Tolley (publisher of Tax Journal) has published a new report How generative AI is transforming tax practice revealing that 66% of the 446 UK tax professionals surveyed are either already using or plan to use AI for work purposes.
Key to the take up of generative-AI tax solutions is trustworthiness, with 79% of respondents having some level of concern around ‘hallucinations’ and ‘lack of trust’ in publicly available, free-to-use generative-AI platforms. However, 71% said they would be ‘somewhat’ or ‘completely comfortable’ using AI-powered tools that were grounded in proven, authoritative tax research and guidance content.
The report quotes Ian Hayes, President of CFE Tax Advisers Europe, saying that while the possibilities of generative AI are exciting, the tax world must have competent risk evaluations in place. ‘It is difficult to overstate the importance of having a clean, extensive training database, which is relevant to the client and the subject of the research, and is able to demonstrate issues of bias in the data.’
As to how tax professionals plan to use generative AI in the immediate future, the survey found that the biggest priorities were researching matters (91%) and drafting documents (87%). Drafting emails or other communication-based tasks was also listed as a priority by 80% of respondents.
Tax professionals were also asked what changes they have made internally to their day-to-day operations. A third (32%) had made a change, the most common being carrying out AI-related training for staff (12%), developing policies on the use of generative AI (11%), and launching an AI-powered product for internal use (11%).
However, in-house teams were the most likely to have made a change, with 43% having done so. A quarter (24%) had created a policy, one in five (18%) had launched an AI-powered product for internal use, and 14% had carried out staff training.
One potentially problematic point of conflict for private practice and in-house teams is pricing. Some believe that the firms investing in generative AI-powered products or tools should be the ones who benefit from the time and cost savings. Others believe the benefits should be passed on to the client.
Tolley found that almost half (45%) of in-house teams expect bills to be reduced as a result of generative AI. Those in private practice were less likely to believe their clients would expect a reduction in cost, with 35% agreeing.
Tolley (publisher of Tax Journal) has published a new report How generative AI is transforming tax practice revealing that 66% of the 446 UK tax professionals surveyed are either already using or plan to use AI for work purposes.
Key to the take up of generative-AI tax solutions is trustworthiness, with 79% of respondents having some level of concern around ‘hallucinations’ and ‘lack of trust’ in publicly available, free-to-use generative-AI platforms. However, 71% said they would be ‘somewhat’ or ‘completely comfortable’ using AI-powered tools that were grounded in proven, authoritative tax research and guidance content.
The report quotes Ian Hayes, President of CFE Tax Advisers Europe, saying that while the possibilities of generative AI are exciting, the tax world must have competent risk evaluations in place. ‘It is difficult to overstate the importance of having a clean, extensive training database, which is relevant to the client and the subject of the research, and is able to demonstrate issues of bias in the data.’
As to how tax professionals plan to use generative AI in the immediate future, the survey found that the biggest priorities were researching matters (91%) and drafting documents (87%). Drafting emails or other communication-based tasks was also listed as a priority by 80% of respondents.
Tax professionals were also asked what changes they have made internally to their day-to-day operations. A third (32%) had made a change, the most common being carrying out AI-related training for staff (12%), developing policies on the use of generative AI (11%), and launching an AI-powered product for internal use (11%).
However, in-house teams were the most likely to have made a change, with 43% having done so. A quarter (24%) had created a policy, one in five (18%) had launched an AI-powered product for internal use, and 14% had carried out staff training.
One potentially problematic point of conflict for private practice and in-house teams is pricing. Some believe that the firms investing in generative AI-powered products or tools should be the ones who benefit from the time and cost savings. Others believe the benefits should be passed on to the client.
Tolley found that almost half (45%) of in-house teams expect bills to be reduced as a result of generative AI. Those in private practice were less likely to believe their clients would expect a reduction in cost, with 35% agreeing.
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