PowerBook

How it works

From a bank statement to a tax form, on one computer.

These are the six things that happen to a bank line in PowerBook, in the order it meets them.

Double entry, append only

Each entry's debits equal its credits to the cent, amounts are kept as whole cents rather than floating point, and nothing is overwritten: a correction is a reversing entry, dated, beside the one it undoes.

Two models, and a ladder

A shipped model trained on bank descriptions, and your own, which learns from every line you record. A payee you filed before comes first; the models after; Claude only when both are unsure and you have turned it on.

A statement must add up

A PDF statement is read section by section, and each section's lines must add up to the total the statement prints, and the balances must agree, before any line is imported.

Step by step

One line, from the statement to Schedule C.

Importing

A statement is read, and checked against itself

CSV, OFX and QFX are read from any bank. A Chase business checking PDF is read section by section, and the lines read must add up to every total the statement prints, and to its opening and closing balances, or none of them are imported. A line already in the books, from the same statement imported twice or two statements that overlap, is skipped.

added up from the lines readsumprintedOpening balance4,210.554,210.55✓+ Deposits and additions (4 lines)11,842.1011,842.10✓− Electronic withdrawals (11 lines)3,906.373,906.37✓− ATM and debit card (14 lines)1,288.421,288.42✓− Fees (1 line)15.0015.00✓= Closing balance10,842.8610,842.86✓every figure matches, so all 30 lines are imported; one mismatch and none are
Every printed figure is matched before a line is added.

Suggesting

The first thing that knows, answers

A payee you have already filed the same way comes first. After that your own model, once it has learned from ten of your lines, then the shipped model, used when it is sure. A suggestion says which of these it came from, so you can tell a habit from a guess.

As beforea payee you have already filed the same wayLearnedyour own model, once it has seen ten of your linesShipped modeltrained on thousands of bank descriptions; used when it is sureClaudeonly with a licence on, and only when both models are unsureUnsurethe best guess is picked for you; you decide
Tried in order, top to bottom. The first that is sure wins.

Asking

Claude sees a description, not your books

With a licence turned on, a line both models are unsure of is sent over an encrypted channel to Unidatum's hub, which asks Claude. What goes is whether money came in or went out, and the description with card and reference numbers taken out, together with the list of accounts to choose from. Claude's answer is shown in purple, and is a suggestion like any other.

the line in your booksdate14 Jul 2026descriptionSQ *HARBORSIDE PRINT 0714 #4471amount−212.40balance8,631.07what Claude is sentout: SQ *HARBORSIDE PRINTand your chart of accountsno date, no amount, no balance,no card or reference numbersOnly for lines both of PowerBook's models are unsure of, and only with a licence on.
The line on the left stays on your computer; the box on the right is what is sent.

Recording

One click makes a balanced entry

Recording a line posts a journal entry against the account the statement is for. A payment between two of your own accounts, such as paying the business card from checking, is matched across the two statements and recorded once rather than twice.

on the statement03 MarADOBE *CREATIVE CLOUD−59.99Business checking6850 Software and subscriptionssuggested · 97% sure · one click to recordin the journalaccountdebitcredit6850 Software and subscriptions59.991000 Business checking59.99debits equal credits, to the cent
The statement's line, the suggestion, and the entry it becomes.

Learning

Every line you record teaches your own model

Your model retrains in a moment after each line, so the next month's statement arrives knowing what you decided this month. Replayed month by month over one freelancer's real statements, the suggestion was right on 69% of lines at first sight, on 96% through the first year, and on 98 to 100% in each year after.

0%50%100%First sight69%shipped model alone, nothing learned yetFirst year96%learning from each month recordedAfter that98–100%98 to 100% a year
How often the suggestion was right, replaying four years of statements in order.

Reporting

Schedule C shows its working

The profit and loss, the balance sheet and Schedule C are worked out from the journal each time. Each Schedule C line names the accounts it adds up and any rule it applied, so a figure can be traced back to the entries behind it.

in the books6750 Business meals1,284.6038 entries, Jan–Decopen the account to see each one50%Schedule C24b Deductible meals642.30from 6750, at 50%each line says what it adds up
Every line on the form, traced back to the books.