Basis

Basis AI is an applied AI research organization and technology provider with two main facets: a nonprofit research institute focusing on understanding and building general intelligence through causal computational rationality to solve complex scientific and societal problems, and a commercial AI platform that equips accountants with AI agents to automate and assist accounting workflows while integrating with existing systems and tools.

Basis AI aims to mathematically and computationally understand reasoning, learning, decision-making and explainability in intelligence, to develop scalable AI technology that can model and operate in highly complex real-world environments, and to accelerate solving intractable problems in science, society, and industry, particularly financial and accounting domains.

Their research builds a “universal reasoning engine” that synthesizes programs modeling real and simulated environments based on observations. The commercial platform uses intelligent AI agents designed as “doers” that autonomously perform accounting tasks rather than simple chatbots, adapting to workflows dynamically and integrating with existing ledgers and files.

The commercial platform is targeted exclusively at accountants and accounting firms, not end businesses, aiming to enhance accountants’ capabilities and efficiency. The research initiatives involve collaborators from biology and other scientific fields focused on modeling complex dynamic phenomena.

Basis prioritizes enterprise-level security by not storing user credentials, employing a revocable token “handshake” that securely grants data access via APIs, and by complying with SOC 2 Type II certification for Security, Availability, and Confidentiality.

Basis develops modular, composable software categorized as applications addressing specific scientific or operational challenges, modules generalizing principles across domains, and infrastructure supporting broad composition and generality.

Basis is a 501(c)(3) non-profit research organization. The commercial product is offered by Essex Labs, Inc. (doing business as Basis), which is governed by standard Terms of Service.

For support on commercial Basis AI software, there are knowledge bases, FAQs, and incident reporting systems available.