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AI for Corporate Development

Close better deals with less manual grinding.

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The shift

How AI is changing the Corporate Development role

In 2026, AI is taking over the slow parts of corporate development like reading data rooms, summarizing financial filings, and building first-pass valuation models. Teams now use AI to scan markets for acquisition targets, draft initial diligence question lists, and pull comparable transactions in minutes rather than days. The work shifts toward judgment, relationship building, and deciding which deals are worth pursuing.

What AI can take off your plate

  • Summarizing CIMs, 10-Ks, and data room documents into short briefs
  • Building first-pass valuation models and checking formulas
  • Pulling comparable companies and transactions for benchmarking
  • Drafting diligence request lists and tracking outstanding questions
  • Generating early versions of investment memos and board materials

What stays distinctly human

  • Deciding which targets are genuinely worth pursuing and at what price
  • Building trust with sellers, founders, and advisors during negotiations
  • Reading the room in deal meetings and adjusting strategy in real time
  • Making the final recommendation when the numbers are ambiguous
  • Owning post-merger integration relationships and accountability
Tools

Five AI tools for Corporate Developments

ChatGPT
A Corporate Development analyst uses it to summarize 10-K filings, draft investment memos, and explain unfamiliar accounting treatments in a target's financials.
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Claude
Used to read long CIMs and data room documents and pull out key risks, customer concentration, and contract terms across hundreds of pages.
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Hebbia
Searches across an entire deal data room at once to answer specific diligence questions and cite the exact source documents.
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PitchBook
Its AI features help surface comparable transactions, private company financials, and potential acquisition targets in a given sector.
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Microsoft Copilot in Excel
Speeds up building and checking LBO and DCF models, writing formulas, and reconciling figures pulled from target financials.
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Prompts

Five prompts to try today

Paste these into Claude or ChatGPT and replace the bracketed parts with your own details.

1. Target screening
I am building an acquisition pipeline in [industry/sector]. Suggest 15 companies that fit these criteria: revenue between [range], located in [region], offering [product/service type]. For each, give a one-line rationale and a likely strategic fit with [acquirer description].
2. CIM summary
Summarize this confidential information memorandum into a one-page brief covering: business overview, revenue and EBITDA trends, customer concentration, growth drivers, and the three biggest risks I should diligence. Text: [paste CIM excerpt].
3. Diligence question list
Draft a due diligence request list for acquiring a [type of company] in [industry]. Organize it by financial, commercial, legal, operational, and technology workstreams. Flag any questions specific to [known concern about the target].
4. Comparable transactions
Help me frame a comparable transactions analysis for a target in [sector] with [revenue] revenue and [EBITDA] EBITDA. List the deal metrics I should collect, typical valuation multiples in this space, and how to adjust for [specific factor].
5. Investment memo draft
Draft an investment committee memo for acquiring [target name]. Use this information: [strategic rationale, financials, price, risks]. Structure it as: transaction summary, strategic rationale, valuation, key risks, and recommendation.
The playbook

Every AI play for Corporate Development

Your full AI playbook for your role — updated every week. Tap any card for a step-by-step walkthrough and examples.

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Your PlaybookReport digest
Read the 80-page report in 10 minutes, with citations

Turn a dense PDF into answers you can trust, because every reply points to the page it came from. Free with a Google account.

NotebookLM FREE  Google's free tool that answers only from sources you upload, with citations

1

Go to notebooklm.google.com, sign in with a free Google account, start a notebook, and upload the report PDF (or paste its text) as a source.

2

Ask it to pull the parts that matter to you, so the answer stays grounded in the document:

Summarize this report in 8 bullet points a busy [my role] needs to know. Then list the 3 decisions or risks it raises. Quote the exact sentence behind each point and cite the page.
3

Follow up on anything unclear instead of rereading:

Where does this report talk about [topic or number]? Give me the exact lines and the page.

You get the real content and its sources in minutes, instead of skimming and hoping you caught the important part.

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How AI is changing your role
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