Sage responds to business appetite for cloud and AI, moving business builders closer to world of invisible accounting

RICHMOND, BC--(Marketwired - Jan 25, 2017) - Around half of small businesses say they are ready to run their companies using Bots and Artificial Intelligence (AI), according to new global research from Sage. The research comes as Sage announces five new cloud accounting solutions across seven global markets to take business builders and entrepreneurs closer to the future where accounting is invisible.

Today Sage, the market and technology leader in cloud accounting announced:

• Five global cloud solutions: Five new accounting cloud solutions across seven global markets for business of all sizes.
• More than 20,000 Sage AI users: Tens of thousands of 'new to Sage' customers adopt accounting chat bot Pegg within six months since launch.
• Over 100 new and fully integrated ISV's on the Sage Marketplace: Building on Sage's heritage of strong partnerships, including new global relationships with Salesforce, Microsoft, Apple and Slack.
• Invisible accounting by 2020: Leading the business builders of tomorrow towards an "invisible accounting" environment so they can focus on building their business.

The new cloud solutions highlight Sage's vision to automate back-office functions and empower business builders around the world to achieve invisible accounting by 2020. These include:

• Sage One -- Easy to use cloud accounting solution for start-up businesses that manages everything from sales and purchasing to cash flow and taxes. The latest release is now available in US, UK, Canada, Ireland and newly available in France and Germany.
• Sage One with Pegg, the world's first accounting chat bot is now integrated with Sage One, which acts as a smart assistant, and enables users to track expenses and manage finances through popular messaging apps. Available in the US only with further global roll out planned for 2017.
• Sage Live -- A powerful, customizable, and cost-effective cloud accounting solution. Built on the Salesforce Lightning user interface, customers can manage multiple locations and currencies all in the palm of their hand, whilst taking advantage of the add-on solutions available on the Sage market place and the Salesforce App exchange. Now available in France, Germany and Spain.
• Sage 50c -- Sage's trusted accounting solution now gives its customers greater flexibility and power with the integration with MS Office 365. This new version is designed to give Sage 50 customers complete control over their accounts. Now available in the UK with further global roll out planned for 2017.
• Sage People -- Sage People is a fast and flexible cloud Human Capital Management (HCM) solution for mid-sized enterprises. Available now in the UK, US, Canada and Australia with further roll outs to come. 

A Cloud-enabled AI Revolution 

More than one million new customers have followed Sage to the cloud, resulting in a 46 percent increase in subscription relationships. Now, with the first accounting chat bot Pegg having more than 20,000 early adopters in 110 countries, Sage is responding to these changing dynamics by outlining how mobile, live and cloud accounting will integrate with AI technology.

Following market research conducted by Sage, which showed that 64 percent of small business owners would welcome "invisible accounting," Sage announced its commitment to delivering business builders and entrepreneurs with just that by 2020.

Sage CTO, Klaus Michael Vogelberg said, "Because entrepreneurs don't go into business to manage taxes and admin, our vision is to create a business environment for entrepreneurs where these tasks are invisible by 2020, freeing up business builders to follow their dreams."

 "Sage's vision is to empower entrepreneurs and business owners to spend less time on administration and more time on what they love doing," said Kriti Sharma, Vice President, Bots and AI at Sage. "Artificial intelligence is the answer for solutions to the everyday pain points people are facing now. Our work at Sage allows us to leverage the latest advances in technology against the immediate challenges our customers face today."

Sage will be delivering ideas, inspiration and insight as well as showcasing its full suite of business management solutions at Sage Summit and Sage Summit Tour events running across 2017. Click here for more details.

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About Sage
Sage is the market leader for integrated accounting, payroll and payment systems, supporting the ambition of the world's entrepreneurs. Sage began as a small business in the UK 30 years ago and over 13000 colleagues now support millions of entrepreneurs across 23 countries as they power the global economy. We reinvent and simplify business accounting through brilliant technology, working with a thriving community of entrepreneurs, business owners, tradespeople, accountants, partners and developers. And as a FTSE 100 business, we are active in supporting our local communities and invest in making a real difference through the philanthropy of the Sage Foundation.

Sage -- a market leader for integrated accounting, payroll and payment systems, supporting the ambition of the world's entrepreneurs. www.sage.com.