The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) has developed an eLearning programme focused on generative AI (GenAI) to educate its members.  

The move is a direct response to findings from the ICAEW’s 2025 member research, which highlighted technology, automation, and GenAI as key areas of opportunity and challenge for the accounting profession. 

However, a notable proportion of members feel unprepared to implement AI solutions, citing insufficient training as a barrier to adoption. 

The GenAI Accelerator Programme is scheduled to launch in August 2025 and is designed to provide members with an understanding of GenAI tools such as ChatGPT, CoPilot, and Grok. 

The programme consists of eight eLearning courses, each comprising several modules which are estimated to take about an hour to complete, the ICAEW said. 

The initial course will introduce participants to the fundamental concepts of AI, as well as the ethical and regulatory aspects of using GenAI in professional settings.  

The programme will then progress to more advanced topics on how GenAI can be integrated into various accounting functions, such as finance operations, compliance, strategic planning, risk management, and governance. 

Further courses will provide tailored guidance for applying AI in specific practice areas, including audit, tax services, advisory, and restructuring.  

Additionally, the programme will offer sector-specific advice for industries such as financial services, retail, manufacturing, public sector, healthcare finance, construction, real estate, charity, and energy. 

The final course will address the practical aspects of implementing GenAI, focusing on creating an adoption strategy, evaluating organisational readiness, engaging teams, and assessing the technology’s return on investment. 

Central to the GenAI Accelerator Programme is a structured five-step framework to support members through the adoption process.  

This framework includes identifying use cases, validating and prioritising them, piloting and testing, scaling and integrating into operations, and monitoring for continuous improvement. 

GenFinance.AI founder Peter Beard said: “GenAI is incredibly empowering for users, no longer do you have to be a coder, an engineer or a programmer to access artificial intelligence.  

“The accelerator has been created to ensure ICAEW members can confidently experiment and engage with AI, with practical support on each stage of their GenAI adoption journey.” 

Recently, the ICAEW has called on UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves to focus on pension reforms to unleash the £3tn ($4.04tn) potential of pension funds.