Deloitte launches AI M&A platform used in 1,000 deals

Deloitte has launched an AI-enabled M&A platform already used in more than 1,000 client engagements.

The platform is designed for organisations handling mergers and acquisitions, supporting work across the deal lifecycle from strategy and due diligence to transaction structuring and post-deal integration. It combines AI tools with an agentic framework intended to help teams manage and oversee AI agents involved in deal processes.

The launch reflects a broader push by professional services firms to embed AI more deeply into advisory work, particularly in corporate transactions, where speed, data analysis and coordination across specialist teams can shape deal outcomes. Deloitte is positioning the product as a way to bring together tax, technology and financial workstreams in a single operating environment.

Survey findings

Alongside the launch, Deloitte highlighted findings from a survey of 500 corporate and private equity leaders on the use of generative AI in mergers and acquisitions. The results suggest AI has moved beyond experimentation in this part of the market, with 90% of respondents saying they use it in some form.

More than a third of dealmakers, or 37%, said they use AI across multiple stages of the M&A lifecycle. The survey also found that 35% of M&A leaders saw the greatest value in combining technology with advisory support, more than three times the share that pointed to value from individual task-specific tools.

Respondents also reported operational gains from AI use. Automated status reporting was cited by 66% of those surveyed, while 60% pointed to better decision-making and 51% said AI had improved cross-functional coordination.

The data offers some indication of how buyers, sellers and advisers are using AI in transaction work. It also highlights pressure on firms in the M&A advisory market to offer tools that go beyond narrow automation and support a broader set of tasks across live deals.

Platform design

Deloitte said the platform was built for the confidentiality and complexity of transactions. It is designed to protect and ringfence client and deal data, and was developed by M&A professionals with experience in target, transaction and diligence information.

The product is being made available through Ascend, Deloitte's service delivery platform, giving clients different ways to use M&A-focused AI tools within a controlled environment.

For corporate clients and private equity investors, the appeal of such systems lies in the volume of information generated during deals. Due diligence, separation planning, synergy modelling, tax structuring and integration planning often require multiple teams to review large volumes of documents and track changing workstreams under tight deadlines. Advisory firms have increasingly argued that AI can reduce manual work and improve consistency in those processes.

Deloitte's announcement comes as competition intensifies among large consulting, audit and advisory groups to turn AI investments into client-facing products. M&A is one area of opportunity because transaction work combines high fees, specialist expertise and large bodies of structured and unstructured data.

Erik Dilger, Managing Director, Deloitte Financial Advisory Services, M&A Platform Lead and US Mergers & Acquisition Services GenAI Lead, said the shift extends beyond isolated use cases.

"Agentic AI is enhancing how we deliver M&A services - running structured, interconnected workflows across the entire deal lifecycle, from strategy and diligence through integration, rather than just addressing isolated M&A tasks. This platform will be a launchpad for a fundamental shift in how deals get done," said Dilger.

Deloitte also framed the launch as part of a wider effort to combine human advisers with AI tools rather than replace one with the other. That approach mirrors a broader pattern in professional services, where firms have stressed oversight and judgement as they introduce AI into regulated or high-stakes client work.

Adam Reilly, National Managing Partner, Merger & Acquisition Services, Deloitte, said the product was already established in client work.

"Deloitte's M&A Platform brings human judgment and AI together to enable deal teams to achieve something previously out of reach - deeper, richer insights that not only enhance decision-making but also shape M&A strategy and competitive advantage. With demonstrated capabilities already in market, we are helping clients activate AI to move with greater confidence, make smarter decisions, and achieve stronger outcomes," said Reilly.