AI document processing
AI document processing that fills in your systems for you
Invoices, intake forms, applications, certificates and purchase orders arrive by email, upload or scan, and someone retypes them into your accounting system, CRM or spreadsheet. We build automations where AI reads each document as it arrives, pulls out the fields you need, checks them against what you already have and fills in the record. A person reviews anything that doesn't match. It runs inside the software you already use, at a fixed price.
How it works
From inbox to finished record
Collect
Documents are picked up wherever they already land: a shared inbox, an upload form, a scanner folder, SharePoint, Google Drive or Zoho WorkDrive.
Read
AI identifies the document type and pulls out the fields you need, including tables and line items, from PDFs, photos and scans.
Check
Each value is checked against your own records, such as the purchase order, vendor list or client file, and against your business rules.
Review
Anything that doesn't match, or that the AI isn't sure about, goes to a person with the document side by side. Everything else goes straight through.
Record
The finished data is written into your accounting system, CRM or spreadsheet, and the original document is filed against the right record.
Common documents
What businesses usually start with
Typical examples, not client stories. Most first projects pick the one document type that takes the most hours each week.
Vendor invoices and bills
Accounts payable in QuickBooks, Xero, Zoho Books or similar
- Before
- Someone opens each emailed invoice and types the vendor, date, amounts and line items into the accounting system.
- With AI
- AI reads each invoice, matches it to the vendor and purchase order and creates a draft bill with the PDF attached.
- A person
- Price or quantity mismatches and new vendors are held for approval before anything is posted.
Client intake and applications
Professional services, healthcare and property management
- Before
- Intake forms, applications and IDs come in by email and upload, and staff key them into the CRM or practice system.
- With AI
- AI pulls the details into a draft record and lists anything missing, then requests it from the client.
- A person
- Staff confirm each new record. Sensitive data only goes to AI services your obligations allow.
Certificates and compliance paperwork
Contractors, suppliers and anyone tracking expiry dates
- Before
- Insurance certificates, licenses and certifications are filed by hand, and expiry dates are missed until someone asks.
- With AI
- AI reads each document, records the coverage and expiry date and requests renewals ahead of time.
- A person
- A weekly list shows anything expired or below your requirements.
Orders, quotes and shipping documents
Distributors, manufacturers and logistics firms
- Before
- Purchase orders, RFQs and bills of lading are checked against each other by eye, and mistakes surface late.
- With AI
- AI reads each document, creates or matches the order and flags quantity, price or date differences as they arrive.
- A person
- Only the exceptions land in someone's queue.
Accuracy and control
Built for the documents AI gets wrong
Checked, not trusted. AI output is compared with your own records and rules before it's used. A total that doesn't add up or a vendor that isn't on file stops for review instead of being posted.
You set the threshold. At first a person can approve every document. As the results prove themselves, you decide which documents go straight through.
Built-in AI first. If Microsoft 365, Google Workspace or Zoho already includes document reading that does the job, we use it. Otherwise we use enterprise AI services in your own account, under terms that keep your data out of model training.
Every step logged. You can see what was read from each document, what was changed and who approved it. See how we put guardrails on AI.
Yours to keep. The automation runs in accounts in your name and comes with documentation, under our No Lock-in Pledge.
Questions
About AI document processing
What is AI document processing?
It's software that reads business documents such as invoices, forms and certificates, pulls out the information you need and enters it into your other systems. Older tools needed a fixed template for every layout. AI can read documents it hasn't seen before, so a new vendor's invoice doesn't need setup first.
How accurate is it?
It depends on the documents. Clean digital PDFs are read very reliably; faded scans and handwriting less so. That's why we check every value against your own records and send anything uncertain to a person. We test on a sample of your real documents during the project, and your written scope sets the accuracy the automation has to meet.
Which systems can it fill in?
Most systems with an API or import, including QuickBooks, Xero, Zoho Books, Zoho CRM, HubSpot, Salesforce, Microsoft 365, SharePoint, Google Sheets and many industry systems. We confirm yours in the free discovery call.
What does it cost?
One document workflow is usually an AutoStart project, from $2,500 at a fixed price with a written scope. AI usage is billed by the provider to your own account, typically a few cents per document, and estimated in your proposal. See pricing.
Is our data safe?
Documents only go to enterprise AI services whose business terms keep your data out of model training, set up in your name. For patient or other regulated data we use only services your obligations allow, such as those covered by a business associate agreement, and your proposal spells out what goes where.
We don't know which documents to start with. Can you help?
Yes. That's what the discovery call is for. We look at where your team spends the most time retyping and recommend the document type that would save the most hours first.
See other examples on our AI-powered automation page, or read how the fixed-price process works.
Which documents are your team retyping?
A free 30-minute call to find the document workflow that would save the most hours.