Shortcut AI
The superhuman Excel agent for finance professionals. Automates complex Excel work in minutes, outperforming first-year analysts from McKinsey and Goldman Sachs by 89.1% in blind testing.
Posted by
Nico Christie
Shortcut AI: The Superhuman Excel Agent for Finance Professionals
What is Shortcut AI? (Quick Answer)
Shortcut AI is an autonomous Excel agent that builds complex financial models in minutes, outperforming first-year analysts from McKinsey and Goldman Sachs 89.1% in blind testing.
- •90%+ formula accuracy through multi-agent verification
- •Builds DCF, LBO, and valuation models from scratch or existing data
- •Free to try (3 tasks per day, no credit card required)
- •Works as web app or Excel plugin for seamless integration
What is Shortcut AI?
Shortcut AI is an autonomous Excel agent that transforms how finance professionals work with spreadsheets. Unlike traditional spreadsheet tools or generic AI assistants, Shortcut is specifically engineered to understand, build, and manipulate complex financial models with superhuman accuracy.
In groundbreaking benchmark testing, Shortcut outperformed first-year analysts from McKinsey and Goldman Sachs 89.1% of the time (220:27)—even when the analysts were given 10x more time to complete the same tasks.
Why Finance Teams Choose Shortcut AI
Traditional Excel work is slow, error-prone, and doesn't scale. Finance professionals at small and midsize companies face constant pressure to deliver more analysis with fewer resources. Shortcut AI addresses this by acting as an analyst in your pocket—available on-demand to handle everything from financial data automation to complex modeling tasks.
Core Capabilities
- DCF & Valuation Models: Build discounted cash flow models, LBO analyses, and M&A valuations from scratch or existing 10-Ks
- Financial Statement Processing: Transform bank statements into investor-ready financials automatically
- Complex Formula Generation: Achieve 90%+ formula accuracy with multi-agent verification
- Template Automation: Save and deploy custom Excel templates across your team
- Native Excel Integration: Works as standalone app or Excel plugin for seamless workflow
How Shortcut AI Works
Unlike ChatGPT or Claude, Shortcut truly understands Excel files. The system uses a multi-agent architecture where specialized AI agents collaborate on different aspects of your task:
Multi-Agent Architecture
- →Planning Agent: Breaks down complex requests into structured steps
- →Execution Agent: Generates formulas, formatting, and data structures
- →Verification Agent: Validates accuracy and catches errors before delivery
This architecture enables Shortcut to handle tasks that would take analysts hours or days in just minutes, with enterprise-grade reliability (99%+ uptime).
Shortcut AI vs Traditional Tools
When comparing Claude vs Shortcut for Excel work, the difference is clear: Claude feels "one level deep" on accuracy, completion, and formatting. Shortcut feels like a top 10% Excel user who understands financial modeling conventions and best practices.
Key Differentiators
- Excel-Native Understanding: Shortcut reads .xlsx files at a structural level, not just as text
- Financial Domain Expertise: Pre-trained on thousands of real analyst tasks and models
- Multi-Turn Collaboration: Quick edits mode for iterative refinement
- Enterprise Security: SOC 2 Type 1 compliant with role-based access controls
Real-World Applications
Investment Banking & Private Equity
VPs and Senior Partners use Shortcut to kick off complex models before meetings, then audit the work in 10-30 minutes. This transforms the analyst workflow from days of grinding to strategic review and refinement.
"We use Shortcut to start LBO models before Monday IC meetings. The AI-generated model is 90% complete by the time we review it—we just validate assumptions and add deal-specific details. Saves our team 6-8 hours per deal."
— Private Equity Associate, Top-tier PE firm
Corporate FP&A
Finance teams at small and midsize companies use Shortcut to automate quarterly reporting, build budget models, and generate variance analyses—tasks that traditionally consume 10+ hours per week.
Startup Finance
Founders and fractional CFOs leverage Shortcut to build investor-ready financial models, process bank statements into Data Room financials, and generate pitch deck projections without hiring a full-time analyst.
Getting Started with Shortcut AI
Shortcut offers free usage (up to 3 tasks per day), making it easy to test the platform on real work. For teams and enterprises, paid plans include:
Pricing Overview
- Free:3 tasks per day, full features, no credit card required
- Pro ($49/mo):Unlimited usage, Excel plugin, template library
- Team ($199/mo):5 users, shared templates, collaboration features, priority support
- Enterprise:SSO, RBAC, custom deployments, dedicated success manager
Visit shortcut.ai to start using the platform immediately—no credit card required for the free tier.
The Future of Excel Automation
Shortcut AI represents a fundamental shift in how knowledge workers interact with spreadsheets. Rather than spending hours on mechanical execution, finance professionals can focus on strategic analysis, stakeholder communication, and high-value decision-making.
"An experience as transformative as my first encounter with ChatGPT."
— Severin Sorensen, Finance Professional
The platform continues to improve rapidly, with major updates every few weeks that push accuracy and capabilities even higher.
For tech-forward finance professionals looking to 10x their productivity, Shortcut AI isn't just another tool—it's the future of financial analysis, available today.