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QuickBooks Named Best AI Tool for Small Businesses in Report by Expert Consumers

Published

2 months ago

July 24, 2025

NEW YORK, July 24, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — In a newly released report from independent review platform Expert Consumers, QuickBooks has been named the top AI tool for small businesses in 2025. The recognition is based on the platform’s widespread adoption, integrated AI features, and its practical impact on how small businesses manage their operations.

Originally developed as a user-friendly accounting solution, QuickBooks has transformed into an AI-powered business platform that helps small businesses reduce manual workload, uncover financial insights, and respond more effectively to daily challenges. The findings reflect a broader trend in 2025, where small businesses are moving from experimenting with AI to actively incorporating it into their everyday systems.

Top AI Tool for Small Businesses

AI That Works in the Background

QuickBooks ranks highly in the Expert Consumers report because its AI is not offered as a separate module. Instead, the platform integrates AI directly into core functions. This makes advanced tools accessible to business owners who may not have a technical background.

Features like expense categorization, invoicing, reconciliation, and forecasting all benefit from machine learning that improves over time. These automations work in the background to reduce errors, save time, and give users better control of their finances.

With small teams often juggling multiple roles, these tools allow users to focus on growth and strategy rather than day-to-day bookkeeping.

Features That Solve Real Problems

QuickBooks’ AI capabilities were praised for being relevant and immediately useful. The platform delivers tangible benefits by addressing financial tasks that small businesses struggle with the most. Key features include:

Automated Expense Categorization: QuickBooks uses machine learning to assign transactions to categories in real time. It gets more accurate with continued use and reduces the need for manual entry.
Cash Flow Forecasting: By analyzing past behavior, invoices, and spending patterns, QuickBooks provides predictive cash flow models that help business owners anticipate issues before they arise.
Real-Time Anomaly Detection: The platform monitors for unusual financial activity and alerts users to inconsistencies such as duplicate payments or suspicious charges.
Tailored Financial Insights: QuickBooks analyzes business data and offers suggestions, such as adjusting budgets or changing invoice timing. This helps owners take informed action quickly.

These tools convert raw financial data into practical guidance. Instead of just displaying numbers, QuickBooks tells users what those numbers mean and how they can respond.

Built for Integration and Mobility

QuickBooks also received high marks for its flexibility across industries and compatibility with other systems. Its wide network of integrations allows businesses to connect their existing tools without significant disruption.

Third-Party App Connections: QuickBooks integrates with more than 750 apps, including platforms like Shopify, Salesforce, and Google Workspace. These integrations help automate workflows from sales to fulfillment to accounting.
Bank and Payment Connectivity: The platform connects to thousands of financial institutions and payment processors, including PayPal, Square, and Stripe. This enables automatic bank feeds, transaction imports, and reconciliations.
Industry Customizations: Businesses in fields like construction, retail, and consulting benefit from industry-specific templates. QuickBooks adjusts its AI models based on the type of business and its unique patterns.
Cloud Access and Mobile Support: With both web and mobile platforms, QuickBooks users can access insights and tools from anywhere. AI features work seamlessly across devices, helping business owners respond in real time.

This level of flexibility allows QuickBooks to serve a broad range of business types without losing depth or accuracy in its AI analysis.

Clear and Scalable Pricing

Affordability plays a critical role in adoption. QuickBooks continues to offer four main subscription tiers under QuickBooks Online, each with built-in AI capabilities. This allows businesses to select a plan based on their size and complexity, without paying extra for core automation features.

Simple Start: Geared toward sole proprietors and freelancers. Includes AI tools for categorization, invoicing, and deduction suggestions.
Essentials: Suitable for small teams. Adds features like bill tracking, time management, and cash flow forecasting.
Plus: Designed for growing businesses. Supports inventory tracking, project profitability tools, and deeper insights into operational costs.
Advanced: Best for more complex businesses. Offers customized reports, predictive analytics, and smart dashboards for KPI monitoring.

Each plan is designed to help businesses at various stages access the same intelligent features, making AI more attainable regardless of company size or budget.

AI That Works for Business Owners

From flagging irregularities to helping users forecast cash flow, QuickBooks acts like a virtual financial assistant. It supports business owners in making informed choices, reducing risks, and saving time. And because the AI is integrated throughout the experience, users benefit from it automatically as they go about their daily tasks.

This recognition reflects QuickBooks’ continued investment in meaningful innovation. Rather than chasing hype, the platform focuses on making advanced tools feel natural and useful to everyday users.

Visit ExpertConsumers.org for the full report.

