Is AI Actually Helping Searchers Find Better Deals?

AI is showing up everywhere. Deal sourcing is no exception. Today, searchers are using AI for things like: • Identifying target industries faster • Researching companies at scale • Drafting outreach emails • Organizing data and notes • Spotting patterns across large deal pipelines On the surface, it sounds like a big advantage. Less manual work. More speed. More reach. But there’s another side to it. AI can help you move faster, but it doesn’t replace judgment. It won’t tell you if an owner is emotionally ready to sell. It won’t catch every nuance in a conversation. And it won’t build trust for you. So the real question is not whether AI works. It’s how searchers are using it. Some use AI to save time on research and admin work, so they can spend more time talking to owners and advisors. Others rely on it too heavily and end up with a lot of noise but very few real conversations. I’m curious to hear from the community: • Are you using AI in your search today? • If yes, where has it helped the most? • If not, what’s holding you back? Looking forward to learning how others are approaching this.