AI is everywhere now whether you’re using it to draft emails, summarise technical guidance, analyse documents or generate ideas. However, AI should not simply (blindly) be believed as an authoritative source!
- Treat AI as a starting point for research, not the final answer.
- Incorrect AI outputs could lead to incorrect advice, client complaints and reputational damage.
- Check every technical claim against a trusted source or sources
Why? Because Generative AI tools predict likely responses based on patterns in data and whilst they can be remarkably convincing, they can also produce inaccurate, outdated or entirely fabricated information, often presented with total confidence as being “gospel”.
Before relying on AI ask yourself five simple questions
- What is the source? (can information be traced back to credible/trusted sources – the quality of the output is often influenced by the quality of the underlying sources)
- Is the information current? (be specific in prompts and check dates)
- Does it align with our professional knowledge? (does it make sense to use as trained competent accountants – aka “does it look right”?)
- Can we corroborate it? (to some other independent source)
- Would we be happy explaining the output to a client and to share the sources with the client (“because AI said so” being insufficient)
All firms should now have an “AI” policy to be clear to all staff what AI can, and can’t be used and for what purposes and when and how its use is to be recorded on files. It has already been shown employees are using personal AI tools in their work without their firms consent opening the door to risks of breaching client confidentiality, GDPR as well as cyber security risks. Your Staff Are Using AI at Work. Do You Have a Policy?
Useful resources
- To better understand the inputs and capabilities of generative AI, see ICAEW’s Generative AI guide.
- ICAEW’s ICAEW GenAI Accelerator Programme provides an in-depth programme to help you upskill and understand effective and safe use of AI within the accounting profession. The first module is free to ICAEW members, and counts towards your verifiable CPD.
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