The impact of artificial intelligence on audit profession

Copy igh © 2023 by Au ho /s and Licensed by IADITI. This is an open access a icle dis ibu ed unde he C ea i e Commons A ibu ion License which pe mi s un es ic ed use, dis ibu ion, and ep oduc ion in any medium, p o ided he o iginal wo k is p ope ly ci ed. Jou nal o In o ma ion Sys ems Enginee ing and Managemen 2023, 8(1), 19002 e-ISSN: 2468-4376 h ps://www.jisem-jou nal.com/ Resea ch A icle The impac o a i icial in elligence on audi p o ession Luis Rod igues1, José Pe ei a1, Amélia Fe ei a da Sil a2 *, Humbe o Ribei o3 1 School o Managemen , IPCA, Ba celos, Po ugal 2 CEOS.PP, Poly echnic o Po o / ISCAP, Po ugal 3 ESTGA & GOVCOPP, Uni e si y o A ei o, Po ugal * Co esponding Au ho : [email p o ec ed] Ci a ion: Rod igues, L., Pe ei a, J., da Sil a, A. F., & Ribei o, H. (2023). The impac o a i icial in elligence on audi p o ession. Jou nal o In o ma ion Sys ems Enginee ing and Managemen , 8(1), 19002. h ps://doi.o g/10.55267/iad .07.12743 ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT Recei ed: 13 No 2022 Accep ed: 18 Dec 2022 The e is an expec a ion ha he in oduc ion o a i icial in elligence (AI) will b ing abou p o ound changes in he cu en pa adigm o he audi p o ession, ensu ing be e eliabili y and secu i y in he analysis o inancial s a emen s. This pape e po s he esul s o a ques ionnai e su ey o asce ain he pe cep ions o ce i ied audi o s, om wo Po uguese dis ic s, ega ding he impac o a i icial in elligence on he audi p o ession. Findings e eal ha he esponden s belie e ha he p o ession's u u e depends on he implemen a ion o AI, namely in he e iciency and e ec i eness o audi p ocedu es, sampling echniques, cos -bene i ela ionship and ecogniz ing ma e ial dis o ions. Keywo ds: Audi , A i icial In elligence, p o ession, Managemen Sys em, Indus y 4.0 INTRODUCTION The beginning o he 21s cen u y was ma ked by signi ican echnological p og ess and, a he same ime, by he g ow h o he wo ld economy and de elopmen o he s uc u e and complexi y o o ganiza ions. In addi ion, he le el o equi emen on he pa o use s o inancial s a emen s has also g own, who inc easingly seek o know exac ly whe he hey ep esen he company's inancial posi ion and whe he hey a e ee om ma e ial dis o ion due o aud o e o . In his con ex , as some o he audi p ocedu es, in pa icula manual p ocedu es, a e ine icien and ine ec i e in he cu en scena io o he ul ilmen o he p o ession's objec i es, he need ine i ably eme ges om in eg a ing audi ing in he pa h o new echnologies o de elop ools ha pe o m au oma ion o a ious audi p ocesses. The audi da es back o ancien ci iliza ions, has since aken on a ious objec i es and unde gone se e al changes o adap o he economic eali y o di e en imes. Howe e , he science o audi ing can cu en ly be de ined as a con inuous and objec i e p ocess ca ied ou by an independen expe aiming o analyze whe he he inancial s a emen s a e ee om ma e ial dis o ion due o aud o e o and i hey eliably ep esen he ue image and app op ia e company. Ne e heless, based on he de elopmen o he global economy and, consequen ly, on he g ow h o mul ina ional companies wi h decen alized ac i i ies and inc easingly complex s uc u es and ansac ions, i becomes e y di icul o he audi o o e ec i ely ul il he objec i es o he p o ession, making i di icul o gua an ee easonable secu i y le els abou he e aci y o he inancial s a emen s. Fo ha eason, a he beginning o he 21s cen u y, wi h he exponen ial g ow h o echnology, se e al wo k ools began o appea o au oma e some o he audi p ocedu es. Fo ins ance, he concep o con inuous Assu ance in audi is de ined by Vasa helyi e al. (2010), as he applica ion o mode n in o ma ion echnologies o he s anda d audi p oduc s, be hey he manda ed annual audi opinion o in e nal IT audi . Acco ding o hese au ho s, (Vasa helyi e al., 2010:27), “in he ea ly days o Con inuous Audi ing, he ul ima e ideal was he e en ual de elopmen o he ― push buon audi ‖, in which audi ing unc ions somewha analogously o he way in which i us p o ec ion so wa e au oma ically p o ec s a Rod igues L. e al. / J INFORM SYSTEMS ENG, 8(1), 19002 2 / 7 PC oday wi h li le in e en ion om he use ”. This conduc us o he big ques ion, poin ed ou by GCMA (2019:8) as he main deba e ac oss o ganiza ions om all sec o s and indus ies is his: “will he echnology lead o augmen ed human in elligence, o will i lead o he ise o au onomous in elligence and machine au oma ion?”