For decades, small- to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) have been the underserved middle children of enterprise technology.<\/p>\n
Too small to afford robust enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems and too complex for consumer-grade tools, many SMBs have had to rely on spreadsheets, manual entry and fragmented services to manage their financial operations.<\/p>\n
But that is changing. A wave of artificial intelligence-powered, no-code tools is transforming the way these businesses handle their back offices, empowering a new generation of citizen developers to build custom finance stacks from the ground up.<\/p>\n
Today, solo founders, accountants and operations managers are turning to AI to automate key back-office functions. From invoice generation and bill reminders to recurring billing and AI-assisted tax calculators, SMBs are using technology once reserved for large corporations.<\/p>\n
They\u2019re doing it without writing a single line of code \u2014 or at least, not traditional code. Instead, they\u2019re using natural language prompts, low-code platforms, and AI copilots to script their way to financial agility.<\/p>\n
Take the case of Greg Schwartz<\/a>, founder of Household.tv<\/a>, a boutique marketing agency in Manhattan. Tired of manually generating invoices and chasing down payments, Schwartz used an AI-coding tool to write a script himself that integrates with Household\u2019s back office and automates invoice creation for each project the agency tackles.<\/p>\n \u201cIt used to take me hours every week to generate invoices and follow up with clients,\u201d Schwartz told PYMNTS. \u201cThe natural language interface of these tools transformed what used to be a serious engineering lift, or a third-party tool with limited customization, to a fully customized and automated part of my business. And on top of it, it\u2019s helped with cash flow.\u201d<\/p>\n Read also:<\/strong> The Customer Is Always Right: How SMBs Can Attract and Keep Customers<\/a><\/p>\n The Rise of the SMB Developer<\/strong><\/p>\n The concept of the citizen developer isn\u2019t new, but its potential has been supercharged by advances in AI, particularly when applied to business owners. These are not professional software engineers. They are entrepreneurs, founder-CEOs and operations staff who understand their workflows better than anyone and now have the tools to automate them.<\/p>\n What once required a team of developers and a hefty software budget can now be accomplished with a few smart prompts and some time on a Sunday afternoon.<\/p>\n This DIY approach allows SMBs to tailor their tools exactly to their needs, rather than being forced into the rigid workflows of traditional software. Because these solutions are modular, they can evolve alongside the business. Need to add expense tracking? There\u2019s an AI plugin for that. Want to automate payroll reminders? A few clicks in a no-code interface can set it up.<\/p>\n The PYMNTS Intelligence report \u201cPlatform Power: The Growing Importance of Embedded Finance to SMB Success<\/a>\u201d found that 91% of SMBs said they feel ready for growth in 2025. As a result, companies are planning to increase their investments in software \u2014 not just for cost savings, but also to unlock new revenue streams and accelerate scaling.<\/p>\n