Expense
Expensing charges AI spend to the P&L in the period it is incurred. It is the default for research under IAS 38, for the preliminary and post-implementation stages under ASC 350-40, and for costs blocked by significant development uncertainty under ASU 2025-06. Once expensed, spend cannot later be reinstated as part of an asset.
When spend must be expensed
EXPENSE Research is expensed under IAS 38; preliminary and post-implementation activities are expensed under ASC 350-40; and any development spend before the recognition tests are met is expensedIAS 38§68.
Why most AI experimentation expenses
Early AI work is exploratory by nature: the entity cannot yet show a feasible, resourced, probably-beneficial asset. Until it can, the default is to expense, which is why a large share of AI programme spend never reaches the balance sheetASC 350-40350-40-25.
Expensed cost cannot be reinstated
Expenditure recognised as an expense in earlier periods cannot be capitalised later, even once the asset qualifies IAS 38§71. This makes the timing of the recognition date consequential: cost incurred before it is permanently in the P&L.
- S1IAS 38 Intangible Assets, IFRS Foundation (IFRS). https://www.ifrs.org/issued-standards/list-of-standards/ias-38-intangible-assets/
- S2Handbook: Software and website costs (ASC 350-40 internal-use software), KPMG (US GAAP). https://kpmg.com/us/en/frv/reference-library/2026/handbook-software-website-costs.html