Concourse Launches AI Platform to Revolutionize Financial Task Automation
New York, NY — Concourse, a new startup co-founded by Matthieu Hafemeister, has unveiled an innovative AI platform designed to automate financial tasks and streamline operations for finance teams. The platform aims to alleviate the burdens associated with manual workflows that often plague finance departments, with a significant percentage of professionals spending over 25% of their time on repetitive tasks like invoice reviews, according to a survey by Paylocity.
Hafemeister, a former fintech investor at Andreessen Horowitz, saw the inefficiencies firsthand while leading growth at fintech firm Jeeves. “The status quo for finance is countless point solutions that are cobbled together within the finance department,” he noted. “Excel continues to be the lowest common denominator, limiting the promise of automation.” A staggering 82% of finance departments still rely on Excel for budgeting and forecasting, highlighting the urgent need for more effective tools.
Concourse seeks to fill this gap by connecting directly with a company’s financial systems, allowing finance teams to easily retrieve and analyze data, generate reports, and ask specific questions like “What’s our non-GAAP revenue?” Hafemeister explained, “Concourse can proactively surface insights that allow finance teams to be better prepared by enabling them to stay ahead of trends.” Unlike traditional tools, Concourse can perform discrete tasks independently, automating complex, multi-step operations that would typically require significant manual input.
While finance automation is not a new concept, what distinguishes Concourse from competitors is its ability to execute intricate workflows. For example, the platform can retrieve data from a company’s NetSuite dashboard, download CSV files, and copy that data into Excel spreadsheets, all while ensuring accuracy and efficiency. Hafemeister elaborated, “We leverage large language models to do what they are best suited for and pair them with more traditional methods of data analysis.”
The interest in AI within the financial sector is growing rapidly. A recent poll revealed that 58% of finance teams are using some form of AI technology, a 21% increase from 2023. The market for AI in fintech, valued at $9.45 billion three years ago, is projected to grow at an annual rate of 16.5%. However, the path to market penetration for Concourse is not without its challenges. According to Gartner, demonstrating a return on investment (ROI) for AI solutions remains a significant hurdle for many companies.
Moreover, concerns about AI accuracy persist. A survey by HR specialist Peninsula found that 40% of U.K.-based executives are worried about inaccuracies in AI tools. To mitigate these concerns, Concourse has implemented robust fact-checking and validation methods. Hafemeister stated, “Data accuracy is paramount in finance, where answers are typically either entirely correct or entirely incorrect.” He assured potential clients that Concourse does not use their data to train AI models without explicit permission, prioritizing data privacy and security.
Currently in beta, Concourse is gearing up for a broader launch set for next year. The platform has already attracted clients such as Instabase and Shef, and has secured $4.7 million in funding from notable investors, including Hafemeister’s former employer, Andreessen Horowitz, as well as Y Combinator, CRV, and Box Group.
Hafemeister indicated that the company’s immediate focus is on product development and expanding its team. “We raised money to hire more engineers, build out more workflows that our AI can take on, increase coverage on data integrations, and start to scale our go-to-market function,” he said. The startup aims to recruit backend, machine learning, and AI engineers to enhance its offerings.
As organizations increasingly seek efficient solutions to streamline their financial operations, Concourse aims to be at the forefront of this transformation. With its innovative approach to automating financial tasks, the platform holds the potential to reshape the finance landscape, allowing teams to shift their focus from routine operations to strategic decision-making.