Alexander Hagerup’s initiation into the world of accounting happened at an early age. “I grew up in my mother’s accounting practice in Norway,” he says. “I learned the importance of accurate accounting and helped her solve technical challenges to make her practice more efficient.”
He also started early as an entrepreneur, founding his first company at just 15 years old.
In 2017, Hagerup combined accounting and entrepreneurship to launch Vic.ai, an A.I. platform that manages finance and accounting workflows for companies so that they can direct their resources and employees’ time elsewhere. Hagerup says that to date, Vic.ai has helped its clients, which include Intercom Inc. and KPMG, save nearly $200 million and 6 million hours.
What was the “aha” moment that led you and your cofounder, Kris Roil, to found Vic.ai?
Accounting is close to both of our hearts. We knew, based on our experience, that accounting is inherently tedious and time-consuming and managed by legacy systems that are based on various predefined rules and templates, like Excel. We wanted to infuse intelligence into A.I. by creating a solution that can reason like humans and make accounting decisions. We started the company [by] building the proprietary A.I. from scratch and training it on historical accounting data and processes from 30,000 companies and close to half a billion invoices. Today, our A.I. has achieved 99% accuracy in invoice processing, and we’re continuing to expand our suite of A.I. solutions.
What is your biggest current challenge?
In this economic climate, companies are less inclined to make new investments. Our offerings are perfectly positioned to help customers capture efficiencies that will directly impact their bottom line, but the economic environment has contributed to slowing down the sales cycle.
What’s a fun fact about yourself that people may not know?
As a kid, I spent my summers working at a sailing club where I discovered my love for the water. I still love the combination of water and wind, so I enjoy spending my relaxation time kitesurfing.
The Fortune Founders Forum is a community of entrepreneurs chosen by Fortune’s editorial team to participate at the annual Brainstorm Tech conference, which took place in Deer Valley, Utah, in July. Our inaugural cohort was selected based on a variety of factors, including the potential impact of their companies, and reflected a diversity of geographies, sectors, and demographics.