. Acco ding o She i & Mohsin (2021), he applica ion o AI in inancial and accoun ing ield ha ks back o he 1980s, ocused on epo analysis, aud de ec ion, and p edic ion. AI is used in au oma ing adi ional wo king p ocesses, and i also allowed accoun ing and audi companies o ex end hei p oduc s and se ices. I s cu en applica ions in audi and accoun ing a e well documen ed (Omo eso, 2012; Moudud-Ul- Huq, 2014; Kokina & Da enpo , 2017; Zemánko á, 2019; Zhang e al, 2020; Zhang, e a.l., 2022). Howe e , conce ning he impac o AI on he u u e o he audi p o ession, he li e a u e in no clea . This s udy aims o assess he impac s ela ed o he applica ion o AI in his domain. I epo s he esul s o a ques ionnai e su ey o asce ain he pe cep ions o ce i ied audi o s, om oo Po uguese’s dis ic s, ega ding he impac o a i icial in elligence on audi p o ession. In he nex session, p esen s he li e a u e e iew on he opic. The pape con inuous wi h an explana ion o me hodologic p ocedu es. In session 4 he esul s a e p esen ed and discussed, ollowed by he inal conside a ion in session 5. LITERATURE REVIEW AI is an inc easingly p esen heme in ou daily li es, as he au oma ion o p o essional and social p ocesses a ises a a unique pace, con ibu ing o signi ican changes in he social and p o essional pa adigm o human beings. Howe e , al hough AI has assumed g ea e magni ude in he las yea s, i s o igin is dis an in ime. As men ioned by Gab iel (2018), he exis ence o clas ic men and a i icial beings da es back o Ancien G eece. Besides ha , o Rossi (2019), nowadays AI is de ined as a scien i ic discipline, in ended o he cons uc ion o sys ems capable o pe o ming di e si ied asks ha in eg a e human in elligence o ul ill i s objec i es. Oli ei a (2019) s a es ha a i icial in elligence concen a es a special di icul y in cha ac e izing and ep oducing, as o e ime, he e ha e been nume ous p oposals o eplica ing he cogni i e capaci y o human beings in a compu e . Howe e , he de ines ha AI consis s in he abili y o he human being o c ea e languages and manipula e symbols h ough he c ea ion o sys ems composed o cul u e and echnology, unique cha ac e is ics o he human species. Fo Mijwel (2015: 5), AI “consis s in he de elopmen o machines c ea ed en i ely by a i icial means ha can exhibi beha io s like human beings wi hou aking ad an age o any li ing o ganism.” In e ms o p oduc i i y, acco ding o Szczepański (2019), AI is a ool wi h he abili y o le e age economic and p oduc i i y g ow h, as he de elopmen o mo e e icien p oduc ion p ocesses can esul in he c ea ion o new p oduc s and se ices, con ibu ing o an inc ease consump ion and, a he same ime, addi ional e enue channels. Gillham, Rimming on, Dance, Ve wij, Rao, Ba na d & Paich (2018) es ima e ha by 2030, AI will be esponsible o global GDP g ow h o a ound 14%, equi alen o 15.7 illion dolla s, esul ing om he inc ease in p oduc ion and con inuous p oduc ion, he quali y o manu ac u ed p oduc s (lesse quan i ies o de ec i e p oduc s), he e iciency and e ec i eness o p oduc ion ime and p oduc cus omiza ion. In e ms o he employmen ma ke , Szczepański (2019) a gues ha he implemen a ion o AI in he economy will con ibu e o job c ea ion, bu also o i s des uc ion. Job c ea ion will be he esul o he eme gence o new business a eas, esul ing om he implemen a ion o AI in he economy, while i