E17: Why a16z is All-In on AI for Finance Teams with Partner Seema Amble

In this episode, Sasha sits down with Seema Amble, Partner at Andreessen Horowitz. Seema shares her research on the transformation of the CFO’s office, and how generative AI is powering financial teams. She discusses how AI can empower CFOs and finance teams to focus on strategic rather manual tasks, increasing client communication through automation, the impact of AI on valuations in service businesses such as law and accounting, and the progression from “service as a software” vs “software as a service”. Seema also discusses investing cycles, and how AI adoption in enterprise might follow the trajectory of other technologies, beginning with consumer adoption first.  -- 🔥 Apply to join over 400 founders and Execs in the Turpentine Network: https://hmplogxqz0y.typeform.com/to/JCkphVqj This show is a part of the Turpentine podcast network. Learn more: https://www.turpentine.co Get Turpentine Finance directly in your inbox. Subscribe to our newsletter at https://turpentine-finance.beehiiv.com/ and receive key takeaways from each episode RECOMMENDED PODCASTS: 🎙️1 to 100 | Hypergrowth Companies Worth Joining Every week we sit down with the founder of a hyper-growth company you should consider joining. Our goal is to give you the inside story behind breakout, early stage companies potentially worth betting your career on. This season, discover how the founders of Modal Labs, Clay, Mercor, and more built their products, cultures, and companies. Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/70NOWtWDY995C8qDqojxGw Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1762756034 -- SPONSORS: NETSUITE 📈 NetSuite has 25 years of providing financial software for all your business needs. More than 36,000 businesses have already upgraded to NetSuite by Oracle, gaining visibility and control over their financials, inventory, HR, eCommerce, and more. If you’re looking for an ERP platform head to NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen - NetSuite has extended a one-of-a-kind flexible financing program for a few more weeks. COMMANDBAR 🦾 Level up your ineffective website chatbot with CommandBar. CommandBar builds a new type of web assistant which delivers highly personalized responses, real time co-browsing, and can perform actions on behalf of the users. Learn how Hashicorp, Gusto, Freshworks and more use CommandBar at https://commandbar.com/moz BABBEL 🌐 Ready to achieve your 2024 goals? Start learning a new language with Babbel in just three weeks. Enjoy app lessons, live classes, and podcasts designed for real-world conversations. Get up to 60% off at https://babbel.com/torenberg -- LINKS: The CFO in Crisis: https://a16z.com/the-cfo-in-crisis-mode-modern-times-call-for-new-tools/ Death, Taxes, and Accounting: https://a16z.com/generative-ai-in-accounting/ X/SOCIAL @seema_amble (Seema) @sashaorloff (Sasha) TIMESTAMPS: (00:00:00) Introduction to Turpentine Finance Podcast (00:01:44) Discussing the CFO in Crisis Mode article (00:02:10) Challenges faced by CFOs with legacy software (00:06:35) The pyramid graph of finance team tasks and market insights (00:15:10) Generative AI's impact on finance (00:16:24) Emerging trends and changes in the market (00:20:14) The rise of bundled solutions in finance (00:22:49) Death, taxes, and AI: Transforming accounting (00:24:33) The excitement of AI in accounting (00:26:42) Challenges and opportunities in AI adoption (00:29:29) Incentive alignment and talent development in service businesses (00:32:36) The future of services as software (00:34:14) AI's impact on business models and valuation (00:38:17) Andreessen Horowitz's AI investment strategy (00:40:07) Future trends and predictions in AI (00:44:12) Engaging with Andreessen Horowitz (00:45:18) Conclusion and call to action