Build a 3-statement startup financial model in Excel from a prompt
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📊 Download the free Excel model shown in this walkthrough.
This demo shows HISAB 360, an AI agent that runs inside Microsoft Excel, building a complete three-statement startup model — an income statement, balance sheet and cash flow — from a single plain-English prompt. You watch the assumptions go in, the projection sheets get written with live formulas, and the three statements tie together the way a reviewer would expect.
The walkthrough below follows the exact workflow in the video so you can reproduce it on your own assumptions. You can also download the finished workbook as a free starting point: hisab-360-startup-financial-model.xlsx.
Open the HISAB panel and pick the right mode
With a blank or assumptions workbook open, open the HISAB chat panel from the ribbon. For building something this large, set the operating mode to Plan or Automate so the agent lays out the work before it touches cells. Ask-only answers questions without writing; Action writes step by step; Plan proposes a structured plan first; Automate can save the build as a reusable script.
Describe the model in plain English
Type the brief the way you'd hand it to a junior — for example: "Build a 3-statement monthly model for a SaaS startup: 24 months, starting MRR and growth rate, gross margin, headcount and opex assumptions, then a P&L, balance sheet and cash flow that all link." Only the structure of your data (sheet names, ranges, headers and a few sample rows) is sent to the AI; the workbook itself stays on your machine.
Review the plan and assumptions block
HISAB sets out an assumptions sheet — revenue drivers, margins, hiring, capex, financing — and a plan for each statement. Edit any number or driver before it builds further. Keeping every input on one assumptions tab is what makes the model auditable and easy to flex later.
Let it write the three linked statements
The agent writes the income statement, then the balance sheet, then the cash flow, using real Excel formulas that reference the assumptions and each other — net income flows to retained earnings, the cash flow's closing balance feeds the balance sheet, and the sheet balances. Where helpful it can also run sandboxed Python (pandas/numpy/openpyxl) for heavier schedules.
Approve the changes before they land
Outside Ask-only mode, proposed writes are approval-gated. You see a Review Changes summary of exactly which cells and formulas will be written, and nothing commits until you accept. Every applied change is recorded in the audit log, so you can trace how each figure in the model got there.
Sense-check, stress-test and reuse
Once it's in, verify the balance sheet ties and the cash flow reconciles, then flex a driver — change the growth rate or a hire date — and watch the statements update. In Automate mode you can save the whole build as a reusable script to re-run against next quarter's assumptions or a different entity.
Why this matters for finance teams
Three-statement models live or die on whether the statements actually tie — and on whether a reviewer can trace each number back to an assumption. Doing this with an agent inside Excel means the formulas land in your own workbook, not in a black box: the data stays local, only sheet names, ranges, headers and sample rows are sent to the AI, and you bring your own Anthropic or OpenAI key with no markup.
For finance teams the controls matter as much as the speed. Writes are approval-gated with a Review Changes step, and every applied change is journalled to an audit log, so a model an AI helped build is still one you can defend in review. HISAB 360 starts at $20/mo (Starter) and $30/mo (Professional, which adds approval-gated ERP write-back to Odoo, Xero, QuickBooks Online and Zoho Books); teams from $17/seat. There's a 14-day free trial with no card required.
Frequently asked questions
How do I build a 3-statement financial model in Excel from a prompt?
Open the HISAB 360 panel in Excel, set it to Plan or Automate mode, and describe the model in plain English — entity type, period count, and your revenue, margin, headcount and financing assumptions. The agent writes an assumptions sheet plus a linked income statement, balance sheet and cash flow using real Excel formulas. You review the proposed cells before they're written.
Will the income statement, balance sheet and cash flow actually link together?
Yes. The statements are built with cell references rather than pasted values, so net income flows to retained earnings, the closing cash from the cash flow feeds the balance sheet, and the balance sheet balances. Because the formulas live in your workbook, you can flex an assumption and the whole model updates.
Is there a free Excel startup model template I can download?
Yes. The finished workbook from this demo is available as a free download at https://dl.hisab360.net/media/hisab-360-startup-financial-model.xlsx. You can use it as a starting structure and swap in your own assumptions, or rebuild it from your own prompt.
Does my financial data get sent to the AI?
The workbook stays local on your machine. Only the structure needed to reason about it — sheet names, ranges, column headers and a few sample rows — is sent to the AI model. You also use your own Anthropic or OpenAI API key, and changes are approval-gated and journalled to an audit log before anything is written.
Try it on your own workbook
The 14-day trial is the full product — no card, no feature gates. The fastest way to evaluate HISAB 360 is on a real file from your own month-end.