s des uc ion will be based on he eplacemen o labo by mechanized p ocesses, mo e e icien , mo e inno a i e, and abo e all, p o i able o hei o ganiza ions. In his sense, Ve ma (2018) s a es ha all echnological e olu ions ha e co esponding cos s and colla e al damage, howe e , policies a e needed ha eed he g ow h and po en ial o AI, bu ha simul aneously ake in o accoun he possible isks ha his issue in ol es. Figu e 1. Impac o AI on GDP Sou ce: Adap ed om Gillham, Rimming on, Dance, Ve wij, Rao, Ba na d & Paich (2018: 6). Rod igues L. e al. / J INFORM SYSTEMS ENG, 8(1), 19002 3 / 7 The e is no doub ha AI suppo accoun an s and audi o s in hei main unc ion o p o ide, and c i ical analyze economic and inancial in o ma ion (Gulin e al., 2019). In ha sense, i is expec ed ha , accoun an s and audi o s pe cei e AI as a pa ne which augmen s hei in elligence wi h he abili y o exploi complex, oluminous, and ola ile da a (She i & Mohsin, 2021). Ne e heless, he conce n ha AI will limi accoun s ac ions and educe hei ole and hei powe in o ganiza ions s ill exis (Fa aj e al., 2018; Bee baum & Puaschunde , 2019). Acco ding o (Teck-Heng & Ali, 2008), he oo s o audi ing da e back o ancien ci iliza ions whe e he e m “audi ”, o igina ing om he La in wo d “audi e”, mean o lis en. In his pe iod, acco ding o B own (1962), i was common o hea he accoun ing o he pa imony egis e ed by he sc ibes, in o de o p e en possible audulen ac s agains he kingdom's pa imony. Howe e , nowadays acco ding o Dua e (2010: 9), audi ing as we know i oday can be de ined as “a se ice ha is cha ac e ized by he exp ession o an objec i e opinion on he inancial s a emen s o an en i y, e e ing o a se o s anda ds ha ha e he na u e o public in e es and ha con ibu e o inc easing he c edibili y o inancial in o ma ion”. Al hough, wi h he g ow h o he wo ld economy, de elopmen o he s uc u e and complexi y o companies and he g owing need o ansmi eal and ue in o ma ion o he a ious use s o inancial s a emen s, i is expec ed ha wi h he in oduc ion o AI in he p o ession hese changes will con inue. Fo his eason, By nes e al. (2018) e e ha audi ing is going h ough a c i ical si ua ion, esul ing om he p og ess o in o ma ion echnologies (IT) as well as he adop ion o new managemen models. Dalal (2015) a gues ha he signi ican inc ease in he wo ld popula ion, as well as he complexi y and na u e o economic ansac ions, will con ibu e o audi o s becoming inc easingly dependen on so wa e, making he execu ion o manual audi p ocedu es an inc easingly unusual app oach and ine icien in mos o ganiza ions. Nunes, Lei e, & Ped osa (2020) ha e he same unde s anding, who s a e ha wi h he g owing di icul y in ob aining in o ma ion o conclusions abou he inancial and non- inancial pe o mance o he audi ed en i y, i will be essen ial o in oduce ools wi h cogni i e abili ies in o de o minimize he isk o ma e ial miss a emen and ensu e he alue and c edibili y o he audi ed inancial s a emen s. Fo (Kokina & Da enpo 2017), he in oduc ion o AI in he audi p o ession will be an inc easingly ecu en ac , as only in his way will audi o s be able o analyze la ge se s o da a and, consequen ly, ensu e he eliabili y and e aci y o inancial s a emen s. I is concluded ha i is gene ally assumed ha he de elopmen o echnology as well as o o ganiza ions will make i di icul o ca y ou manual audi ing asks and, he e o e, will be ine i ably lead o he adop ion o ools endowed wi h cogni i e abili ies in o de o assis audi o s. Thus, in he ollowing poin s, i is in ended o iden i y how hese ools can be used in he di e en s ages o audi ing, iden i y he possible impac s o hei use, and inally, compa e he adi ional audi app oach wi h he app oach suppo ed by ools wi h cogni i e capabili ies. AI is no ye dominan in he audi ing p o ession, bu he e a e se e al au ho s who p esen some o he possible consequences ela ed o i s use. Fo Agnew (2016), he