Materia Exits Stealth, Launches GenAI Platform for Public Accounting Firms

Materia has come out of stealth with over $6.3 million in funding, launching a generative artificial intelligence (AI) platform built specifically for public accounting firms.

The platform aims to provide these firms with intelligent technology that will free up time they currently spend on many low-value, tedious, day-to-day tasks, the company said in a Thursday (June 20) press release.

“We founded Materia to address this critical need, saving time and helping pick up the heavy lifting and tedious tasks in day-to-day workflows while keeping security and accuracy central to our product design,” Kevin Merlini, CEO and co-founder of Materia, said in the release.

The company’s platform consolidates firms’ internal knowledge into a secure Knowledge Hub, according to the release. By doing so, it creates an organized enterprise search layer that bridges silos.

This hub is then leveraged by the Materia AI Assistant and Document Analysis Workspace, which use the data to deliver reliable data based on proprietary knowledge and authoritative accounting standards, the release said.

The platform was designed to be implemented in days, to deliver responsible AI backed by rigorous accuracy testing by CPA subject matter experts, and to offer a consultative approach for firms that need bespoke customization or integrations, per the release.

The company already works with top national firms, and the feedback from these customers has been “overwhelmingly positive,” Natalie Sandman, a general partner at Spark Capital, which led the funding, said in the release.

“We believe that Materia’s AI solution will transform the accounting industry, speeding up accounting professionals’ routine tasks and empowering them to provide higher quality services more efficiently to their clients,” Sandman said.

PYMNTS Intelligence has found that chief financial officers (CFOs) are deploying AI to improve a multitude of efficiencies across their organizations. Sixty-three percent of CFOs said AI had reduced their need for lower-skill workers, and 58% said they need more analytically skilled employees.

In another recent fundraising in this space, AI startup Fieldguide said in March that it raised $30 million for its accounting industry offering. Fieldguide’s AI solution can automate workflows, streamline operations and give CPAs more time to do high-value work.