As the clients of the consulting industry look for insight and guidance on getting the most from AI, a former Accenture and EY executive has launched a new firm to deliver exactly that. Frank O’Dea’s Klarus will aim to help companies with complex AI transformations – with plans to expand through Ireland and beyond.
As results continue to underwhelm on the artificial intelligence, many investors are suddenly looking at substantial AI spending, and wondering when the returns advertised will start to materialise. Recent research shows 61% of leaders now feel more pressure than a year ago to prove ROI from those investments.
Getting AI transformation right has never mattered more – and as firms look for solutions, the consulting industry is pivoting to supply them. To that end, Klarus has become the latest in a succession of new firms, pledging to help clients make the most of the technology.
Based in London, Klarus is a consultancy dedicated to “shift AI from experimental silos to a driver of ROI”, according to a release from the company. Led by Frank O’Dea, former communications technology and media leader of Accenture in the UK, and chief innovation officer of EY in Ireland, the firm will aim to challenge the traditional consultancy ‘pyramid’ model – with a less hierarchical, more agile offering.
Klarus
“With no expensive bench to maintain”, the firm maintains, “there is no pressure to deploy the wrong resource or push one-size-fits-all solutions onto clients”. Instead, Klarus says it will hand-select senior-led talent with deep sector and technology expertise, to staff projects with teams which can deploy “the right solutions for each client”, whether that means “selecting best-in-class tools or building bespoke AI capabilities from the ground up.”
O’Dea, who serves as CEO, explained, “While AI is set to disrupt every business sector and will undoubtedly reveal a vast landscape of new opportunities, most organisations are still struggling to translate its potential into tangible business results. However, the journey to successful AI adoption must be safe, ethical and results-oriented. The senior talent from the Klarus network brings both deep business and AI expertise, ensuring AI is implemented to drive the right outcomes, in the right way and to deliver immediate value.”
Klarus has secured initial funding from a group of investors in a round led by Crownway Investments. The capital will be deployed to scale its expert network and proprietary consulting platform, positioning the business to meet the accelerating demand for outcome-based AI delivery. Putting that backing to work, the firm is already engaged with enterprise and mid-market organisations, including family-owned, private equity-backed and listed companies across industries.
Recent success includes the delivery of a bespoke AI-based invoice processing solution for a client in the hospitality sector, reducing offshore staff costs by 40%. One case this year saw Klarus identify several key levers for AI-driven value, such as increasing management capacity for value-added activities, according to the firm, which it says has driven revenue rises through “better insights; and reducing staff costs via improved forecasting”.
The rise of botiques
For established firms, the challenge will be whether they can adapt their operating models fast enough – or whether the next wave of growth will come from challengers built for the AI era from the outset.
Seeking to make the most of the opportunity to disrupt the sector in the meantime, several boutique consultancies have launched in the growing ‘AI-native’ advisory space.
In early 2026, Lightouch Consulting opened its doors, positioning itself as an alternative to traditional advisory firms, amid what it said was a broader trend towards smaller, specialist consultancies built around AI-enabled delivery, flexible talent models and outcome-focused engagements. In late 2025, Valliance similarly launched, taking aim at a “black hole” in the consulting sector, relating to AI implementation.
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