applica ion o AI in he a ea o audi ing will no lead o he eplacemen o ex inc ion o he p o ession, howe e , i will gi e ise o p o ound changes o he cu en app oach, allowing audi o s o be e manage ime in low- alue asks and g ea e emphasis on he a eas ha p esen he g ea es isk o ma e ial dis o ion. By nes e al., (2018), de ends ha some o hese consequences a e based on he au oma ion o audi asks and on he possibili y o ully analyzing an o ganiza ion's da ase s. This ansla es in o he uselessness o sampling echniques, which, acco ding o he same au ho , a e cha ac e ized as mo e ex ensi e and less e icien compa ed o examining en i e popula ions o da a. Fu he mo e, an Ame ican Ins i u e o Ce i ied Public Accoun an s (AICPA) s udy indica es ha he use o AI can mi iga e he isk o human a igue in he epe i i e analysis o an o ganiza ion's da a. Simul aneously, ecognizes ha hese ools may p esen he abili y o analyze huge olumes o da a and ecognize pa e ns, ela ionships and dis o ions ha a e no always e iden o audi o s, bu ha equi e hei knowledge and p o essional expe ience o assess ha he esul s a e ue and ma e ially ele an o he o e all audi con ex (AICPA, 2020). Gi en he abo e, Nunes e . al, (2020: 3) conclude ha when audi o s “alloca e mo e esou ces o mo e complex a eas, o in es iga e i ems ha a e po en ial anomalies, ob aining mo e scope o unc ions wi h a g ea e c i ical sense and p o essional judgmen ”. Issa, Sun, & Vasa helyi (2016) s a es ha he audi ing p o ession can gua an ee highe le els o quali y, e iciency and e ec i eness in ob aining esul s and a be e cos -bene i a io. Fo Ghanoum & Alaba (2020), i is possible ha echnological e olu ion will con e he audi ing p o ession in o a mo e p oac i e a he han a eac i e pe spec i e. Ci ing (B ennan e al., 2017), i is plausible ha he p o ession will ake a con inuous and eal- ime app oach, some hing con a y o wha is cu en ly seen, whe e he highes incidence o wo k occu s a e he accoun ing close o o ganiza ions. Thus, he issue o an opinion abou he inancial s a emen s by he audi o should become mo e oppo une in ela ion o he clien 's accoun ing closing (Issa e al., 2016). A he same ime, i is likely ha he p o ession will ha e a lowe le el o human in e ac ion, ha some audi p ocedu es will become obsole e and ha he exis ence o audulen ac i i ies and/o ma e ially ma e ial miss a emen s will be signi ican ly less. In he s udy o (AICPA, 2020), i is also men ioned ha i is possible ha he expec a ions o use s o he inancial s a emen s can be inc easingly highe in ela ion o he conclusions o he audi and, he e o e, ansla e in o a highe audi expec a ion gap. E en so, Agnew (2016) s a es ha despi e echnological de elopmen s in his ield, he p o ession's egula o s should de elop mechanisms ha ensu e co ec da a ex ac ion and analysis by audi o s, in o de o allow hem o ob ain easonable secu i y ega ding he ue iew o inancial posi ion based on inancial s a emen s. Rod igues L. e al. / J INFORM SYSTEMS ENG, 8(1), 19002 4 / 7 Table 1. T adi ional Audi App oach VS Audi App oach suppo ed by AI Sys ems Fon e: Adap ado de Issa, H., Sun, T., & Vasa helyi, M. A. (2016). Phase Assis ed app oach o AI sys ems T adi ional Audi App oach Planning Analysis o la ge amoun s o da a ela ed o he company's o ganiza ional s uc u e and i s accoun ing and inancial sys em. The audi o collec s and analyzes in o ma ion ela ed o he company's o ganiza ional s uc u e and i s accoun ing and inancial sys em. Con ac Following he p e ious phase, he le el o isk is es ima ed, as well as he es ima e o hou s needed o wo k. A commi men le e is p epa ed by he audi o , based on he es ima ed audi isk. Iden i ica ion o isk ac o s Pa e n de ec ion and analysis o iden i y isk ac o s. The audi o agg ega es he in o ma ion and uses his p o essional judgmen o iden i y isk ac o s. Con ol isk assessmen Moni o ing o con ols con inuously. Re iew o cus ome 's CI policies