Hey, Scott Seymour here.
The world of AI and finance is filled with jargon and acronyms that can make your head spin. My goal has always been to cut through the noise and make things simple.
This glossary is your go-to resource for understanding the key terms you'll see on our site and across the FinTech landscape. I've broken them down into plain English, so you can spend less time guessing and more time making smart decisions for your business.
A
Accounts Payable (AP) Simply put, this is the money your company owes to its suppliers for goods or services you've received but haven't paid for yet. It's a liability on your balance sheet.
Accounts Receivable (AR) The opposite of AP. This is the money owed to your company by customers who have received your goods or services but haven't paid you yet. It's an asset.
AI (Artificial Intelligence) In simple terms, it's the science of making computers and software smart—able to perform tasks that normally require human intelligence, like learning, reasoning, and problem-solving.
Algorithm Think of it as a recipe or a set of step-by-step instructions that a computer follows to complete a task or solve a problem. Machine learning algorithms can even learn and improve on their own over time.
API (Application Programming Interface) An API is like a universal adapter that allows different software programs to talk to each other and share information. It's the magic that lets your invoicing tool automatically sync with your accounting software.
Automation The process of using technology to perform tasks automatically, without human intervention. The whole point is to eliminate repetitive, manual work (like data entry) so you can focus on more important stuff.
B
Benchmark A standard or point of reference against which things can be measured or compared. We benchmark tools against each other to see which one truly performs best.
Big Data Extremely large and complex sets of data that are almost impossible to manage or analyze with traditional tools. AI is often used to find patterns in Big Data.
Bookkeeping The day-to-day process of recording all financial transactions of a business, such as sales, purchases, income, and payments. It's the foundation of accounting.
C
Cash Flow The total amount of money moving into and out of a business. Positive cash flow (more money coming in than going out) is essential for a healthy business.
CCPA (California Consumer Privacy Act) A landmark data privacy law in California that gives consumers more control over the personal information that businesses collect about them.
Cloud-Based / SaaS (Software as a Service) Instead of installing software on your local computer, you access it through the internet via a web browser. It's like streaming a movie on Netflix instead of buying the DVD. You typically pay a subscription fee for access.
CRM (Customer Relationship Management) Software that helps businesses manage and analyze customer interactions and data throughout the customer lifecycle, with the goal of improving business relationships.
D
Dashboard A graphical interface that provides at-a-glance views of key information and metrics (see KPI). It's your command center for tracking performance.
Data Encryption The process of converting your data into a secret code to prevent unauthorized access. It's a critical security measure that protects your sensitive financial information.
E
E-A-T (Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) A concept from Google's Search Quality Rater Guidelines used to assess the quality of a webpage. It's a huge deal for us and a core reason we are so transparent about our processes and experts.
ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) A type of software that organizations use to manage day-to-day business activities such as accounting, procurement, project management, and supply chain operations in one integrated system. Think of it as the central nervous system for a large business.
F
FinTech (Financial Technology) Any technology used to improve, automate, or disrupt traditional financial services. From mobile banking to AI-powered investment tools, it's all FinTech.
Forecasting The process of making predictions about the future based on past and present data. In finance, this usually involves predicting future revenues, expenses, and cash flow.
G
General Ledger (GL) The main accounting record of a company. It's a complete record of all financial transactions and is the backbone for creating financial statements like the P&L and Balance Sheet.
GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) A comprehensive data protection and privacy law in the European Union (EU). It gives individuals control over their personal data and simplifies the regulatory environment for international business.
Generative AI A type of artificial intelligence that can create new, original content, such as text, images, or code, based on the data it has been trained on. ChatGPT is a famous example.
I
Integration The process of linking different software applications together so they can work as one and share data seamlessly.
K
KPI (Key Performance Indicator) A specific, measurable value that shows how effectively a company is achieving its key business objectives. Examples include “customer acquisition cost” or “monthly recurring revenue.”
L
Large Language Model (LLM) An AI model specifically designed to understand and generate human-like text. It's the core technology behind most modern AI chatbots and writing assistants.
M
Machine Learning (ML) A subset of AI where computer systems learn and adapt through experience without being explicitly programmed. The more data they process, the “smarter” they get.
N
Natural Language Processing (NLP) A field of AI that gives computers the ability to read, understand, and interpret human language. It's what allows you to “talk” to an AI chatbot.
O
OCR (Optical Character Recognition) Technology that converts images of typed, handwritten, or printed text into machine-readable text. It's how AI can “read” your scanned invoices and receipts.
On-Premise Software (On-Prem) Software that is installed and runs on computers on the premises of the organization using it, rather than at a remote facility like the cloud. The opposite of SaaS.
P
P&L (Profit and Loss) Statement Also known as an Income Statement. A financial statement that summarizes a company's revenues, costs, and expenses over a specific period. It shows whether the company made a profit or a loss.
Predictive Analytics A branch of AI that uses data, statistical algorithms, and machine learning techniques to identify the likelihood of future outcomes based on historical data.
R
ROI (Return on Investment) A performance measure used to evaluate the efficiency of an investment. It's a simple ratio that answers the question: “For every dollar I put in, how much did I get back?”
S
SaaS (Software as a Service) See Cloud-Based.
Scalability The ability of a system or business to handle a growing amount of work or demand. A scalable tool can grow with your business without breaking.
Six Sigma A data-driven methodology used to improve business processes by identifying and removing the causes of defects or errors. It's all about crushing inefficiency.
SOC 2 A voluntary compliance standard for service organizations, developed by the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA), which specifies how organizations should manage customer data based on five “trust service principles”—security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality, and privacy.
T
Tech Stack The collection of all the different technology tools and services a company uses to run its business.
U
UI (User Interface) The visual part of a software application that a person interacts with—the buttons, menus, screens, and layouts.
UX (User Experience) The overall feeling a person has when using a product, such as a website or app. Good UX means the product is easy, efficient, and pleasant to use.
W
Workflow The sequence of tasks or processes that you go through to complete a piece of work. The goal of many AI tools is to automate and streamline your workflows.
Y
YMYL (Your Money or Your Life) A term used by Google for pages or topics that could potentially impact a person's future happiness, health, financial stability, or safety. Financial advice falls squarely into this category, which is why we take our work so seriously.
