Businesses deal with large volumes of documents daily, including invoices, contracts, forms, and reports. Manual document processing is time-consuming, error-prone, and inefficient.
By combining AI Builder and Power Automate, organizations can automate document handling, extract key information, and streamline workflows—significantly reducing processing time and human effort.
1. Why Automate Document Processing?
Manually processing documents creates bottlenecks in operations. Automating this process with AI Builder and Power Automate helps businesses:
Save Time – Process documents faster with AI-powered automation.
Reduce Errors – AI minimizes human mistakes in data extraction.
Improve Productivity – Employees can focus on strategic tasks instead of manual data entry.
Enhance Compliance – Automate document storage and tracking for regulatory needs.
Example: A finance department automates invoice processing, reducing approval times from days to hours.
2. How AI Builder and Power Automate Work Together
AI Builder is an AI-powered tool in Microsoft Power Platform that extracts, analyzes, and processes data from documents. When integrated with Power Automate, businesses can automatically trigger actions based on document insights.
AI Builder Capabilities in Document Processing:
- Form Processing – Extracts key data from invoices, receipts, and forms.
- OCR (Optical Character Recognition) – Converts scanned documents into editable text.
- Text Recognition – Extracts specific details from structured or unstructured documents.
- Business Card Reader – Captures contact details and syncs them with CRM.
Example: A company automates employee contract reviews by extracting important clauses and storing them in a database.
3. Step-by-Step: Automating Document Processing with AI Builder and Power Automate
Step 1: Train an AI Model in AI Builder
1️⃣ Open Power Apps and navigate to AI Builder.
2️⃣ Select Form Processing or Document Processing.
3️⃣ Upload sample documents (PDFs, images, or scans).
4️⃣ Train the AI model to recognize fields like invoice numbers, dates, names, and amounts.
5️⃣ Publish the AI model for integration.
Step 2: Create a Power Automate Flow
1️⃣ Open Power Automate and create a new Automated Cloud Flow.
2️⃣ Choose a trigger (e.g., “When a new email arrives with an attachment”).
3️⃣ Add an AI Builder action, selecting the trained model for document processing.
4️⃣ Extract relevant fields (invoice number, total amount, due date, etc.).
5️⃣ Store the extracted data in SharePoint, Dataverse, or an Excel file.
Step 3: Automate Decision Making and Notifications
1️⃣ Add a condition to check document data (e.g., “Is the invoice amount over $10,000?”).
2️⃣ If Yes, trigger an approval request via Microsoft Teams or Outlook.
3️⃣ If No, automatically store the invoice in a database and notify the finance team.
Step 4: Store and Retrieve Processed Documents
1️⃣ Save processed documents in SharePoint, OneDrive, or a document management system.
2️⃣ Use Power Automate to tag, categorize, and archive documents.
3️⃣ Enable search and retrieval for quick access.
Example: A legal firm automates contract processing, categorizing agreements based on client names and expiration dates.
4. Real-World Use Cases of AI Builder in Document Automation
Finance and Accounting
Challenge: Manual invoice approvals slow down payments.
Solution: AI Builder extracts invoice details and routes them for automated approval.
Human Resources (HR)
Challenge: Employee contracts require manual verification.
Solution: AI Builder automatically extracts key clauses and alerts HR for review.
Healthcare Industry
Challenge: Processing patient records takes too long.
Solution: AI Builder digitizes medical records, reducing paperwork.
5. The Future of AI-Powered Document Processing
Upcoming Trends:
Enhanced AI Models – More accurate text and handwriting recognition.
End-to-End Hyperautomation – Integrating RPA, AI, and Power Automate for full workflow automation.
Deeper Integration with Business Applications – Seamless AI-powered document workflows in Dynamics 365, SAP, and third-party apps.
Real-Time AI Decision-Making – AI-powered insights driving automated approvals and escalations.
Businesses that adopt AI-powered document automation today will gain a competitive edge in efficiency and innovation.