Artificial intelligence (AI), including its popular counterpart Generative AI, is dynamically revolutionising the professional landscape by automating, accelerating and elevating various business processes, sparking a transformative wave that creates new opportunities for growth. 

At the same time, the increasing demand for greater cost and time efficiency in operations is pushing businesses to harness the power of AI technologies for streamlined workflows. Thus, there’s a rising expectation for software applications to deliver enhanced user experiences, compelling companies to integrate AI-driven solutions for adaptive and efficient outcomes.  

"Over the next few years, the driving force behind professional change will undoubtedly be digital transformation. This shift necessitates the redesign of work structures to facilitate remote and virtual collaboration, urging organisations to reimagine how tasks are approached. " 

Driving Quality and Efficiency with AI-Powered Auditing 

Excitingly, AI’s transformative impact extends to the auditing landscape as well. Like a virtual sidekick, AI takes on tedious, time-consuming tasks, enabling auditors to concentrate on value-added work while leveraging their skills to enhance the audit process for all involved. In fact, a recent study examining the impact of AI on audit quality and efficiency found that investing in AI leads to improved audit quality and reduced fees. Specifically, a one-standard-deviation change in recent AI investments correlated with a 5 per cent decrease in the likelihood of audit restatements and a 0.9 per cent reduction in audit fees. 

However, as Matthew Campbell, Chief Technology Officer at KPMG states: “There’s so much more to AI than automating simple tasks like analysing data. AI can support all areas of the audit. From helping auditors to make more insightful judgments to providing a more robust challenge to management too.”  

More and more, as auditors integrate AI into their practices, numerous advantages emerge:  

• Enhanced audit quality: AI can swiftly and accurately evaluate vast amounts of data, which significantly enhances audit quality by reducing the likelihood of human error and omissions. Auditors can leverage AI’s data analysis capabilities to identify potential issues and risks. This empowers them to focus their efforts on areas that require further testing while minimising the risk of overlooking serious misstatements or other critical issues. 
• Reduced costs: AI-driven automation of formerly manual processes leads to cost savings within the audit process. Accelerated audit timelines, enabled by AI-driven efficiencies, lead to decreased overall audit costs. Furthermore, AI can identify precise areas necessitating focused testing, optimising resource allocation and further reducing the time and resources necessary for audit completion. 
• Increased efficiency: Incorporating AI in auditing brings about increased efficiency, streamlining various manual tasks such as data input and analysis. By automating these tedious processes, auditors have more time to focus on higher value, complex tasks that require a human touch. 
• Enhanced risk assessment: AI significantly improves risk assessment throughout the audit process. Through thorough analysis of extensive financial data, AI offers auditors a comprehensive view of a company’s financial position and potential risks. Armed with this invaluable insight, auditors can concentrate their testing efforts on high-risk areas, where material misstatements are more probable, resulting in a more focused and efficient audit. 
• Deeper insights: AI offers superior analytics capabilities, enabling auditors to uncover trends and patterns that may be challenging to detect manually. By analysing vast financial datasets, AI can effectively detect potential fraud, assisting auditors in identifying irregularities that might have been difficult to spot using conventional methods. 
   

Overcoming AI Challenges in Auditing 

Despite all of the benefits and intrigue, AI systems today are not infallible - they can make mistakes and take liberties with outputs, make up references and even fudge data gathering. To make the situation more challenging, the skills required to audit AI individual- and cross-linked systems are emerging and scarce, leading to a patchwork quilt of capabilities.  

The lack of adequate investment in AI support and governance is yet another hurdle; one that leaves audit companies without clear guidelines for implementation. Despite these challenges, overcoming them presents opportunities for growth and innovation in the audit field.  

Moving forward, setting clear goals and objectives for AI solutions is essential for successful implementation in the audit industry. Companies need to establish control limits and parameters to ensure that AI operates within defined boundaries and delivers the desired outcomes.  

Additionally, it’s crucial to recognise that AI is not a replacement for human auditors but rather a tool to augment their capabilities. Human expertise is still invaluable in training AI systems continuously and refining their performance over time. Combining human insight with AI’s analytical power results in a potent combination that can drive innovation and efficiency in audit processes. However, to unlock these benefits, it’s vital that companies provide training programs and upskilling initiatives for their audit teams, equipping them with the necessary competencies to leverage AI effectively. 

The Future of Audit  

Undoubtedly, AI holds immense potential to enhance auditors’ day-to-day work and provide significant value to audits.  

Thomson Reuters’ expertise in AI, particularly in machine learning search engines for professionals, places it in a unique position to deliver innovative solutions tailored to the modern audit industry’s needs. With a rich repository of content developed over centuries and reliable editorial expertise, Thomson Reuters informs the way forward, providing clients with credibility and trust – essential elements in the audit process.  

As AI continues to evolve, its integration into audit technology promises to revolutionise the field, enabling auditors to perform more efficiently and effectively than ever before. Join us in driving growth through evolution by connecting with us today. 

About Thomson Reuters Confirmation 

Thomson Reuters Confirmation, is the digital platform and global network trusted by audit firms, banks, law firms, and credit managers to quickly and securely verify financial data. We invented electronic confirmations and have reshaped and modernised the audit confirmation process. Today, Confirmation helps nearly 1.5 million people across 170 countries confirm more than $1 trillion in financial data every year. Our patented service minimises fraud and brings efficiency to the confirmation process, plus our guaranteed in-network responses and global team of people ensure a premium service for our clients.