and p ocedu es. Tes he con ols. Subs an i e Tes s Conduc ing de ailed es s con inuously and on 100% o he popula ion, pe o med on he company's inancial posi ion (balance shee ). Se e al economic yea s can be analyzed. Con inuous pa e n ecogni ion. De ails es s a e ca ied ou by sampling, whe e hei na u e, ex en and iming depend on he IC es s. They a e un only o e one economic yea . Analy ical p ocedu es a e pe o med. E idence Assessmen This phase is in eg a ed in o he p e ious phase. The audi o assesses he su iciency and cla i y o he e idence ga he ed wi h a iew o ob aining easonable assu ance o he en i y's inancial posi ion. Audi epo The audi epo can be con inuous a he han ca ego ized (clean, quali ied, ad e se) Based on he in o ma ion collec ed in he p e ious phase, a clean, quali ied o ad e se opinion is issued. As men ioned in he p e ious poin , he in oduc ion o AI in he audi p o ession will b ing se e al changes in he cu en app oach ensu ing signi ican imp o emen s in he quali a i e and quan i a i e pano ama o he audi ing p o ession. In his sense, Table 1 (Suppo ed AI app oach s. adi ional audi app oach) p esen s he compa ison o he use o an assis ed audi app oach o AI sys ems wi h he adi ional audi app oach. Conce ning he planning, con ac ing and isk iden i ica ion phases, al hough he wo app oaches ha e he same pu pose, i is concluded ha he use o an AI assis ed app oach allows he collec ion and analysis o da a ha make i possible o es ima e he isk o audi ing, es ima e he hou s o wo k equi ed and iden i y pa e ns ha allow o he ecogni ion o isk ac o s ha he audi o should ake in o accoun . In he phases o subs an i e es ing and e alua ion o e idence, in he audi app oach h ough AI, he possibili y o pe o ming es s con inuously and on 100% o he popula ion is highligh ed, while in he adi ional app oach, es s a e pe o med by sampling and in unc ion o he us es ablished in he in e nal con ol. Finally, al hough he conclusion o he audi is ca ied ou in he same way o bo h app oaches, he possibili y is highligh ed ha , h ough he use o ools endowed wi h cogni i e abili ies, one can bene i om he possibili y o issuing an opinion wi h a mo e oppo une da e in ela ion o he accoun closing o cus ome s. METHODOLOGY In o de o con inue he discussion o he subjec o s udy, an empi ical s udy was ca ied ou in o de o assess he consequences esul ing om he use o hese ools. To achie e he objec i es de ined in his wo k, he quali a i e me hod was used h ough a su ey in he o m o a ques ionnai e, whose a ge audience includes s a u o y audi o s limi ed o he audi ing a ea o he Po o and B aga egions. This me hodology seemed mo e sensible and adequa e, o allowing easy compa abili y o da a and being able o ca y ou quan i a i e analyses, i p esen s g ea e simplici y o ea he da a s a is ically. Thus, he ques ionnai es we e ca ied ou wi h espec o he Like scale measu ed a i e poin s. Fo he cons i u ion o he sample, we e inqui ed audi o s egis e ed in he O dem dos Re iso es O iciais de Con as (OROC) and in he Comissão do Me cado e dos Valo es Mobiliá ios (CMVM) whose p o essional ac i i y is exe cised in Po ugal, headqua e ed in he egions o B aga and Po o. The popula ion o his s udy is cons i u ed o 37 s a u o y audi o s (OROC) om a uni e se o 60 dis ibu ed by 31 audi ing socie ies, ha ing ob ained a esponse a e o 61.67%. RESULTS AND DISCUSS In his poin , he answe s o he audi o s o he ques ionnai e e e ing o a i icial in elligence in he ield o audi ing will be analysed. Th ough he use coe icien s o co ela ion, which aim o measu e he ela ionship be ween a iables and wha hey ep esen , he ela ionship o he esponses ob ained wi h he esponden s' gende , age and yea s o expe ience will be analyzed. Fo his pu pose, he Pea son Coe icien was used, which suppo s esul s be ween -1 and 1, and i he esul is close o -1, he g ea e he nega i e co ela ion be ween a iables, whe eas