About Us

About Us

About Us

We're giving a billion hours back to tax professionals

Our Mission

Clients aren’t asking for data entry
And yet, that’s exactly how most tax professionals spend their busiest season—digging through PDFs, scanning W-2s and 1099s, and typing the same data over and over into outdated tax software. It’s mind-numbing work, and it’s not what clients are really paying for.

Technology was supposed to help. But most tools just moved the paper mess onto a screen. Document portals didn’t reduce the paperwork. OCR never really understood tax forms. And AI? Until recently, it wasn’t accurate or reliable enough to trust with real client data.

Magnetic is changing that.
We’re building the first AI tax preparer - a system that can do tax prep end-to-end just like a human can. By combining the latest vision-language models with deep knowledge of how tax documents actually work, we automate data entry of client documents—accurately, securely, and at scale.

Our name, Magnetic, is a nod to the magnetic ink (MICR tape), a technology developed in the 1950’s to automatically read and process bank cheques. As one of humanity’s first attempts at the dream of paperwork automation, it’s a reminder that machines should take care of the repetitive stuff so people can focus on what really matters.

And right now, the profession needs that more than ever.
There’s a serious shortage of qualified tax professionals. Fewer people are entering the field, and many experienced preparers are retiring. Meanwhile, demand is higher than ever. Firms are overwhelmed. Calls go unanswered. Good clients are being turned away - not because the work is too complex, but because there's just no time to get to it.

This is a moment of real opportunity. The future of tax isn’t about automating everything, it’s about giving professionals the tools to do more of the work that matters. Strategic advice. Long-term planning. Building real relationships.

That’s what we’re building Magnetic for: to help tax professionals focus on what really matters

Team background

The People Behind the Magic

Our founding team began working together studying the bleeding edge of AI and OCR. Together, we've built software that has been used by millions of people and processed tens of thousands of tax returns. We also like to have fun sometimes.

Thomas Shelley

Founder & CEO

Thomas Shelley

Founder & CEO

Thomas Shelley

Founder & CEO

Patrick Fay

Founder & CTO

Patrick Fay

Founder & CTO

Patrick Fay

Founder & CTO

Charisse Yeh

Lead Designer

Charisse Yeh

Lead Designer

Charisse Yeh

Lead Designer

Spencer Whitman

AI Advisor

Spencer Whitman

AI Advisor

Spencer Whitman

AI Advisor

David Kang

Tax Advisor

David Kang

Tax Advisor

David Kang

Tax Advisor

Nathan Hefner

Technology Advisor

Nathan Hefner

Technology Advisor

Nathan Hefner

Technology Advisor

Join our team

Join our team

Join our team

Open positions

If you’re driven by creativity, love challenges, and are ready to make an impact, we’d love to have you on board.