Hey, I’m Charlie Barmore.
I’m an agent-native CPA exploring the frontier of AI and accounting.
I run a CPA practice, build apps, co-run communities, co-host a podcast, and a lot more.
All of it with the help of agents.
Where do you fit?
A few ways to join me.
Pick the one that sounds like you. Each is a place I show up every week.
I want to learn hands-onAI Lab for Accountants
The community Rebecca and I co-own. Weekly live demos, technical deep dives, and things you can take straight back to your own client work.
Join the AI Lab
I own a firmThe Collaboration Room
A community of firm owners helping each other make progress. I bring the AI perspective to the everyday questions of running a practice.
Join The Collaboration Room
I want help in my firmCharles J. Barmore CPA PC
AI advisory for CPAs, EAs, and bookkeepers: working sessions, readiness assessments, and full implementations, from a CPA whose own firm runs this way.
Work with me
I want to listen and watchReal Firms
The podcast I co-host with Rebecca Driscoll, CPA. Episodes, demos, and builds on AI in accounting and what it takes to run a better firm.
Watch on YouTubeFrom my workbench
A little of what I’ve built.
I learn by making things. These started with problems in my own practice and became software I use.
ledgerlabs.co LedgerClaw
Live - waitlistAn AI-native operating system for the CPA firm, with agents that keep the books, run the close, and carry the work from book to tax.
In this demo: Auto-Categorize codes 16 new bank transactions, a reviewer fixes one and confirms the rest, and the P&L updates.
LedgerBug
Private betaDouble-entry accounting built for people and AI agents to work in the same set of books, through the same accounting engine.
In this demo: Agents post the bank activity, Claude proposes a reclass, I approve it, and net income moves by the same $538.
LedgerTB
ShippedDesktop bookkeeping built around the trial balance. Keep the books, make adjustments, and close the period on your own machine.
In this demo: Unlock the encrypted book, post a depreciation AJE, watch the trial balance tie out, then run the income statement.
LedgerPDF
AlphaA desktop workpaper binder for assembling, marking up, and tying out documents, with an AI agent working alongside you.
In this demo: I tick the workpaper while the agent foots it, ties it to the bank statement, and leaves a note for review.
Work with me
Bring AI into your firm.
I help CPAs, EAs, and bookkeepers put AI to work on real client files, with the same tools and habits I use in my own practice.
Working sessions
Screen-share sessions on your actual files, one-on-one or with your whole team. No retainer, no commitment.
See the details Fixed fee · 2 to 3 weeksAI Readiness Assessment
Where AI helps in your firm, where it does not, and what has to be true for it to be safe. You leave with a prioritized roadmap.
See the details Fixed fee · 4 to 8 weeksFirm Implementation
One shared AI playbook for your whole staff, and your worst bottleneck built, tested, and handed off.
See the details Firms, conferences, CPA societiesSpeaking & workshops
Live, hands-on sessions on AI in accounting, built around real workflows instead of slides.
Ask about a dateThe first conversation is free. Need a CPA for your business instead? Tax and accounting for business owners ↗
“Charlie assisted our firm in implementing AI-based quality controls to ensure that we can continue providing the best service to our clients possible. He was a huge help in fielding our questions, assessing the situation and recommending the best course of action for us.”
“He doesn’t take anything at face value … he pushes back on unproven claims, names exactly what still needs evidence before it counts as done, and keeps us honest about what’s genuinely ready versus what still needs work.”
“Charlie was a big help, and his follow-up was valuable too. The simple changes we discussed have already made a difference.”
Why this matters to me
I believe too much of the accounting profession is built around overwork, repetitive tasks, and too little room for life. It’s broken in ways we’ve learned to accept.
AI gives us a chance to change that: to do better work, reclaim our time, and build firms that support the lives we want. I want to help accountants embrace that possibility and take part in shaping what comes next.
Pick Up Your Sword
Why I build what I build. AI isn't automation. It's elevation. And the future isn't something that happens to you. It's something you build.
Read the mission →Where I unplug.
No screens. Just leather, by hand.
When the laptop closes, I pick up leather. Cutting, stitching, and finishing by hand is the deliberate opposite of everything else on this page, and that's exactly why it resets me. It also became a small business: CB Leathercrafts.
Maker
CB Leathercrafts
→Handcrafted leather goods (wallets, belts, and accessories) with a live customizer and an AI concept generator.
Questions
The things people ask.
Short answers, written to stand on their own.
Who is Charlie Barmore?
Charlie Barmore is a CPA, Certified Fraud Examiner, and Certified Valuation Analyst in Augusta, Georgia. He runs Charles J. Barmore CPA PC full-time, co-owns the AI Lab for Accountants with Rebecca Driscoll, CPA, and serves as the AI Practitioner for The Collaboration Room, a community of accounting-firm owners. He co-hosts the Real Firms podcast with Rebecca and builds AI-native software for accountants under Ledger Labs.
What does "AI-native CPA" mean?
An AI-native CPA runs a practice designed around AI from the start, not one with AI bolted on. In Charlie Barmore's practice, agents keep the books, draft the entries, and run the close. The CPA reviews, decides, and signs. Bank activity syncs in, an agent categorizes it against the real chart of accounts, a briefing agent reports every morning, and the CPA works a review queue instead of a spreadsheet. Charlie Barmore's own firm has run this way since early 2026.
What is an agent-native accounting firm?
An agent-native firm treats AI agents as staff with defined jobs: categorization, reconciliation, anomaly detection, period close, daily briefings. Every write is preview-first and a human approves it before it posts. The practitioner orchestrates the agents; the agents never file anything on their own.
Did Charlie really build all of this without engineers?
Yes. Every application on this site, their websites, and this site itself were built by Charlie alone with AI coding agents, primarily Claude Code. He has hired zero engineers. The first Claude Code session was January 2026; LedgerClaw was in production on his own firm's books by June 2026.
What does Charlie use to build software?
Claude Code as the primary coding agent, with FastAPI and Postgres on the back end, React or Astro on the front, and Railway, Vercel, and Cloudflare for hosting. The stack for each app is listed on its case-study page.
Can Charlie help my accounting firm adopt AI?
Yes. That is the primary focus of his practice: helping CPAs, EAs, bookkeepers, and firm owners adopt AI safely and effectively in real client work. Start at cbarmorecpa.com for advisory engagements, or join the AI Lab for Accountants for the weekly community.
Does Charlie still do tax and accounting work?
Yes. He keeps a select roster of business-owner and individual tax clients, mostly in Georgia and South Carolina, and works remotely with clients elsewhere. He stays in the work on purpose: it is hard to credibly advise firms on AI without using it on real returns.
What is an agent-native accountant?
An agent-native accountant works with a team of AI agents the way a partner works with staff: delegate, review, approve. The judgment stays human. The keystrokes don't. Charlie runs nine agents in production on his own firm's books.
What is a practitioner-builder?
A practitioner-builder does the work and builds the software for it. Charlie Barmore is a CPA, not an engineer. He builds the tools with AI coding agents, then uses them on real clients the next morning.
Let’s keep the conversation going
There’s a lot left to explore.
I share experiments, things I’m building, and what I’m learning along the way.