Five inflection points have reshaped accounting in the last 30 years. Hand. Excel. SaaS. APIs. AI. The first four automated data. The fifth is the first one that touches judgment — and that's why it's a different category of tool than anything that came before it.
Most AI-written content is indistinguishable on LinkedIn because the operators skipped the voice-training step. Here's the 5-step playbook for teaching an AI agent to write like the person it works for — and why your voice is the most underrated asset in your firm.
On the RiskCast AI podcast, Matt described AI as a bionic arm — amplification before replacement. For accountants, knowledge workers, and anyone whose job is judgment, this metaphor reframes the whole conversation.
Most services firms are deploying AI defensively — to cut costs without losing quality. The firms that will win the next decade are doing the opposite. Here's what offense actually looks like, and the playbook for getting there.
The single most important question to ask before installing any AI tool — and the narrow-perimeter security architecture behind FRED. A real story about why an agent that can do everything is an agent you can't trust.
Most AI agent setups treat security as a layer you add later. Matt built FRED the opposite way — security first, capabilities second. Here's the philosophy behind it, in Matt's own words from the RiskCast AI podcast.
The cleanest mental model for working with an AI agent isn't about replacing humans. It's about a delegation philosophy borrowed from one of the smartest people we know.
Matthew DeWald appeared on RiskCast AI Episode 3 to talk about building FRED — the OpenClaw setup, the security paranoia, the $5K/month target, and why a 30-year accountant decided to bet on AI agents. Watch the full episode.