Section 530A savings accounts open July 4. Every child born on or after January 1, 2025 is eligible for a $1,000 federal deposit, placed in at enrollment. CPAs have five days to pull the right client list and make the call.

The Signal  — That $1,000 compounds tax-free for up to 18 years. Missing the July 4 start doesn't close the door, but it costs compounding days. One phone call to the right client is probably the most useful thing you can do before the holiday. What to watch: Watch for IRS guidance on whether employer and state contributions can stack on top of the federal $1,000. That answer will shape fall planning conversations.

Deloitte's Omnia audit platform now runs a network of AI agents across the full audit workflow. They pull data, draft documentation and flag risk without anyone at the keyboard. When Big 4 firms automate at this scale, mid-size firms start losing the price argument.

The Trump administration asked OpenAI to limit GPT-5.6 to about 20 government-approved companies over cybersecurity concerns. Sam Altman said this isn't the long-term plan, but right now the government is approving access one client at a time.

Copilot in Excel now supports repeatable skills: custom instructions for recurring tasks like variance analysis, monthly close and reconciliation. The output comes with an audit trail. M365 users can train it to follow their own process.

A KPMG survey found just 26% of organizations can see what AI actually costs them as it runs. The more agents firms add, the faster spend outpaces the systems meant to track it.

Barbara Vanich leaves the PCAOB on July 15 after 17 years. She oversaw audit standards through the biggest stretch of AI adoption the profession has seen. Leaving mid-cycle, with the agency already under political pressure, leaves a real gap.

Deloitte's research team argues that agentic AI deployment is outpacing the governance structures designed to control it. Worth reading if your firm is approving new AI tools before building the oversight layer to go with them.

Microsoft's original announcement walks through how firms can build reusable skills for Copilot in Excel — the full technical detail behind this week's CFO Dive headline. If you're evaluating this for your close process, read the source post.

Lyto (lyto.app)

Lyto is an AI agent that reads your screen and works across tabs, messages and tools without requiring integrations. If your team still copies data between QuickBooks, email and client portals, try it before spending on something bigger.

The wait is over. Whispers of Nystad is out now. A historical thriller where a coded letter can end a war. Follow Elsa across a frozen Baltic frontier as empires collide and every message carries a price. Available in paperback and ebook.

New tools and web apps are rolling out. See what's live and what is next.

Answer 16 questions about what you love, what you're good at, what the world needs and what you can be paid for. Nexairi Wayfinder maps the overlaps and tells you exactly what it means for your career.

That's the dispatch.

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— Jim

Jim Smart  ·  Founder, Nexairi

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