The PE AI Playbook

Cut due diligence time by 70% with AI-powered workflows designed specifically for private equity deal teams.

The Opportunity

Your analysts spend 80+ hours per deal manually reviewing data rooms—reading contracts, extracting financial data, flagging risks, populating trackers. AI can compress this to 20-25 hours without sacrificing quality.

The difference isn't the tool. It's knowing exactly how to apply it to each phase of due diligence.

70%
Reduction in DD time
50-60
Hours saved per deal
$180K+
Annual savings (15 deals)

Workflow 1: Data Room Triage

6-8 hours saved per deal

Before diving into individual documents, use AI to create a complete data room map. This transforms chaotic folder structures into prioritized review queues.

Implementation Steps

  • Export or screenshot the data room index/folder structure
  • Ask AI to categorize documents by DD type: financial, legal, commercial, operational
  • Request identification of missing standard documents (financial statements, org charts, material contracts)
  • Get a prioritized review order based on deal-breaker risk

Workflow 2: CIM Analysis

4-6 hours saved per deal

Extract the critical data points from Confidential Information Memoranda automatically. AI surfaces the claims you need to verify and the questions you need to ask.

Sample Prompt

"Analyze this CIM and extract: (1) Management's revenue projections for next 5 years with stated assumptions, (2) Historical growth rates and any discontinuities, (3) Customer concentration data, (4) Acknowledged risks and mitigants, (5) Key questions for management presentation."

Workflow 3: Contract Review

15-20 hours saved per deal

The highest-impact DD workflow. AI can review hundreds of contracts and extract standardized data points while flagging non-standard provisions.

Extraction Templates by Contract Type

  • Customer contracts: Term, auto-renewal, pricing/escalation, termination rights, change of control provisions, MFN clauses
  • Vendor agreements: Exclusivity, termination rights, IP ownership, liability caps
  • Employment agreements: Non-competes, change of control triggers, severance, key person provisions
  • Lease agreements: Term, renewal options, rent schedule, assignment rights

Workflow 4: Financial Data Extraction

3-4 hours saved per deal

Extract and normalize financial data from inconsistent formats—PDFs, Excel exports, management reports with varying structures.

What AI Can Do

  • Extract key metrics into standardized format
  • Flag unusual fluctuations or discontinuities
  • Identify seasonality patterns
  • Suggest potential EBITDA adjustments based on disclosed items

Workflow 5: Deal Memo Drafting

5-6 hours saved per deal

After completing DD, use AI to generate first drafts of IC memos. The heavy lifting is done—AI just needs to structure your findings.

Implementation

  • Provide your firm's standard IC memo format
  • Input your DD notes, findings, and key concerns
  • AI generates first draft with proper structure and formatting
  • You refine the analysis and add judgment calls

The ROI Math

For a typical mid-market PE firm running 15 deals per year:

Hours saved per deal 50-60 hours
Analyst fully-loaded cost $150-200/hour
Savings per deal $7,500-12,000
Deals per year 15
Annual savings $112,500-180,000

Beyond Cost Savings

The real value often isn't cost reduction—it's capacity. Teams using AI effectively can pursue more opportunities, conduct deeper analysis on priority deals, and move faster when speed matters.

Ready to Transform Your DD Process?

Book a free AI Workflow Audit. We'll review your current due diligence process and show you exactly where AI can help your deal team.

Book Your Free Audit