92% of companies say their finance function’s AI initiatives are meeting or exceeding their ROI expectations, and nearly a third plan to increase AI budgets or shift funds from other activities to drive AI adoption.
“The use of AI and GenAI is becoming ubiquitous in accounting, financial planning, risk management and more, and businesses are seeing significant returns on their digital transformation efforts to as they integrate these technological capabilities into their financial reporting processes,” said Scott Flynn, KPMG US Vice President – Audit.
The report, AI in Finance: Moving to a New Era with AI-Driven Financeresult of a survey conducted among 2,900 companies in 23 countries, including 300 American financial executives, is based on research conducted earlier this year which found that over the next three years, 100% of U.S. financial executives say they will test or use AI in financial reporting..
The research included a maturity framework created by KPMG to categorize respondents into three AI readiness groups and identify a cohort of AI leaders who are more advanced and mature in their AI deployment. Of the U.S. organizations surveyed, 41% are considered AI leaders, 48% mid-performers, and 11% beginners. KPMG has also developed a AI Maturity Benchmarking Tool designed to help organizations assess their progress on the AI transformation journey.