According to EU-Startups, Barcelona-based Kabilio has closed a €4 million pre-Seed round led by Visionaries Club and Picus Capital. The funding includes €200k from ENISA, making it one of Spain’s largest pre-Seed rounds. Founded in 2024 by Jose Ojeda and Álex Valls, the startup uses generative AI to automate accounting and tax processes for firms. They already have nearly 100 accounting firm clients reporting productivity boosts up to 50%. The timing aligns with a broader European trend of AI accounting investments throughout 2025.
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Spain’s accounting problem
Here’s the thing about accounting – it’s simultaneously boring and stressful. You’ve got 65,000 firms in Spain dealing with millions of SMEs and freelancers who consistently submit documents late or incomplete. Then quarterly peaks hit, and everyone’s scrambling to manually enter data and check numbers. It’s the kind of work that makes talented people leave the industry. Kabilio‘s founders came from McKinsey and Rocket Internet backgrounds, so they’ve seen how technology can transform traditional sectors. But accounting? That’s a tough nut to crack.
The AI hype versus reality
Now, everyone’s throwing AI at accounting problems. We’ve got Bluebook in Sweden raising €2.4 million, Stacks in the Netherlands securing €9.5 million, and Plino in Italy getting €650k. That’s a lot of money chasing what’s essentially the same promise: automate the boring stuff. Kabilio’s platform includes document processing, tax management, and advisory tools – plus they’re piloting an AI agent called Kabi. But here’s my question: how many of these AI accounting tools actually deliver on their 50% productivity claims? The gap between demo and daily use can be massive.
The real challenge: adoption
Jose Ojeda admitted something interesting – there’s “a certain fear of adopting AI” in accounting firms. And honestly, that’s probably the biggest hurdle. You’re dealing with professionals who’ve built careers on being meticulous and cautious. Throwing generative AI at their workflow? That’s a tough sell. The investors keep saying this isn’t about replacing accountants but making them more valuable. But let’s be real – when you automate 50% of someone’s work, what happens to their job? Firms might not fire people immediately, but they’ll definitely hire fewer new accountants.
Spain’s emerging AI scene
What’s actually significant here is that this is happening in Spain. Most of the big AI finance rounds have been in Northern Europe, but Kabilio’s €4 million pre-Seed shows money flowing south. Basically, Spain’s accounting industry represents a massive, relatively untapped market. If Kabilio can crack the adoption problem and actually deliver those productivity gains, they could become the default platform. But that’s a big if. The accounting software space is crowded, and convincing traditional firms to change their workflows requires more than just fancy AI – it requires trust. And trust in accounting? That’s built over years, not funding rounds.
