Basware Adds AI to Automatically Handle Exception Invoices

Basware is now using artificial intelligence (AI) to address, correct and automate exception invoices.

The company’s SmartPDF, which already extracted data from PDF invoices and turned 80% into real eInvoices, now incorporates self-validation artificial intelligence (AI) that can be trained to handle exception invoices automatically as well, Basware said in a Thursday (April 27) press release .

“SmartPDF with self-validation is the third evolution of this tool that allows finance teams to save money and reduce risk through easy extraction of relevant and high-quality invoice data from PDFs,” Basware CEO Jason Kurtz said in the release.

Basware’s SmartPDF with self-validation tackles exception invoice challenges like invoices with missing fields or unrecognized content, eliminating the need for manual intervention and furthering the progress toward touchless invoice processing, according to the press release.

The Basware AI technology enables this process to become better informed over time and learns to process exception invoices automatically, the release said.

Smart PDF self-validation works with the company’s eInvoice receiving and any enterprise resource planning (ERP) or accounts payable (AP) solution, per the release.

“We are thrilled to announce the latest innovation in our capabilities that provide even more value in AP automation processes and take our customers yet another giant step towards touchless invoice processing,” Kurtz said in the release.

Accounts payable (AP) professionals spend nearly one-quarter of their days on tasks that could be automated, including typing invoice data, fixing mistakes and responding to calls and emails about the status of invoices and payments, according to a recent report .

Meanwhile, highly automated AP departments can process eight times as many invoices per full-time employee, equivalent as those with little or no automation.

In addition to streamlining workflow, invoice processing automation also reduces errors and fraud risks, according to the “ AP Automation Tracker® ,” a PYMNTS and Beanworks collaboration.

Many companies seeing increased demand for payouts are still grappling with manual oversight on invoice data entry , leading to “PDF fatigue,” Routable CEO Omri Mor told PYMNTS’ Karen Webster in an interview posted in September 2022.

Given the rate at which some companies are growing, “If someone is receiving 4,000 PDFs today, well, they’re going to receive 10,000 PDFs tomorrow,” Mor said at the time.