Introducing “AI Agent,” “AI Agent Platform,” and “AX Consulting”
Money Forward, Inc. announced its AI strategy, “Money Forward AI Vision 2025,” on Wednesday, April 2, 2025. The company plans to sequentially roll out “AI Agent,” “AI Agent Platform,” and “AX Consulting” services in the future.
Japan is facing a serious issue of a declining and aging population, with the working-age population (ages 15-64) having peaked in 1995 and expected to decrease to 55.4 million by 2050, a reduction of about 25% from 2023*1. Under the corporate mission of “Money Forward. Move your life forward,” Money Forward has been promoting the transition of traditionally analog back-office operations to cloud-based systems to address these societal challenges. In particular, within the Business domain, which offers SaaS solutions for back-office operations, we provide over 30 products that leverage technologies like automatic data retrieval and automated journal entries to enhance productivity and drive DX for sole proprietors, corporations, and professional service firms.
Meanwhile, recent advancements in AI have made business innovation possible at levels unattainable with traditional digital technologies. We will promote AX (AI Transformation) as an initiative to accelerate corporate growth through the full utilization of AI technology. In addition, the “AI Agent” we plan to offer is envisioned for use as a digital worker with advanced autonomy and task execution capabilities, and in line with this, we will enter the digital worker market. By providing AI-driven services, we aim to enhance productivity, reduce costs, and support sustainable growth for companies, particularly those facing labor shortages, thereby helping create an environment in which all companies can focus on their core business.
*1 Cabinet Office “Annual Report on Ageing Society 2024(Japanese only)” accessed on April 2, 2025.
■Services to Be Provided
1. AI Agent in Money Forward Cloud
Money Forward Cloud launched its services in 2013. It has since been used by over 400,000 businesses (including sole proprietors, SMEs, and mid-sized enterprises) as a SaaS solution for back-office operations in the areas of accounting and finance, human resources and labor, and legal affairs, supporting operational efficiency through cloud computing.
However, repetitive tasks such as data entry and data organization, cumbersome inter-departmental communication, and deadline-driven work still impose a time and mental burden on employees. To address these challenges and elevate back-office operations to the next level, we introduce the AI Agent.
Our AI agent supports operational efficiency and decision-making through automation using advanced information processing, such as by suggesting the next task to be handled and providing reminders tailored to the situation. This will reduce the workload for back-office operations and for all employees using back-office tools. A key feature of the AI Agent is its autonomous operation. They make their own decisions and analyze the situation to propose the most appropriate course of action without waiting for human instructions for a given goal or task.
We are developing AI Agents that can be used in areas such as expenses, accounting, and HR. For instance, in the expense management area, when an employee makes a payment with the Money Forward Business Card, they are automatically notified of a proposed expense application by the AI Agent. After reviewing and submitting it, an approval request is automatically sent to their supervisor. For professional service firms, we are considering offering a “Document Collection Agent” that lists necessary documents and sends reminders through communication tools, and an “Account Title Recommendation Agent” that suggests accurate account titles even for first-time transactions. AI agents in each of these areas are expected to be rolled out sequentially throughout 2025.
2. AI Agent Platform
While we will continue to expand the lineup of AI agents that can be used in each area of Money Forward Cloud, we believe that in order to use the optimal AI agents in a speedy and effective manner, it is necessary to have an environment that allows the use of agents from external services as well.
We therefore plan to offer an AI Agent Platform. This platform will allow users to install AI Agents developed by external partners in addition to those provided by us, enabling users to utilize AI agents in optimal combinations.
Furthermore, we aim to build an AI Agent ecosystem that proposes more effective use of AI Agents through co-creation with diverse partners, including professional service offices, sales partners, and BPO partners.
3. AX Consulting
The Money Forward Group has been providing comprehensive consulting services, from SaaS implementation to operational support, to enhance the efficiency of corporate back-office operations.
The new “AX Consulting” initiative we plan to launch will not only support the implementation and operation of optimal SaaS but also leverage AI Agents to automate and streamline complex tasks that were difficult to automate with traditional systems, as well as advanced operations that require human judgment. Specifically, it will support the automation of complex accounting processes based on contracts and invoices, as well as the advancement of tasks such as financial analysis and future forecasting. This will contribute to improvements in both operational and decision-making speed. This service will be provided through a new company, Money Forward Cloud Corporate Performance Management Consulting, Inc., which handles management and consulting areas of the Money Forward Group*2.
Additionally, we will expand “AX Consulting,” which utilizes AI Agents, to the consulting services for financial institutions that have been provided by Money Forward X, Inc., to support the resolution of various challenges faced by financial institutions.
*2 Press Release: New company Money Forward Cloud Corporate Performance Management Consulting to begin full-scale operations in the business management field (Japanese only) (published December 18, 2024)
■Contact Information
For inquiries about collaboration on the “AI Agent Platform” or requests regarding “AX Consulting,” please fill out the form below with your inquiry and submit it.
https://corp.moneyforward.com/contact/other/
■List of AI-based functions in Money Forward Cloud
https://note.business.moneyforward.com/n/n123cfa1718f0
■About Money Forward
Money Forward, Inc. is the leading SaaS/Fintech company from Japan, listed on the Prime Section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange (3994.T). We mainly provide B2B SaaS such as online bookkeeping, HR management, contract management, and payroll; now serving more than 400,000 paying customers nationwide. Our consumer-facing service for personal finance management (PFM) now has 16.7M users.
URL https://corp.moneyforward.com/en/
* All company names and product/service names (including logos) are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.