June 01, 2026
Blog > Trust, Transparency, and the Future of AI in Finance: Insights from Sage Future 2026
San Francisco set the stage for this year’s Sage Future—an annual gathering of customers, partners, and industry leaders focused on the future of finance and technology.
More than 4,000 attendees came together to share ideas, explore innovation, and examine how emerging technologies are reshaping the role of finance.
Vision33, a trusted global Sage Intacct partner for over 20 years, was well represented with professionals from its executive, channel, sales, and marketing teams enjoying keynotes, showcases, and thought leadership sessions.
The event reinforced a clear and consistent message.
“The prevalent theme this year was the opportunity for customers and partners to drive the next level of innovation in finance and accounting through AI,” says Derek Sullivan, Vice President, ERP Solutions Atlantic at Vision33.
But beyond the excitement, the conversation has matured. AI in finance is no longer about potential—it’s about practical application, trust, and measurable value.
AI is now everywhere—well beyond enterprise software.
“I was at my veterinarian’s office recently, and there was a cartoon dog with robot ears talking about AI documenting pet health,” Derek notes. “That’s when you know we’ve reached full saturation.”
The takeaway is not that AI is overhyped—but that it has moved firmly into the mainstream.
For finance leaders, the challenge has shifted from understanding AI to determining how to use it effectively and responsibly.
One of the most important themes emerging from Sage Future 2026 is the move away from “black box” AI.
Historically, many AI solutions have provided outputs without clear visibility into how those results were generated—creating risk for finance teams that depend on accuracy and auditability.
Sage is taking a different approach.
“AI is largely viewed as a black box,” Derek explains. “You ask it a question and get an answer, but you don’t know how it got there. With Sage, you can click and see exactly how the answer was generated.”
This concept—often referred to as “glass box AI”—enables users to:
For example, a Sage Intacct user could ask for the most profitable customers from the past year and then trace exactly how that list was derived—down to the calculations behind revenue and margin.
“The user can validate the information. It’s a much more auditable approach to AI,” Derek says.
For finance teams, this isn’t just a feature—it’s essential.
While AI introduces new efficiencies, the expectations in finance haven’t changed.
“If you’re working in financial reporting, accuracy is paramount,” Derek says. “Almost right is wrong.”
Sage’s approach reflects this reality by embedding AI directly into its financial ecosystem—aligned with accounting standards, built with finance-specific logic, and designed to operate within clearly defined data boundaries.
This focus on domain-specific AI—AI with an accounting brain— ensures that outputs are not only intelligent, but reliable.
Despite ongoing concerns about job displacement, the message from Sage Future was clear: AI is designed to elevate human work, not replace it.
By automating repetitive tasks—data entry, reconciliations, reporting preparation—AI frees finance professionals to focus on:
“Most technological advances have created more jobs than they’ve eliminated,” Derek notes. “The person who embraces AI becomes more efficient—and ultimately more valuable.”
In practice, the real advantage lies in human and AI collaboration, not substitution.
Sage Future also highlighted how innovation is accelerating beyond core functionality.
The introduction of advanced AI agents—including Sage’s Finance Intelligence Agent—signals a shift toward more orchestrated, intelligent systems.
These agents can:
The result is a significantly simplified user experience—reducing the need for manual reporting and accelerating decision-making.
At the same time, Sage is enabling partners to build and deliver their own AI-driven solutions, creating a broader ecosystem where specialized capabilities can be shared and adopted more quickly.
Despite the progress, one challenge remains: clarity.
AI is widely discussed—but not always well understood.
“Some solutions are strong, some are weak, and some fall somewhere in the middle,” Derek says. “You need to understand what you can trust—and where the real value is.”
For many organizations, the gap isn’t access to technology—it’s knowing where to start and how to apply it effectively.
As AI capabilities expand, the role of experienced partners becomes increasingly important.
Organizations are looking for more than implementation—they need guidance to:
“A good partner helps you discern fiction from reality and focus on what actually delivers impact,” Derek says.
For Sage Intacct customers and those evaluating cloud financial management solutions, that guidance accelerates adoption while reducing risk.
One of the clearest messages coming out of Sage Future 2026 is the pace of change.
“This isn’t evolving over decades—it’s happening in a year,” Sullivan says.
That compressed timeline is reshaping competitive dynamics.
Organizations that actively explore and adopt AI capabilities are already seeing advantages in:
“If you’re a laggard, you’re leaving value—and money—on the table,” Derek adds.
For organizations considering Sage Intacct—or looking to get more value from their current system—the path forward doesn’t need to be complex.
A measured, practical approach often includes:
From there, organizations can scale with confidence.
AI is no longer a future concept in finance—it’s a present-day capability with real impact.
The organizations that succeed won’t be those chasing every new innovation, but those that:
And in many cases, the most effective starting point is simple: Begin the conversation by speaking with a partner like Vision33 about what’s possible—and what’s worth doing next.
Vision33 is a global, award-winning Sage Intacct partner. Our certified consultants work with growing businesses that have outgrown solutions like QuickBooks, Sage 50, Sage 300, and Xero.
With hundreds of successful Sage Intacct implementations, Vision33 helps businesses in many industries—including non-profit organizations, SaaS companies, and professional services firms—transform accounting frustrations into mission success and strategic growth.
Contact us with questions or register for our next live Sage Intacct demo.
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