i i is close o 1, he highe he posi i e co ela ion be ween a iables. I he co ela ion coe icien app oaches 1, he e is a posi i e ela ionship be ween a iables, ha is, i one a iable inc eases, he o he inc eases as well. On he o he hand, i he co ela ion coe icien app oaches is -1, he e is a nega i e o in e se ela ionship be ween a iables, ha is, when he alue o one a iable inc eases, he o he dec eases. I should be no ed ha since he gende a iable is a nominal a iable, i.e., a a iable whe e esponden s can only assume male o emale gende , alues o “1” o males and “2” o emales we e de ined. 5 / 7 Rod igues L. e al. / J INFORM SYSTEMS ENG, 8(1), 19002 1. Do you conside ha he u u e o he audi ing p o ession will en ail he implemen a ion o a i icial in elligence. Gende Q1 Age Q1 Expe iencie Q1 Gende 1 ,138 Age 1 ,090 Expe iencie 1 ,023 Q1 ,138 1 Q1 ,090 1 Q1 ,023 1 Signi i cance Le el ,416 Signi icance Le el ,598 Signi icance Le el ,892 N 37 N 37 N 37 2. A i icial in elligence will educe audi isk Gende Q1 Age Q1 Expe iencie Q1 Gende 1 -,120 Age 1 , 034 Expe iencie 1 ,128 Q1 -,120 1 Q1 , 034 1 Q1 ,128 1 Signi icance Le el , 481 Signi icance Le el , 481 Signi icance Le el , 451 N 37 N 37 N 37 3. A i icial in elligence will allow audi o s o gauge he e aci y o inancial s a emen s mo e e ec i ely and e icien ly. Gende Q3 Age Q3 Expe iencie Q3 Gende 1 -,122 Age 1 ,051 Expe iencie 1 -,091 Q3 -,122 1 Q3 ,051 1 Q3 -,091 1 Signi icance Le el ,471 Signi icance Le el ,764 Signi icance Le el ,593 N 37 N 37 N 37 4. A i icial in elligence will allow you o pe o m an audi on an ongoing basis. Gende Q4 Age Q4 Expe iencie Q4 Gende 1 -,004 Age 1 ,020 Expe iencie 1 ,109 Q4 -,004 1 Q4 ,020 1 Q4 ,109 1 Signi icance Le el ,982 Signi icance Le el ,908 Signi icance Le el ,520 N 37 N 37 N 37 In ques ion 1 (“Do you conside ha he u u e o he audi ing p o ession will in ol e he implemen a ion o a i icial in elligence”), we obse ed ha o he a iables de ined in he ques ionnai e, he Pea son Coe icien , always assumed a posi i e alue , namely, 0.138 o he gende a iable, 0.090 o he age a iable and 0.023 o he yea s o expe ience a iable. In ligh o he abo e, al hough bo h esul s we e posi i e, he alues a e ela i ely close o he alue 0 han o he alue 1, which means ha he wo a iables do no p esen a pe ec nega i e o pe ec posi i e co ela ion. In his sense, ha ing egis e ed in his ques ion a pe cen age o 72.97% o he op ions "ag ee" and "s ongly ag ee", i can be concluded ha he e is ag eemen by he sample ha he u u e o he audi ing p o ession will depend on AI implemen a ion. Wi h ega d o ques ion 2 (“A i icial in elligence will educe audi isk”), Pea son's was -0.120 o he gende a iable, 0.034 o he age a iable and 0.128 o he yea s o expe ience a iable. Al hough he co ela ion be ween he gende a iable and he answe s ob ained o his ques ion esul ed in a nega i e Pea son's , his is close o 0 han -1. The same happens o he o he a iables, which despi e assuming posi i e alues, he esul s a e close o he alue 0 han o he alue 1, hus ansla ing in o he inexis ence o dependence be ween a iables, ha is, ha as a a iable inc eases, does no inc ease on a e age he esponden 's deg ee o esponse o , on he o he hand, as he a iable age inc eases, he esponden 's deg ee o esponse does no dec ease on a e age. Thus, al hough he e is gene al ag eemen among he esponden s, i is no possible o say ha he audi isk will be educed h ough he AI, since o his ques ion he pe cen age o 24.32% was eco ded o he op ions "disag ee" and “ o ally disag ee”, 35.14% o he op ion “I nei he ag ee no disag ee” and 40.54% o he “ag ee” and “ o ally ag ee” op ions. Rega ding ques ion 3 ("A i icial in elligence will allow audi o s o assess he e aci y o inancial s a emen s mo e e ec i ely and e icien ly"), a Pea son's o -0.122 was ob ained o he gende a iable, 0.051 o he age a iable and -0.091 o he a iable yea s expe ience. Thus, despi e he co