Cooking the Books with Barbie: The Downfall of Mattel's Co-Founder & Barbie Inventor

In this episode, Blake and David cover the downfall of Mattel's co-founder and Barbie inventor, Intuit's new ad network that allows businesses to target specific audiences using data from QuickBooks Online, and the increasing rate of deficiencies in public company audits. They also discuss the detrimental effect of the 150-hour rule on students pursuing careers in accounting, the availability of a malicious code-writing tool called Fraud GPT on the dark web, and the use of AI in customer support and sales calls.  Sponsors

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Chapters

(00:04) - Be prepared for higher prices because of AI

(01:05) - What does Barbie have to do with accounting?

(05:03) - Intuit is launching an ad network

(11:58) - As much as 40% of audits in 2022 could be deficient

(20:48) - Why are students switching majors away from accounting?

(25:57) - IRS will no longer do any unannounced visits

(27:14) - Hunter Biden saga update

(28:54) - Sage announces latest earnings

(30:34) - FraudGPT - dark web service

(32:08) - Real-life example of AI use case for a company

(36:53) - New conversational AI Air demo sales call

(41:40) - ChatGPT introduces custom instructions

(42:26) - Plaid announces deal with Cross River Banks

(44:19) - Blake reads some Youtube comments on the TurboTax video

(48:56) - A few quick final stories

(52:53) - Wrap up and where to reach us

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Show Notes 22 years after the $63 billion Enron collapse, a key audit review board finds the industry in a 'completely unacceptable' state https://fortune.com/2023/07/26/pcaob-audit-completely-unnacceptable-error-rate-enron-big-4-consulting/   150-hour requirement seen as a significant barrier to accounting by young people https://www.accountingtoday.com/news/150-hour-requirement-seen-as-a-significant-barrier-to-accounting-by-young-people   The Sage Group plc (SGGEF) Q3 2023 Earnings Call Transcript https://seekingalpha.com/article/4620753-sage-group-plc-sggef-q3-2023-earnings-call-transcript   Plaid Taps Cross River to Offer Real-Time Payments            https://www.pymnts.com/real-time-payments/2023/cross-river-teams-with-plaid-to-offer-real-time-payments/   Sage sees solid growth in Q3 https://www.enterprisetimes.co.uk/2023/07/28/sage-sees-solid-growth-in-q3/   Intuit Launches B2B Ad Network Targeting Small Business Owners               https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/387583/intuit-launches-b2b-ad-network-targeting-small-bus.html   Unannounced IRS revenue officer visits discontinued         https://proconnect.intuit.com/taxprocenter/tax-law-and-news/unannounced-irs-revenue-officer-visits-discontinued/   U.S. Accounting Watchdog Flags 'Unacceptable' Increase in Audit ...            https://money.usnews.com/investing/news/articles/2023-07-25/u-s-accounting-watchdog-flags-unacceptable-increase-in-audit-deficiencies   IRS good at addressing cyberthreats, but not documenting them https://www.accountingtoday.com/news/report-says-irs-good-at-addressing-cyberthreats-but-not-at-documenting-them-later   Exclusive: Mailchimp Owner Intuit Launches Media Network for Small Businesses https://www.adweek.com/programmatic/exclusive-mailchimp-owner-intuit-launches-media-network-for-small-businesses/   New AI Tool 'FraudGPT' Emerges, Tailored for Sophisticated Attacks https://thehackernews.com/2023/07/new-ai-tool-fraudgpt-emerges-tailored.html   Accounting Watchdog Expects Deficiencies in 40% of Public-Company Audits in 2022 - WSJ              https://www.wsj.com/articles/accounting-watchdog-expects-deficiencies-in-40-of-public-company-audits-in-2022-badfcda   All About Barbie Inventor Ruth Handler: Where She Is Today https://www.womenshealthmag.com/life/a44610455/ruth-handler-barbie/   How Vector Media transformed its customer support with AI | Zapier https://zapier.com/blog/nations-largest-ad-transit-company-transformed-customer-support-with-ai/   theCAQ.org | Significant Barriers Deter Students from Pursuing a Degree in Accounting, According to CAQ Report  https://www.thecaq.org/pipelineresearch2023   IRS whistleblowers accuse Hunter Biden during congressional hearing | Accounting Today https://www.accountingtoday.com/news/irs-whistleblowers-accuse-hunter-biden-during-congressional-hearing   Want to Search PCAOB Inspection Reports By How Many Screw-Ups an Audit Firm Made? You Can Now Do That - CPA Practice Advisor  https://www.cpapracticeadvisor.com/2023/07/20/new-online-tools-pcaob-inspection-reports/82128/...