KPMG to invest $2 billion in artificial intelligence in an expanded partnership with Microsoft

KPM extension AND Microsoft announced an expanded global collaboration to improve professional services through workforce modernization, secure development, and artificial intelligence (AI) solutions. This new multi-year alliance aims to streamline the engagement of KPMG’s clients in the audit, tax and advisory fields.

As part of the initiative, KPMG has pledged to invest $2 billion in Microsoft Cloud and AI services over the next five years. This is expected to unlock a potential incremental growth opportunity of over $12 billion for KPMG.

With the expansive capabilities of the Microsoft Cloud and Azure OpenAI Service, KPMG said its global workforce of 265,000 professionals will be empowered to explore their creativity, accelerate analytics, and spend more time on strategic leadership.

“The capabilities of the Microsoft Cloud and Azure OpenAI Service will enable our teams to help our customers, including more than 2,500 joint customers, keep pace with the rapidly evolving AI landscape and solve their biggest challenges while ensuring that they are well positioned for success in the future world of work,” Microsoft 360° global lead partner Cherie Gartner told VentureBeat.

KPMG said the expansion of the global alliance is rooted in the two organizations’ shared core values ​​of responsible use of cutting-edge AI and cloud technologies.

As an early access partner for Microsoft 365 Copilot and Azure OpenAI Service, KPMG says its professionals will be at the forefront of implementing these technologies in specific business groups. By integrating these tools with their expertise, insights, and industry experience, the company aims to elevate customer engagement and accelerate the creation of AI-powered digital solutions.

“KPMG is using the opportunity to expand into new markets and industries; and this collaboration is designed to see artificial intelligence and the latest innovations used responsibly at scale, helping to unlock sustainable growth for customers, which can ultimately benefit society,” Steve told VentureBeat. Chase, US consulting leader at KPMG.

Gartner of Microsoft 360° said the collaboration includes a specific allocation of resources for innovation in resources developed on the Microsoft Cloud and Azure OpenAI Service, with broader commitments in Microsoft applications and support, internal technology activation and in customer spending.

“We see the total addressable market for this opportunity comes from areas like cyber, cloud, and generative AI, (for) which we expect incremental revenue growth of $12 billion,” Gartner told VentureBeat. “By 2024, the cloud is expected to surpass on-premises infrastructure, (so) investments in areas where operational data is stored, managed and analyzed combined with generative AI, become a game changer.”

Emphasize the power of AI across multiple service industries

KPMG said it will integrate data analytics, artificial intelligence and Azure Cognitive Services into its audit process through KPMG’s intelligent audit platform, KPMG Clara. The company says this will allow the platform’s 85,000 audit professionals to focus on high-risk areas and industry-specific risks and challenges.

Microsoft Fabric will also be integrated, allowing KPMG teams to access customer data in real time, improving audit efficiency.

“AI integrated with KPMG Clara will enable our audit teams to quickly identify and more effectively respond to risks and make informed decisions in a timely manner on areas that require a more professional judgement,” Thomas Mackenzie told VentureBeat. CTO of KPMG’s global audit. “By further integrating data, automation and AI enablement, our practitioners can continue to improve audit performance and deliver standards-aligned quality audits, while increasing the attractiveness of the profession.”

In the tax services domain, Azure OpenAI Service and Microsoft Fabric will be integrated into the KPMG Digital Gateway, providing customers with comprehensive access to KPMG’s tax and legal technologies. This will allow customers more transparent access to their data and generate a holistic management approach to their tax functions.

Collaboration for ESG

One notable result of this collaboration is a co-developed AI solution using the Azure OpenAI service. This solution analyzes ESG data, identifies patterns, and quickly generates ESG tax transparency reports.

Additionally, KPMG Companies will employ a generative AI-powered “virtual assistant” to establish new customer service models.

“KPMG tax professionals already have access to generative AI tools for their day-to-day activities, including an Azure OpenAI-powered virtual assistant that serves as a productivity booster,” Brad Brown, chief technology officer — tax and global head of tax technology and innovation at KPMG US, he told VentureBeat. “The adoption of AI tools will significantly improve speed and efficiency for tax professionals and clients who often have to sift through large amounts of tax data across disparate parts of the organization.”

According to KPMG, its co-developed generative AI tool will help companies address the growing need for tax transparency by efficiently collecting and inserting data into its cloud-based Digital Gateway platform. Through the use of natural language processing, this tool will help companies build a narrative for their tax story, particularly in the realm of ESG.

The company also announced plans to build an AI-enabled knowledge and application development platform on Microsoft Azure. This platform will accelerate the development of tailor-made solutions for its clients in the consulting sector.

KPMG said this approach will strengthen customers’ competitive advantage and profitability, prioritizing ethics and safety.

“Our consultancy is integrating artificial intelligence into our client delivery platform, which allows us to overlay Microsoft machine learning models and advanced analytics on member firms’ and clients’ datasets and solutions,” said Chase of KPMG. “Our teams would now be using our in-house GPT Advisory tool to analyze data for a range of clients, which enables them to deliver our assessments to clients faster and more efficiently.”

Focusing on responsible and ethical AI development

KPMG said it prioritizes the integrity of its network and the security and privacy of both its own and its customers’ data. The company has implemented protective measures for using the publicly available ChatGPT to ensure this.

The company currently uses the Azure OpenAI service, which will soon be accessible to member companies so they can establish secure private instances of GPT.

KPMG recently introduced KymChat, an AI accelerator designed for enterprises, as a proof of concept (POC) in Australia. Its purpose is to assist clients in optimizing areas such as sales and marketing, product development, ideation and training. It also ensures access to industry best practices and methodologies.

Thanks to the success of the POC, the company plans to roll out KymChat globally for the rest of the year.

KPMG’s Chase told VentureBeat that the company will enhance its use of the Microsoft Azure OpenAI service, placing a greater emphasis on generative AI and incorporating new E5 components that strengthen security and empower the global workforce through Microsoft 365.

“In addition to the technology we use today, this will include new offerings like Viva Insights, PowerBI Pro, and Teams Phone and Information Protection,” Chase added. “KPMG will begin working with Microsoft under the Early Access program for (the) Microsoft 365 Copilot offering in Word and PowerPoint to understand how this could change future work.”