ela ion be ween he esponses ob ained and he a iables gende and yea s o expe ience assuming nega i e alues, he esul s a e Rod igues L. e al. / J INFORM SYSTEMS ENG, 8(1), 19002 6 / 7 much close o 0 han o -1. The same happens o he age a iable, which, al hough i assumes a posi i e alue, is close o 0 han o 1, hus demons a ing he inexis ence o a pe ec posi i e o pe ec nega i e co ela ion. In his sense, ha ing egis e ed a pe cen age o 67.57% o he le els “ag ee” o “ag ee a lo ”, we we e able o conclude ha he e is ag eemen among he esponden s o his ques ion. In ques ion 4 (“A i icial in elligence will allow you o pe o m a con inuous audi ”), a Pea son Coe icien o -0.004 o he gende a iable, 0.020 o he age a iable and 0.109 o he yea s o expe ience a iable was ob ained. Gi en he esul s ob ained, we can conclude ha he e is no pe ec posi i e o pe ec nega i e co ela ion and ha he a iables do no depend linea ly on each o he . Ne e heless, al hough he op ions “ag ee” and “s ongly ag ee” eached a pe cen age o 54.05%, i is impo an o men ion ha he op ion “nei he ag ee no disag ee” egis e ed a pe cen age o 40.54%. Thus, al hough a signi ican pa o he sample ag ees ha AI will allow a con inuous audi o be pe o med, ano he one abs ains om elec ing a posi ion, ce ainly, la gely because o he unce ain y ha cu en ly exis s ela ed o he use o hese sys ems, since i s ill hey a e no ully in oduced o he p o ession. FINAL CONSIDERATIONS I is e iden ha o e he yea s, echnological e olu ion has gene a ed signi ican impac s on he social and p o essional le el o human beings. Howe e , h ough he de elopmen o AI, majo changes a e in p ospec in he mos di e se a eas o human knowledge, especially in he audi p o ession, whe e h ough he e olu ion o he economy and, consequen ly, he size o o ganiza ions, i becomes inc easingly un easible he execu ion o manual p ocedu es. In addi ion, he demands on he pa o he use s o he DF a e inc easing, seeking o know wi h g ea e accu acy and eliabili y he s a e o he inancial posi ion o he audi ed en i y. I appea s ha i is gene ally accep ed ha he AI will ha e an impac on he cu en audi app oach and, consequen ly, will gene a e epe cussions in e ms o he e iciency and e ec i eness o audi p ocedu es, audi sampling, in he ecogni ion o ma e ial miss a emen s due o aud o e o , as well as in he cos -bene i a io o he p o ession. Addi ionally, audi o s ecognize ha he in oduc ion o hese mechanisms in o he p o ession may make i possible o ca y ou an audi in a con inuous app oach. I should be no ed ha he abo e conclusions we e e i ied ega dless o he age, gende o yea s o expe ience o he esponden s, ha is, h oughou his s udy he e was no posi i e o nega i e co ela ion be ween he esponses ob ained and he di e en a iables, hus e lec ing ha p o essionals audi ecognize ha new echnologies will change he cu en pa adigm o he p o ession. E en so, al hough in some poin s o his s udy he esul s we e no as exp essi e, his esul can be jus i ied by he ac ha hese ools a e no ye ully inse ed in he p o ession, and, he e o e, he e is some ese a ion abou he impac o AI in some dimensions. Al hough his s udy is dedica ed o analyzing he impac o AI on he audi p o ession, in a b oad sense AI will con ibu e o signi ican impac s a he le el o p oduc i i y as well as he employmen ma ke . Wi h ega d o u u e esea ch, as he e a e u he de elopmen s in he ield o AI applied o audi ing and, simul aneously, he co esponding applica ion o hese mechanisms in he con ex o he p o ession, he e will be g ea e isibili y o he impac s ela ed o he use o hese ools and, he e o e , i will be possible o analyze whe he he e will be epe cussions a he le el o he employmen ma ke , a he le el o ela ions be ween audi eams and/o be ween audi o and audi ee, as well as a he le el o independence o audi o s ega ding hese ools. REFERENCES Agnew, H. (2016). 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