Smith + Howard is using new backing from private-equity firm TPG to pursue a larger acquisition program and to test where artificial intelligence can improve accounting work. The firm had more than 800 employees in seven states and expected about $175 million in 2026 revenue. Management said two acquisitions could close by the end of 2026, with additional deals planned for 2027, while every employee received access to Anthropic’s Claude for experimentation and workflow improvements.
What changed at Smith + Howard
Smith + Howard provides accounting, assurance, tax, advisory and wealth-management services. It previously operated through an investment period with Broad Sky Partners. TPG announced an investment on June 9, 2026, saying the capital would support national expansion, technology, talent, client-service capabilities and artificial-intelligence integration. TPG did not disclose financial terms; its announcement said closing was expected in the third quarter of 2026, subject to customary conditions and approvals. By the October 14, 2026 report from The Information, the firm was described as TPG-backed and preparing another acquisition round.
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The firm reported more than 800 employees across Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. It expected approximately $175 million of revenue in 2026. Excluding acquisitions, management said revenue had grown about 10% to 15% annually for the previous decade.
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TPG is treating Smith + Howard as part of a broader effort to consolidate professional-services firms and use technology to raise margins. The objective is not simply to buy more practices. TPG and Smith + Howard are evaluating whether a larger platform can spread technology investments, specialist talent and marketing capabilities across more offices and clients.
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Brian Goffman, TPG’s managing director of AI, said the firm believes accounting companies may retain more of the savings created by AI instead of immediately passing all efficiency gains to customers. “In accounting, that doesn’t seem to be the case,” he said when explaining that expectation. He also described a willingness to bid more for a target when TPG can identify AI-created value: “We’ll pay more than the other firm because we know we can create that value.”
Acquisitions planned for 2026 and 2027
Smith + Howard expected as many as two transactions to close by December 31, 2026, and planned to continue buying in 2027. Management said the acquisition program could add 20% to 25% of 12-month forward revenue. The firm was also considering larger sellers than in its earlier program.
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| Acquisition measure | Earlier approach | Current plan or market context |
|---|---|---|
| Seller annual revenue | $2 million to $20 million | $5 million to $50 million under consideration |
| Expected deal timing | Prior purchases made during the Broad Sky period | Up to two deals potentially closing by the end of 2026; more planned in 2027 |
| Contribution target | Not stated | 20% to 25% of 12-month forward revenue |
| Observed valuation for smaller firms | Not stated | About five to six times EBITDA for firms with solid clients but limited technology or marketing capabilities |
| Observed valuation for established firms with direct private-equity backing | Not stated | Approaching 12 times EBITDA or higher |
The EBITDA multiples are market observations reported in the acquisition discussion, not a price guide for every accounting practice. A target’s client retention, service mix, technology, growth rate and leadership depth can materially change its value.
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Smith + Howard’s AI operating plan
Claude access for every employee
Smith + Howard rolled Anthropic’s Claude out to all employees rather than limiting it to a small innovation team. The aim is to let teams test practical uses and surface ideas from people who perform the underlying work. Management is starting with activities that involve “a lot of lather, rinse, repeat,” in CEO Sean Taylor’s description.
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First targets: repetitive accounting and audit work
Early candidates include reducing manual steps in recurring workflows, automating parts of industry-specific audits and lowering spending on outside software. These tasks often follow recognizable patterns, making them easier to standardize and review than open-ended professional judgment.
Why complex audits are different
Complex financial-statement audits remain harder to automate. They require judgment about unusual transactions, evidence quality, materiality, internal controls and the facts of a particular client. AI may help prepare workpapers or identify exceptions, but the firm’s plan does not treat those audits as a near-term replacement for experienced professionals.
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Products for clients and an AI executive
The firm is evaluating AI-enabled products that it could offer to clients in addition to using AI internally. It is also searching for a C-suite executive to lead AI efforts, a sign that management expects the work to extend beyond isolated experiments into governance, implementation and commercial product decisions.
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How TPG and Smith + Howard will judge whether AI works
TPG’s main high-level measure is revenue per employee. In accounting operations, Goffman suggested a more specific productivity test: how many audits a given employee can complete. Smith + Howard also tracks return on investment month by month.
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| Metric or tool | What it is intended to show |
|---|---|
| Revenue per employee | Whether the platform is generating more revenue with its available workforce |
| Audits completed per employee | Whether audit throughput rises without sacrificing review quality |
| Monthly ROI tracking | Whether a deployment is producing benefits relative to its ongoing cost |
| Five-year cash-flow projection | Whether expected savings and growth justify implementation and operating costs |
Before deciding to build software internally, Smith + Howard includes expected AI costs and growth in five-year cash-flow projections. That approach forces the firm to account for implementation, maintenance and adoption costs rather than counting only a theoretical labor saving. Taylor said, “We are monitoring it, but we definitely feel like the return is going to be there.”
What AI could mean for accountants and clients
The stated strategy points to job redesign before wholesale replacement. Employees may spend less time on repetitive preparation, data gathering and standard documentation, while more time goes to exceptions, client communication, review and judgment. The firm will still need controls for confidentiality, accuracy, audit evidence and human approval, especially in regulated assurance work.
For clients, the potential benefits are faster turnaround, more consistent processes and new software or advisory offerings. The trade-off is that firms must decide how to price efficiency gains, protect client data and demonstrate that automated steps meet professional standards.
Quick Recap
Key uncertainties to watch
- The TPG transaction’s final terms were not disclosed, and the June announcement described closing as subject to approvals and other customary conditions.
- The names, prices and closing dates of the potential 2026 acquisitions had not been announced in the October 14 report.
- Claude access gives employees an experimentation platform, but it does not establish that any specific audit workflow has been fully automated or approved for client use.
- TPG’s relationships with Anthropic, Microsoft and Google provide broader technology context; they do not by themselves confirm commercial arrangements between those companies and Smith + Howard.
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