Conference Season Exposes Accounting's Knowledge Gap

From vendor demonstrations to hallway conversations, this year’s conference season highlights both excitement and uncertainty across the profession.

Every summer, accounting professionals pack conference centers looking for the next big idea. They attend breakout sessions, visit vendor booths, compare notes with peers, and return to their firms with pages of ideas.

This year, however, the conversations feel different.

Artificial intelligence still dominates the agenda, but the Accounting ARC hosts notice a subtle shift beneath the excitement. The biggest takeaway isn’t simply that AI is everywhere. It’s that many accountants are struggling to separate innovation from marketing, capability from hype, and opportunity from risk.

In this episode of Accounting ARC, hosts Byron Patrick, CPA.CITP, senior product manager for Karbon and co-founder and educator for TB Academy; Donny Shimamoto, CPA.CITP, CGMA, founder and managing director of IntrapriseTechKnowlogies LLC and founder and inspiration architect for the Center for Accounting Transformation; and Liz Mason, CPA, CEO of High Rock Accounting, reflect on what they observe during this year’s conference season—and what those observations reveal about the profession’s next challenge.

Their conclusion is surprisingly consistent: Technology is advancing rapidly, but knowledge may be struggling to keep pace.

The conversation is changing
Only a year ago, many conference discussions centered on whether firms should embrace AI at all. Today, that debate has largely disappeared. Instead, accountants are asking more sophisticated questions. Which tools actually work? How should firms govern AI? Can vendors substantiate their claims? Where are the risks? And perhaps most importantly, how do leaders help employees understand what they’re using?

The hosts describe an environment where firms no longer question whether AI belongs in accounting. They’re trying to determine how to implement it responsibly. That evolution represents progress—but it also exposes a new challenge. As technology becomes more powerful, understanding how it works becomes increasingly important.

Looking beyond the marketing
Conference exhibit halls remain one of the best places to discover emerging technology, but they also require healthy skepticism. Throughout the discussion, the hosts encourage listeners to look beyond polished demonstrations and marketing language. AI has become an expected feature across nearly every software platform. That makes it even more important for practitioners to ask thoughtful questions about how products actually function, what data they rely on, and whether promised outcomes can be validated.

The hosts note that accountants have always approached financial information with professional skepticism. They argue that the same mindset now belongs in technology evaluations as well. Rather than accepting every “AI-powered” label at face value, firms should understand exactly what a tool is doing—and whether it truly solves a business problem.

That curiosity becomes a competitive advantage.

Hallway conversations tell a bigger story
Some of the most valuable conference insights never happen during keynote presentations. Instead, they happen between sessions. As the hosts reflect on recent events, they describe hallway conversations with firm leaders wrestling with the same questions:

How are other firms using AI?
Which implementations actually save time?
What mistakes should be avoided?
How do firms train people without overwhelming them?

These informal discussions often provide a more realistic picture of where the profession stands than polished product demonstrations. They reveal an industry that is optimistic about technology while remaining cautious about implementation. They also reinforce an important truth: No firm is navigating these changes alone. Across the profession, leaders are learning from one another in real time.

Knowledge is becoming the differentiator
The hosts suggest that the next competitive advantage may not come from buying the newest technology. It may come from understanding it better than everyone else. As AI capabilities continue expanding, firms that invest in education, governance and thoughtful experimentation position themselves to make better decisions than firms chasing every new feature. Technology itself is becoming increasingly accessible. Knowing how to evaluate it is considerably harder.

That distinction shifts the conversation away from software and back toward people. Successful firms will still need professionals capable of asking good questions, exercising professional judgment and understanding where technology adds value—and where it does not. In many ways, the profession’s greatest asset remains the same: critical thinking.

A profession still built on trust

For accountants, trust has always been the product. Clients trust financial statements. Business owners trust advice. Stakeholders trust decisions built on reliable information. The hosts believe AI raises new questions, but it does not change that foundation. If anything, the rapid growth of AI makes trust even more valuable.

Understanding how information is generated, where data originates and how conclusions are reached becomes essential to maintaining confidence in professional work. That places accountants in a unique position. Rather than simply adopting technology, they help clients understand it, evaluate it, and use it responsibly.

Looking ahead
Conference season often provides an early glimpse into where the profession is heading. This year, the direction seems clear. AI is no longer the future of accounting. It is becoming part of everyday practice. The bigger question is whether firms will develop the knowledge, governance, and critical thinking needed to use it wisely.

For Patrick, Mason and Shimamoto, the answer lies in continued learning, open conversations and a willingness to challenge assumptions. The profession has never lacked innovation. Its greatest opportunity now is ensuring that understanding grows as quickly as the technology itself.

As conference season winds down, the hosts leave listeners with a reminder that resonates far beyond AI. The most valuable thing accountants can bring back from any conference isn’t another tote bag, product brochure, or software demo. It’s a better question than the one they arrived with.

Listen to the full episode