AI for quality of earnings and valuation
Ultramarine Work reads the deal folder and builds the QoE databook, the working capital peg and the valuation exhibits in Excel, with live formulas. Anything it could not tie gets flagged in a note.
Cordova-QoE-databook.xlsxExample| $000s | FY2023 | FY2024 | LTM Jun-25 | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reported EBITDA | 8,412 | 9,265 | 9,880 | |
| Owner pay above market | 410 | 425 | 430 | Owner |
| Related-party rent to market | 186 | 192 | 196 | Related party |
| Litigation settlement | 0 | 650 | 650 | Non-recurring |
| Severance | 220 | 310 | 285 | Non-recurring |
| Adjusted EBITDA | 9,228 | 10,842 | 11,441 |
NoteSeverance recurs in all three periods, so treat it as an operating cost and take $285k out of adjusted LTM EBITDA.
Ask it for
“Build the QoE databook for FY2023, FY2024 and LTM June 2025 from the GL exports, and classify each add-back: non-recurring, owner, related party or run-rate.”
Cordova-QoE-databook.xlsx“Compute the working capital peg on the draft SPA definition, excluding cash, debt and taxes, and list one-offs that move the monthly average by more than 5%.”
NWC-peg-and-debt-likes.xlsx“Run the Rule 3-05 asset, investment and income tests for the Alderwood acquisition and draft the Article 11 pro formas for the S-4 filing.”
Alderwood-proforma-significance.xlsx“Draft the memo on whether the $2.1 million earn-out is a liability or equity, and whether remeasurement under ASC 805-30-35-1 runs through earnings.”
Contingent-consideration-memo.docx“Rerun the OPM backsolve with the Series C priced at $14.25 a share, spread value across common, Series A through C and options, and update the DLOM study.”
409A-OPM-allocation.xlsx“Page-turn the QoE report before it goes out, trace every figure back to the databook and the GL support, and mark anything that will not tie.”
QoE-report-tieout.pdf
Inside the Transaction Advisory & Valuation mode
Proposals and RFP responses
Drafts the fee proposal for the next QoE engagement and the RFP response, with scope, staffing and fee estimate in the client’s required format.
Project budget and cost forecast
Tracks fee burn against the engagement budget by workstream and states the estimate at completion before a write-off surprises the partner.
Tie-out and page-turn review
It runs the page turn before a report goes out and ticks every figure to the databook, the GL or the PDF, then lists what refused to tie.
Three statement and operating models
Builds or repairs the three-statement model so the DCF, the IC memo and the football field all read from the same drivers.
Technical accounting memo
Writes the position memo for the file, with the ASC citation, the alternatives the auditors will raise and where each one leads.
QoE and working capital
Puts together the databook, the adjusted EBITDA bridge, the peg and the debt-like list from the GL exports, and notes anything the GL will not support.
Deal accounting and pro formas
Works through the Rule 3-05 thresholds, drafts the carve-out statements with the Topic 1B allocations shown separately, and builds the Article 11 pro formas.
Value creation and transformation
Sizes the pricing, procurement and labor levers and turns them into an initiative plan with named owners, a 100-day sequence and a bridge to track against.
Valuation
Updates the trading comps, precedents and the DCF, then rebuilds the equity bridge and the football field. It flags where the sources disagree.
Fair value financial reporting valuations
Prepares the PPA, the goodwill and intangible impairment tests and the ASC 820 marks, and lays out the WACC build for the auditors to check.
Equity and complex securities valuation
For the 409A report it sets up the OPM backsolve or the PWERM, allocates value across the share classes, and keeps the DLOM study and its sources current.
Fairness and solvency opinions
Assembles the fairness committee memo, the solvency tests and the proxy disclosure exhibits for the partner who signs the opinion.
- Office skills
- Excel, Word, PowerPoint, PDF
- Tools
- Read, edit and write files, Search files, Run code, Search and read the web, View images
- Connectors
- SharePoint, Google Drive, Gmail, and additional custom connectors
- House style
- Your fonts, layouts and rules, on every file
How it works
- 1
Open the deal folder
Drop in the trial balances and GL exports, AR and AP aging, bank statements, the cap table, the draft SPA, the CIM and last year’s QoE reports. Export them from the data room or copy them from wherever the team keeps them.
- 2
Ask for the workpaper
The databook, the bridge, the peg or the model comes back in Excel. Every figure has a source reference, and anything it could not find or reconcile goes on an open-items list.
- 3
Review before anything goes out
You tick each figure to its support, throw out the add-backs that will not hold and set the final EBITDA, peg and value ranges yourself. The tool signs and files nothing.
Who it’s for
Financial due diligence, transaction accounting and valuation professionals at accounting firms, valuation firms and independent advisory firms, from associate to partner.
Questions
Where does our data go?
Ultramarine Work changes files only in the project’s folder. When a request needs it, it can read files elsewhere on your computer, never passwords, keys or app data, and you can turn that off in settings. The model runs on Paper Instruments’ servers, so the content it works on is sent there to be processed. Paper Instruments is SOC 2 Type II, and our security and compliance details are on our compliance page.
Can we run it over data room files without breaching the NDA?
That depends on the agreement the parties signed, so read it before the first upload. It works in the project folder on your computer, but the content it processes runs on Paper Instruments’ servers. A counterparty could treat the vendor as receiving the files. Some NDAs now bar public AI tools or tools that train on inputs, and Advisory Opinion 41 puts confidentiality on the appraiser, not the tool. Counsel and the firm make the call on whether this tool fits the agreement.
Do we have to disclose AI use in the valuation report?
No standard forces a disclosure line into every report, but the standards that govern your report already apply to AI. Advisory Opinion 41, adopted on April 23, 2026, says disclosure is in order when AI use materially contributes to the results. ASA recommends its suggested language whenever AI directly supports research or analysis, and NACVA holds members responsible for AI-drafted text. You and your firm decide whether the report carries the statement.
Does it set the peg, pick the add-backs or conclude on value?
No, it drafts the databook, proposes the adjustment list with its support and computes a candidate peg on the purchase agreement’s definition. You accept, change or reject each adjustment, and that is what makes the adjusted EBITDA defensible. It does not conclude on value. The comps, the DCF and the football field come back as exhibits for your judgment. A value the machine produced is not a conclusion of value until you adopt it.
How do I stop it from inventing comps or adjustments?
It cites the source file for every number it uses, and where it cannot locate or support something it says so instead of guessing. Comparables come only from the files in the folder or from web pages it reads with your permission, so the peer set you keep is a list you can retrace and document. You review every file it touched before the databook or the report is relied on.