Xero unveils new AI tools, opens entries for $690,000 Beautiful Business Fund

Accounting software company Xero has announced a series of new AI-driven product enhancements aimed at improving the efficiency of small businesses and their advisors. The new AI tools are being announced alongside the company’s new Beautiful Business Fund at Xerocon event this week.

Xero pushes further into AI

Five new product features will be announced at the two-day event. The first is a machine learning-powered predictive AI tool that will automatically add new contacts that aren’t in a business’s current Xero list.

Xero Analytics Plus will also be getting a predictive AI boost across routine invoice and bill payments. According to the company, this will give small businesses a clearer picture of their potential future cash flow.

The company will also be experimenting with generative AI in the customer support space. At the present time, this will be specifically used for onboarding with Xero Central (Xero’s customer support and learning site), with Amazon Bedrock and other AI vendors as a partner. The idea is to provide customers with faster access to existing information that could help across their workflows.

Xero is also experimenting with a new AI assistant for small businesses during the Xero onboarding process.

Further, Xero is expanding its award interpretation tool, Planday, for the hospitality sector. The aim is to aid businesses in maintaining compliance with varying award rates and penalties.

On the advisor front, it is releasing a single client record that will allow advisors to work more seamlessly across its different tools, enhancing their operational workflow.

Finally, Xero will be expanding its partnership with Stripe to consolidate the online payment experience for its users. This will enable them to manage more payment-related activities directly on the Xero platform. This will be launching later this year, initially rolling out the ability to view payment transaction details and issue refunds to customers.

There are also plans for Xero and Stripe to add more flexible payment options for customers in-person and online.

“Xero is committed to continuously innovating to help businesses streamline time-consuming and manual processes, while at the same time delivering the right insights at the right time to help them make more informed decisions,” Diya Jolly, chief product officer at Xero, said.

“By creating simpler, smarter and more seamless platform experiences for our small business customers, Xero can help them tackle common pain points such as managing cash flow and payroll more efficiently, freeing them up to focus on other priorities.”

Xero’s Beautiful Business Fund

Xero has also opened applications for its inaugural Beautiful Business Fund which was announced last month. The $690,000 fund is open to Xero’s small business clientele in various countries, including Australia, Canada, the US and the UK.

$20,000 will be allocated to the winner of each category in Australia, with an additional $50,000 if an Aussie small business happens to be a global winner as well.

To apply, eligible businesses are required to present a 90-second pitch video and complete a short form for any of the following categories:

• Innovating for Sustainability
• Trailblazing with Technology
• Strengthening Community Connection
• Upskilling for the Future

“Supporting and celebrating small businesses is intrinsic to Xero’s values. We are thrilled to aid these companies in achieving greater success,” mentioned CEO Sukhinder Singh Cassidy.

For complete submission guidelines, interested parties are encouraged to visit the official website. The deadline for entries is October 6, 2023.