Artificial intelligence is fast emerging as more than an admin tool for advisers, and it could be the growth engine that trebles firm valuations, new research suggests.
A whitepaper from AdvisoryAI, From Paperwork to People Work, argues that the real prize lies not in efficiency alone but in how AI reshapes firm economics and expands access to advice.
Evidence from Jigsaw Tree’s process audits shows AI-enabled workflows can cut suitability report times by 65% and annual review times by nearly 60%. That freed-up capacity means advisers can serve twice as many clients without increasing headcount.
According to financial modelling by The Flower Group, doubling adviser capacity could translate into a 300% increase in firm valuations, through higher recurring revenues, stronger margins and reduced compliance risk.
AdvisoryAI said: “The real question is not whether AI creates efficiency, but how that efficiency transforms firms by impacting their ability to scale, improve service, and create value.”
Advice gap
The whitepaper also highlights the potential to tackle the advice gap. Around 19.2 million households in the UK hold more than £100,000 in investable assets, yet only 2.7 million receive ongoing advice.
With paperwork identified as the main constraint, many advisers are forced to turn away smaller clients who could become profitable relationships in future.
By cutting documentation times in half, the report argues, firms can expand capacity without compromising Consumer Duty obligations.
Advisers already piloting AI are seeing results. Foster Denovo said it had reduced report writing times on pension withdrawals by 70%, while Timothy James & Partners described producing pension transfer reports “in minutes” rather than hours.
Sarah Watts, head of delivery at Timothy James & Partners, added: “Finally, tech that makes humans more efficient and their work more enjoyable.”
AdvisoryAI concluded: “Paperwork is not just an inconvenience, it is the bottleneck holding the industry back. The firms that act now will be the ones defining tomorrow’s advice industry.”
