Tax Goes Real Time by 2026

Friday, November 14, 2025

Hey, Accounting Pros!

Welcome back to AI Accounting Daily, your #1 source for AI news in accounting.

Today, we've got governments racing to real-time tax reporting and e-invoicing mandates, agentic tax workflows that cite the IRS and Checkpoint with reviewer trust emerging as the bottleneck, ERP heavyweights unleashing AI agents to speed reconciliations and close while raising questions about accuracy, controls, and lock-in, Big Tech pouring record sums into AI even as layoffs climb, and hiring managers prioritizing soft skills to make AI adoption stick. We’ll translate what it means for your month-end, audit defense, budgets, and teams—plus where to press vendors before you lock in—so you can move fast without losing control.

Latest in Accounting AI

Governments Push Real-Time Tax Reporting

By 2026, Avalara expects tax complexity to become an enterprise risk as governments push real-time reporting and e-invoicing mandates. CFOs shift to data strategists, unifying tax, financial, and operational data. Month-end close and tax prep lean on scenario modeling, while audit defense budgets rise.

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CoCounsel Tax Automates Complex Tax Workflows

Tax teams want speed without losing authority, and CoCounsel Tax answers with citations to the IRS code and Checkpoint. Agentic workflows retrieve, analyze, and structure sources, shifting tax research and prep from manual to autonomous. With Excel and DMS integrations, reviewer trust becomes next bottleneck.

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ERP Vendors Push AI Agents Into Finance

Agentic AI is shifting enterprise software from features to semi‑autonomous workers. Six giants—SAP, Oracle, Salesforce, AWS, Google Cloud, Azure—push agents that speed reconciliations and month‑end close. CFOs must probe accuracy, controls, and pricing lock‑in, as value shifts from apps to cross‑department “workers”—and vendor leverage grows.

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AI Applications

1. 📊 Docyt Docyt consolidates multi-client or multi-entity data streams and automates routine workflows so your firm gains consistent data, enables advisory services and scales profitably.

2. 📈 Ramp Ramp automates spend management and accounting workflows so your firm closes books faster, reduces manual errors and refocuses resources on profitable advisory services.

3. ⚡ Browse AI Browse AI automates web data collection so accounting firms track client updates, competitor pricing, or compliance changes without manual research or spreadsheet maintenance.

4. 🤝 Lusha Lusha enriches contact data automatically so accounting firms build verified prospect lists, streamline outbound outreach, and grow their client base with accurate insights.

5. 💰 Hedy Hedy automates payroll education and compliance tracking so accounting firms support clients with clear guidance, reduce liability risks, and strengthen HR advisory services.

6. 👥 Skillfully Skillfully assesses candidate skills via real‑world simulations so your firm hires smarter, lowers training time and builds a more capable junior team for advisory services.

Updates in AI

Big Tech AI Spending Drives US Job Cuts

AI spending is hitting records even as layoffs mount. At Amazon’s Reshape, economist Rebecca Patterson said Microsoft, Meta, Alphabet and Amazon could invest $380 billion in AI infrastructure by end-2025, while October job cuts rose 175% year over year—pushing YTD cuts to the highest since 2003. With flat budgets, companies are trimming personnel, especially in tech. The risk: jobless growth, where GDP holds but hiring quietly recedes.

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Hiring Managers Prioritize Soft Skills Over Certs

Hiring for AI work is shifting from credentials to communication. After choosing a candidate with modest tech skills but exceptional translation chops, the author watched her turn a resistant department head into a champion in six weeks, reshaping priorities built over 15 years across sports, entertainment, and VC. As five soft skills rise, the hard part becomes measuring them reliably.

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OpenAI Adds ChatGPT Tones and Speed Boosts

OpenAI is rolling out GPT‑5.1 updates that make ChatGPT chattier and quicker on simple prompts, while pushing deeper, longer reasoning when needed. Beyond tone, users can pick new personas — Friendly, Efficient, Professional, Candid, Quirky — alongside Cynic, Robot, Listener, and Nerd. With more than 800 million users, an Auto mode now switches between “Instant” and “Thinking,” quietly shifting expectations about consistency, cost, and trust.

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Prompt Ideas

Create Internal Knowledge Base Articles

**Role:** You are a **documentation specialist** for an accounting firm, building clear internal knowledge base articles. **Action:** Write a **knowledge base article** explaining **[INSERT TOPIC OR PROCESS]** for internal staff. **Context:** - Audience: firm employees who need step-by-step guidance - Goal: document procedures so tasks can be done consistently without manager input - Tone: instructional, precise, and easy to scan - Style: numbered steps with short explanations; include headings and bullets - Variables: - **Topic or Process:** [INSERT TOPIC, e.g., Client Onboarding, Payroll Setup] - **Software or Tool:** [INSERT SOFTWARE, e.g., QuickBooks, Canopy, Gusto] - Structure: 1. Purpose of the process 2. Required tools or access 3. Step-by-step instructions 4. Quality checks or review points 5. Related resources or links - Output Length: **300–600 words**

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