Sterling raises $3.8M for AI accounting

New Zealand accounting startup Sterling raised a $3.8 million seed round after saying its software had already completed about 1,200 hours of finance work for customers. RNZ reports that the company was founded 10 months ago and plans to expand into Australia and the United States, positioning the product as an autopilot for repetitive finance work rather than a chatbot. Finance leaders should treat the early usage figure as a proof-of-demand signal—not an accuracy guarantee—alongside the enterprise agent controls needed to make automation accountable.