It feels like you can’t go a day right now without hearing something about AI. Every conference has a session on it, every software vendor is building it in, and every accountant has an opinion on whether it’s the best thing to happen to the profession or the beginning of the end. It’s a conversation we’ve been having on the podcast too, with guests who bring real, hands-on perspective on where AI is actually headed for firms like yours.
So we pulled together this roundup of our top conversations on AI in accounting. Maybe you’re trying to figure out where AI actually fits in your firm, maybe you want to know what to be skeptical of, or maybe you just don’t want to feel like you’re already behind. Whether you’re all in on AI, still on the fence, or actively avoiding the hype, there’s a conversation below worth your time.
The AI-First CPA Firm: Redefining Accounting with Jody Padar, The Radical CPA
Jody Padar built one of the first cloud accounting firms back in 2010 and has since worked across tech startups including Botkeeper. In this episode she lays out what an “AI-first” practice actually looks like heading toward 2030, and why the goal isn’t replacing staff but expanding the firm’s capacity for client relationships and advisory work.
- Why 2030 is the planning horizon firms should be building toward now
- How AI expands capacity for empathy and client connection rather than replacing it
- What private equity capital and fintech disruption mean for aging firm leadership
- How to use AI to deepen client relationships at scale
AI Won’t Replace CPAs. It’ll Free Them to Do Work That Actually Matters
Rachel Ferris built TaxStack AI after seeing firsthand how firms were adopting AI tools without a real strategy. This episode is a useful counterweight to AI hype: it covers where generative AI actually falls short for tax research and what firms should evaluate before adopting any new tool.
- Why ChatGPT’s fact-check problem makes it risky for tax research, and how sourcing from your own database fixes it
- A cautionary account of firms that adopted AI aggressively in 2024 and abandoned it six months later
- Why pausing to evaluate beats frantically adopting every new AI tool on the market
- Ed Kless’s “transformation economy” concept: moving from selling transactions to selling transformation
- Why firms that use AI responsibly will outperform firms that use it to cut costs at the expense of relationships
Navigating the Future of Accounting Through AI and Adaptation with Dan Hood of Accounting Today
Dan Hood has spent over two decades at Accounting Today and has a rare vantage point on how the profession is changing. This episode is one of the more grounded takes on AI in the roundup: Dan compares the current moment to the early days of the internet, and argues most firms are not even ready to use their own data in an AI context yet.
- Why the industry is still in “the wild, wild west” stage of AI adoption
- Why clean, structured data is the real foundation for getting any AI tool to work well
- Why starting small with a quick return on investment beats a firm-wide AI rollout
- How firm scaling from $1M to $10M+ requires a fundamentally different operating structure
- Why the winner won’t be AI or the accountant alone. It will be the accountant who uses AI
Modern Accounting in the Age of AI with Mike Schwarz
Mike Schwarz, CEO of MyZone AI, joins the show to talk capacity: specifically, how little of it accounting firms have right now, and how AI can help firms automate repetitive tasks without burning out staff in the process.
- Why there is not a lot of spare capacity in most accounting firms today
- How to build systems that support staff instead of just chasing more output
- Why resistance to AI is usually rooted in fear, and how to reframe it as an enabler of freedom rather than a threat to job security
- A practical suggestion: thirty minutes a day learning AI tools compounds into major gains over time
Frequently Asked Questions About AI in Accounting
What has the Accountant’s Flight Plan podcast covered about AI in accounting?
The podcast has covered AI adoption strategy, building AI-first firms, the risks of relying on generative AI for tax research, and how firms can use automation to free up capacity for advisory work, through conversations with Jody Padar, Rachel Ferris, Dan Hood, and Mike Schwarz, among others.
Is AI going to replace CPAs?
The consensus across these episodes is no, but firms that ignore AI risk losing ground to firms that adopt it well. The recurring line across guests is that the accountant who uses AI will outperform the accountant who does not, and that AI’s near-term value is freeing up capacity for higher-value advisory work rather than replacing professional judgment.
What is the biggest risk of using AI tools like ChatGPT in an accounting firm?
Rachel Ferris of TaxStack AI warned that ChatGPT’s fact-check problem makes it risky for tax research unless firms source answers from their own verified database rather than relying on general-purpose AI output.
How should a small CPA firm start adopting AI?
Dan Hood of Accounting Today recommends starting small: clean up your firm’s data first, since AI performs far better on structured data, then test individual tools with a clear, quick return on investment rather than attempting a firm-wide AI overhaul all at once.
Explore more conversations on firm growth, valuation, and practice sales on the Accountant’s Flight Plan podcast page.
