KPMG International today (June 30) launched KPMG Workbench – KPMG’s foundational and single AI platform designed to scale global adoption and integration of AI, while enhancing trust and control over AI across all geographies and teams. 

 

It is an open, interoperable AI platform, developed on Microsoft technology and with their support, that is empowering KPMG professionals with the support of trusted, intelligent AI agents to accelerate innovation for clients and complement human expertise.

 

The KPMG Workbench has a network of 50 AI assistants (agents) and chatbots that interact with each other across multiple sectors, with nearly a thousand AI assistants in development to meet diverse client needs. 

 

These agents, built to work with a range of large language models (LLMs), work as digital teammates alongside KPMG professionals to help provide quicker, quality, trusted solutions for clients.

 

This is the latest of several AI announcements from KPMG following recent investments with Microsoft and other alliance partners to help create value, faster by bringing innovative digital solutions, efficiency gains and advanced technology in practical ways to clients.

 

It is part of the global organization’s multi-billion dollar investment in AI and agentic transformation and is the foundation that will underpin KPMG firms’ client delivery platforms, KPMG Digital Gateway (Tax), KPMG Velocity (Advisory) and the global organisation's smart audit platform, KPMG Clara, said the statement.

 

Announcing the launch, David Rowlands, Global Head of AI, KPMG International, said: "Clients tell us that their ability to orchestrate and control their agents in a secure way is becoming their number one concern. They also want a multi-model platform rather than being locked into one provider. Recognizing this, and KPMG’s own needs as a complex global business, the strategy was to build a foundational AI platform that has sovereign data capabilities and enables our people to integrate AI models into one environment that is embedded in our Trusted AI Framework."

 

"With KPMG Workbench, we’re combining advanced AI agents with the insight, judgment and deep expertise of our people to deliver smarter solutions for clients, faster and with full confidence in their security and compliance," stated Rowlands.

 

According to KPMG, it has leveraged the Microsoft Azure platform, including AI capabilities in Azure AI Foundry, as the foundation for the neew platform. 

 

This investment marks the evolution of Workbench from a proven platform for KPMG’s developers to the firm’s central hub for delivering and managing AI, using advanced agent interoperability technology to connect intelligent tools and support throughout various stages of the client journey.

 

With generative and agentic AI, KPMG Workbench’s ability to scale and specialize helps makes it transformative. 

By co-ordinating multiple task-specific agents to collaborate and share context, KPMG Workbench enables team members to automate complex, multi-step processes from client onboarding to regulatory reporting. These agents are modular, reusable, and continuously evolving, making it easier to adapt to changing business needs, it stated.

 

Jamal Fakhro, Managing Partner, KPMG in Bahrain, said: "KPMG Workbench's launch marks a pivotal moment for us. This multi-billion dollar investment in AI underscores our global commitment to leveraging cutting-edge technology for the benefit of our clients. It will fundamentally transform how we deliver value, enabling our teams to offer even more innovative, efficient, and trusted solutions."

 

"This is about empowering our professionals and, in turn, empowering our clients to navigate the complexities of today's business landscape with confidence and agility. In Bahrain, KPMG has established an AI Lab that is working with key clients in the market on some cutting edge use cases. We are significantly investing in Bahraini talent to drive the AI agenda forward for our clients," stated Fakhro.

 

Manav Prakash, Partner, Advisory, KPMG in Bahrain, said: "Over the past 15 months, we have been diligently building a robust technology backbone and a highly skilled AI team here in Bahrain, anticipating the transformative power of platforms like KPMG Workbench."

 

"I'm incredibly excited with the cutting edge work our AI teams are doing for our key clients in Bahrain leveraging KPMG's global investments in AI and also adopting these to the Bahrain context. Our AI Lab is implementing AI solutions that are already driving tangible value for our clients in the Kingdom," stated Prakash. 

 

"With KPMG Workbench, these homegrown capabilities will be significantly amplified, allowing us to accelerate the delivery of advanced, secure, and locally relevant AI-driven services, truly complementing the human intelligence and deep industry knowledge of our professionals," he added.-TradeArabia News Service