In a world where accountants once drowned in spreadsheets, artificial intelligence (AI) rose as their silent partner. A March 2025 study by Zhifeng Yuan of Puyang Vocational and Technical College tells how intelligent systems learned to analyze massive data, automate tasks and refine financial insight transforming accounting from tedious number-crunching into a realm of precision, speed and strategic decision-making.

Although Yuan’s research centers on China’s digital financial sector, AI-driven disruption is already a global reality. Accounting professionals who understand how AI, whether generative (creating new content) or agentic (autonomously performing tasks), is transforming their field are best positioned to succeed.

Skill Shift and Employment Displacement

Across various sources on AI’s impact in different industries, a common theme is that AI is most likely to transform tasks that are repetitive, involve data entry or require minimal human interaction. Many of these tasks are found in entry-level accounting roles. This means that positions focused on data entry and workpaper preparation are evolving. These roles will increasingly demand higher-level review skills and deeper technical knowledge. As one management lead noted, entry-level staff often assemble workpapers without fully understanding their purpose — a skill that typically develops at more senior levels. However, as AI takes over much of the workpaper preparation, entry-level staff will need to step into reviewer roles sooner and possess the necessary technical expertise. Therefore, it is essential for professionals to prioritize upskilling and reskilling.

As this shift takes place, positions focused solely on data entry are increasingly likely to be replaced by AI systems. Individuals in these roles who do not pursue additional skills may be at greater risk of job loss. While some experts believe AI will create new opportunities in oversight and analysis, the transition also brings short-term employment challenges.

I provided a presentation at a university event where I asked the students (mostly accounting and finance majors) if they thought AI would support or replace certain jobs in the future. Out of the 30 responses, 57% of them thought that AI would support more jobs, 13% selected replace jobs and 30% agreed that AI would both replace and support jobs in the future.

According to a May 2025 study by Jung Ho Choi of Stanford Graduate School of Business and Chloe Xie of Massachusetts Institute of Technology, AI augments rather than replaces professional accounting expertise. Their research, based on 277 accountants, shows that accountants using AI-powered tools experienced a 55% increase in weekly client support. It also shows that AI automation allowed accountants to reallocate about 8.5% of their time from routine data entry to higher-value tasks, such as business communication and quality.

Increased Speed and Efficiency Through Automation of Routine Processes

Choi and Xie’s study demonstrates that accountants achieve significantly greater results when using AI compared to working without it. By strategically leveraging AI to automate routine tasks, accountants can focus their judgment and expertise where it matters most. Notably, the study found that the monthly close time for financial statements was reduced by 7.5 days. Importantly, this efficiency gain did not come at the expense of quality. They found that companies utilizing AI experienced a 12% increase in the granularity of their general ledger, resulting in more detailed reports that can facilitate easier analysis and audits.

Increased Engagement in Value-Added Activities

When AI chatbots address client and colleague inquiries, optical character recognition (OCR) extracts data from receipts and invoices and robotic process automation (RPA) manages repetitive tasks such as bank reconciliations, professionals can focus on higher-value activities like strategic thinking and decision-making. Tools such as Microsoft Copilot further enhance productivity by generating meeting summaries and action items.

These examples, though not exhaustive, highlight the broad potential of AI in accounting, where collaboration between AI and accountants greatly enhances efficiency and enables delivery of greater value to clients.

Thus, AI is transforming accounting by automating routine tasks, increasing efficiency and allowing professionals to focus on higher-value work. Accountants who upskill and embrace AI are best positioned for success, as this leads to productivity, drives innovation and enables greater value delivery to clients in a rapidly evolving field.