The list of professional fields and business verticals prone to AI disruption continues to grow. In generative AI’s early days, the speculated list often led with graphic designers and stock photo libraries. As AI expanded into other functions, mulit-task workflows, and agentic capabilities, the list grew.
Among the areas ripe for AI disruption today, it seems like no one is safe anymore, especially entry-level roles where rote work is done (think: paralegals). And of course, AI’s conquests and disrupted fields will grow in number as the technology itself becomes more capable… despite a looming AI shakeout.
Until then, accounting & tax preparation is another field that has all the ingredients for potential AI disruption. This doesn’t necessarily mean that AI will replace tax pros – though that could be the case to a degree – but that AI is increasingly used in the field. It’s all about greater speed and efficiency.
The latest evidence comes from a recent report from the LexisNexis-owned Trolley. Entitled The AI Pricing Shift in Tax, the survey-based report quantifies the pace of AI adoption among tax pros. For example, 64 percent of tax pros use AI in their day-to-day operations, up from 40 percent in February.
As for what’s driving them to adopt and what value they’re seeing, 80 percent say the main benefit is getting work done faster. 70 percent report that AI can achieve better client service – presumably through automated and structured comms. Overall, 55 percent say AI gives them a competitive edge.
Confidence Signal
These are all strong confidence signals for AI, but there’s also plenty of headroom for adoption. Specifically, only 15 percent of tax pros in the survey claim that AI is fully embedded in their operations. The rest say that the AI programs at their firms are experimental, slow, and/or underfunded.
Closing that gap is where the opportunity lies for AI providers. Moreover, the opportunity lies with best-of-breed software providers in the tax vertical, such as Intuit. The more they can integrate AI in additive ways in their software, the more they can help close the gap between demand and adoption.
Meanwhile, other macro factors weigh in. For example, there’s been a client-driven movement towards value-based pricing to take the place of billable hours in tax services. Already, firms are experimenting with fixed fees (41 percent), phased pricing (20 percent), and subscription-based services (26 percent).
The point is that in a world of value-based pricing, the onus is on tax pros and accounting firms to maximize margin by operating at peak efficiency. That’s where AI can have the most impact, and that’s the world in which AI will see the most pressure and drive to adopt. Some are already seeing this.
Meanwhile, there are few areas of emerging tech historically that show such positive demand signals. The survey figures above indicate that AI is finding receptive and enthusiastic adoption in the tax world. In fact, only 8 percent said they have no plans to adopt AI. We’ll see how long that resistance lasts.