About QuickBooks

QuickBooks, developed by Intuit, is a financial management platform trusted by millions of small and mid-sized businesses. With a long-standing reputation for simplifying accounting, QuickBooks now leverages artificial intelligence to deliver real-time insights, automate tasks, and support smarter decision-making. Its AI features are designed specifically with small business owners in mind, offering accessible tools that enhance productivity, improve accuracy, and reduce the burden of financial management. In 2025, QuickBooks continues to lead the way in bringing intelligent automation to the heart of small business operations.

About ExpertConsumers.org: Expert Consumers delivers news and insights on consumer products and services. As an affiliate, Expert Consumers may earn commissions from sales generated using links provided.

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One year in, Business Insider’s AI search is boosting click-throughs

Published

1 hour ago

September 17, 2025

Alexander Lee

A year in, Business Insider’s AI onsite search is driving deeper engagement, though not necessarily broader adoption.

The AI search tool, which Business Insider launched in October 2024, is one of several AI-powered products developed by the company in the past year and discussed by BI CTO Harry Hope during a talk at this week’s Digiday Publishing Summit in Miami, Florida.

Although Business Insider’s AI search tool is currently only used by roughly one percent of Business Insider’s readership — Hope said that this was the percentage of readers who had used BI’s previous search tool, and that the “percentage hasn’t grown that dramatically in a year of use” — it has significantly increased the engagement of those who do use the tool, with click-through to articles increasing by 50 percent since October, per Hope.

“The goal here was to really find a way to build something that promoted journalism, not try and cover it up or paint it over with AI, right? We felt strongly that, when it comes to AI and chatbots, it’s not a one-size-fits-all solution,” Hope said. “We can do creative things to actually promote the work that our journalists do day-in and day-out — and it worked quite well.”

Business Insider’s updated search tool isn’t the company’s only AI product that has grown over the past year. Consumption of BI’s AI audio briefings, which launched in June, has also grown by 20 percent month-over-month, per Hope. In addition to front-facing tools like the AI search and audio briefing, Business Insider staff have stepped up their internal use of AI, with Hope estimating that between 80 and 90 percent of staff were using AI tools — an increase from the roughly 70 percent of BI staff using AI tools in May.

“People are particularly interested in building GPTs for specific use cases. I think we have about 200 right now across our organization that people have created just for different, sometimes surprising, utilities,” said Hope, who elaborated that BI staff are using AI chatbots to simulate notes from editors or feedback from potential advertisers.

Business Insider was not the only publication that discussed AI search tools on the stage at this week’s conference. Wirecutter executive director of commerce Leilani Han said that the publication’s new AI-powered search feature had “definitely” improved click-throughs to its product recommendations, although she declined to share a specific growth figure.

Han added that Wirecutter was actively looking to optimize its content for AI search — but that it had found that the playbook for AI search optimization is not a huge shift from the playbook for traditional search optimization.

“The planning doesn’t seem to be drastically different,” she said. “For us, our focus has always been certainly the readers, and that hasn’t really changed.”

During his Publishing Summit talk, Hope acknowledged that Business Insider’s AI tools aren’t yet a significant revenue stream for the company, although BI views products such as the AI audio briefing as potential advertising or sponsorship inventory down the line. For now, Business Insider is investing in AI because it believes it will improve the company’s bottom line in the future — not because it’s a huge moneymaker in 2025.

“The ROI doesn’t look great — I’m not going to lie to you, just if you compare the dollars and cents — but we need to weigh that against where we see the future panning out, where the puck is going,” Hope said. “And part of it involves buy-in and faith from your organization that it is valuable to spend some of your resources on these tools and these technologies.”

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Baidu shares surge as the company secures major AI partnership, fresh capital

Published

2 hours ago

September 17, 2025

Dylan Butts

Baidu has launched a slew of AI applications after its Ernie chatbot received public approval.

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Chinese tech giant Baidu saw its shares in Hong Kong soar as much as 12% on Wednesday as the company ramps up its artificial intelligence plans and partnerships.

Shares in the Beijing-based firm, which holds a dominant position in China’s search engine market, had gained 9% overnight in U.S. trading.

The strong stock performance comes after Baidu earlier this week secured an AI-related deal with China Merchants Group, a major state-owned enterprise, focused on transportation, finance, and property development.

“Both sides plan to focus on applications of large language models, AI agents and ‘digital employees,’ vowing to make scalable and sustainable progress in industrial intelligence based on real-life business scenarios,” according to Baidu’s statement translated by CNBC.

Baidu has been aggressively pursuing its AI business, which includes its popular large language model and AI chat bot Ernie Bot.

On Tuesday the company disclosed a 4.4 billion yuan ($56.2 million) offshore bond offering due 2029, in a move that will help grow its war chest as it seeks to compete in China’s competitive AI space.

Other Chinese AI players like Tencent have also been raising funds including via debt sale this year as they pour billions into their AI capabilities.

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