What does it actually mean to be AI-ready at exit - and how has that bar shifted in just the last 12 months? 

Kyle Roemer sits down with Giacomo Sonnino, Advisory Director at Charlesbank, to unpack what buyers are looking for today and what separates differentiated companies from ones just keeping up.

Giacomo breaks down three levels of AI value creation, why companies stuck in pilot purgatory are falling behind, and what AI theater looks like in diligence. He also makes the case that finance isn't a future opportunity; it's a proven one. And every CFO needs two answers: what you're doing today at your existing company today - and what the finance function of the future will be.

AI & PE: The Future of Value Creation is brought to you by Accordion.

https://www.accordion.com/

Is SaaS dead? The answer is more complicated than you think.

Kyle Roemer and Adam Silverman break down the AI disruption reshaping SaaS - and what PE firms need to understand right now. As of early 2026, one question is dominating every client conversation: will AI disintermediate the software businesses PE has spent decades building and investing in?

Kyle and Adam dig into what's actually happening in the market: how AI-native vendors are changing the game, why data accessibility is becoming the ultimate defensibility test, how pricing models might evolve beyond the seat-based era, and where the real moats are forming (hint: regulated industries). They close with a practical rapid-fire on exactly where to focus if you're advising a PE sponsor about SaaS business today.

SaaS isn't dead. But the playbook is changing fast - and the window to adapt is narrowing.

AI & PE: The Future of Value Creation is brought to you by Accordion.

Most conversations about AI adoption rely on surveys, stock market swings, or expert opinions. Ara Kharazian, Lead Economist at Ramp, has something better: real transaction data from thousands of businesses showing exactly where, how, and how much companies are actually spending on AI.

Ramp's position as a corporate card and spend management platform gives Ara access to line-item receipt data across a wide swath of the economy - tracking which LLMs companies are buying, how spend is evolving, and what's actually driving adoption. 

In this episode, Ara breaks down the findings from our joint white paper with Ramp, AI in PE: Ahead of the Market, Behind the Curve. Notably, why PE-backed companies are outpacing the broader market - with 59% actively spending on AI versus 41% of non-PE peers.

Read the full AI in PE: Ahead of the Market, Behind the Curve white paper here https://www.accordion.com/ai-in-pe-ahead-of-the-market-behind-the-curve 

For more on Ramp, visit https://ramp.com/partners/accordion 

AI & PE: The Future of Value Creation is brought to you by Accordion.

In this episode, Kyle Roemer, Steve Jones, Bryce Baker, and Justin D’Onofrio discuss how AI is being applied inside existing CRM and FP&A systems to drive real business value. The conversation explores practical use cases in platforms like Salesforce and modern financial planning tools, from improving sales workflows and forecasting to automating analysis and decision support.

Their discussion emphasizes starting with use clear business problems, clean data, and workflows teams already use, offering a grounded look at where AI is delivering results today and how operators can prepare for what comes next.

In the latest episode of AI & PE: The Future of Value Creation, Kyle Roemer is joined by Adam Silverman for a download on the biggest AI developments impacting private equity right now.

They break down three major shifts:

• Developers are becoming AI architects - moving from handwriting code to designing, supervising, and quality-controlling agent-driven systems
• The transition from agentic to ambient AI, with always-on systems monitoring deals, markets, and internal data in real time
• AI-powered investing is earning trust through better data access, improved accuracy, and institutional-grade research partnerships

The result: faster builds, smarter diligence, and a growing edge for firms that activate their proprietary data.

AI & PE: The Future of Value Creation is brought to you by Accordion Intelligence.

In this episode, host Kyle Roemer is joined by Adam Silverman to break down his 2026 predictions for how AI will reshape private equity workflows.

Adam argues that everyone inside PE firms will be using agents, as the shift moves from tools that answer questions to systems that take action. That evolution comes with behavioral changes too: typing will start to phase out, with voice and dictation moving work closer to the speed of thought.

They explore how spreadsheets and slides-creation should get automated this year, eliminating manual busywork and freeing teams to focus on craft and insight. Adam also explains why AI-native firms will leapfrog larger competitors, how research and diligence work will be increasingly AI-driven, and why the biggest strategic divide is clear: companies that connect their data to AI will pull ahead - while those that don’t fall behind.

AI & PE: The Future of Value Creation is brought to you by Accordion Intelligence.

In this episode, host Kyle Roemer is joined by Miles Rowland who leads data and AI initiatives for Searchlight Capital’s value creation team. Together they discuss a clear, practical framework for AI maturity: moving from basic chat tools to AI connected to your data, to agents that take action, and ultimately to ambient AI operating quietly in the background. Miles unpacks how AI is reshaping the data stack, changing the role of analysts and unlocking faster, more intuitive access to insights through natural-language interfaces - one of the biggest value creation opportunities for mid-market portfolio companies today.

AI & PE: The Future of Value Creation is brought to you by Accordion Intelligence.

In the debut episode of AI & PE: The Future of Value Creation, host Kyle Roemer speaks with Ash Pembroke, Accordion Managing Director focused on AI strategy and value creation, about how PE-backed portfolio companies are already using AI to scale, streamline operations, and accelerate portfolio growth. Ash shares practical advice for CFOs and sponsors on where to invest their AI dollars, how to incorporate AI into value creation plans, and why data readiness drives real ROI. She also explains why empowering top performers—not just automating tasks—delivers the biggest gains.