KPMG launches multi-agent AI platform Workbench

Big Four firm KPMG announced the launch of its new multi-agent AI platform, Workbench, which will serve as a foundational and single AI platform, designed to underpin its client delivery platforms as well as its other AI platforms such as KPMG Digital Gateway (tax), KPMG Velocity (advisory) and KPMG Clara (audit). The capabilities are available internally to KPMG professionals and are also available to deploy for clients.

"The next phase of AI will be defined by platforms that scale," said Steve Chase, U.S. vice chair of AI and digital innovation. "Workbench is KPMG's single, global AI platform—built on an interoperable architecture that supports agent-to-agent coordination and multi-model flexibility. It's the foundation for how we're scaling AI across our business and for our clients —with confidence, agility and global impact." 

The platform sports a network of 50 AI assistants, or agents, that interact with each other across multiple sectors with nearly a thousand more currently in development. They're meant to work as "digital teammates" alongside KPMG professionals. Working on Microsoft Azure infrastructure, Workbench is conceived of as a "one stop shop" platform that will serve up tools and agents to KPMG professionals within the systems they work in every day. Most will never directly interact with the platform itself, as the assistants will be retrieving solutions for them. To do so it uses interoperable, agent-to-agent communications to bring together capabilities from across the KPMG ecosystem of alliance partners (e.g., Oracle, Salesforce, ServiceNow, Workday) to best address the task at hand. 

KPMG Workbench enables team members to automate complex, multistep processes from client onboarding to regulatory reporting. Beyond internal use, private instances of KPMG Workbench will also be available to clients from across industries to help develop and manage their own digital workforce. KPMG said clients can maintain full control of how their data is stored and processed and manage diverse risk and governance needs, helping them to meet local and global regulatory requirements. KPMG is also certified in ISO 42001, which concerns AI management systems.

While the precise definition can vary depending on who is asked, agentic AI could be broadly described as software that is capable of at least some degree of autonomy to make decisions and interact with tools outside itself in order to achieve some sort of goal—whether booking a flight, sending a bill or buying a gift—without constant human guidance. Agents are not necessarily new, but the rise of generative AI has made them much easier to make and use, as doing so no longer requires specialized coding skills. Since they've exploded onto the scene, the need for platforms that can coordinate between agents has become clear. 

The news comes about a month after Deloitte announced its Global Agentic Network, a connected ecosystem of AI agents for business purposes to augment and automate client operations. This, in turn, came a few months after PwC announced its AgentOS platform, which connects AI agents with each other, regardless of platform or framework, into modular adaptive workflows integrated with enterprise systems. Finally, only a few days ago, EY launched its own EY.ai Agentic Platform.