Stout Acquires Flightline to Advance Its AI Strategy

Acquisition builds on more than 12+ months of co-development and brings agentic AI technology and expertise into Stout

CHICAGO, Oct. 13, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Stout announced the acquisition of Flightline, an agentic AI company that collaborated with Stout for more than 12+ months to develop AI-enabled workflows for complex professional services. The acquisition brings Flightline's technology and AI engineering expertise into Stout as the firm builds an AI-enabled workbench around how its professionals perform research, analyze information, and advise clients.

Stout and Flightline have developed the technology inside real client workflows, giving the teams a practical way to test how agentic AI can augment their work. The broader objective is to build AI into the way that Stout professionals work, creating more capacity to spend time on and go deeper into the questions that require experience, judgment, and client interaction, and to bring greater depth of analysis and insight to client work.

"We are investing significantly in AI because we believe it improves the quality and speed of the work we deliver to our clients by allowing teams to analyze more information, identify insights faster, and spend more time on the areas where our expertise and judgment have the greatest impact," said Cory Thompson, Co-Chief Client Service Officer at Stout. "We are applying AI and technology-enabled workflows in real client situations to improve outcomes for our clients."

Flightline's agentic technology breaks complex work into structured workflows that can support research, analysis, and the development of evidence-backed conclusions. Stout professionals continue to direct the work and remain accountable for the advice delivered to clients. Over time, Stout plans to use what it learns from these workflows to inform applications across its advisory work.

"Our goal has been to bring the lab to the field," said Stuart Ferguson, President of Stout Strategy. "The value of AI in professional services becomes clear when it is used in real workflows. Putting Flightline in the hands of our practitioners gives us a direct feedback loop between our professionals and technology to shape the AI-enabled workbench that will support how our people work in the future."

Commercial diligence has served as an early proving ground for Flightline, drawing on Stout Strategy's experience across more than 1,000 buy-side diligence engagements. The lessons that Stout gathered from that work are helping shape a broader AI-enabled workbench designed to support how its professionals move from information to insight while preserving the judgment and accountability that clients expect.

"We built Flightline so professionals and AI agents can collaborate, delivering consistent quality and greater efficiency in every engagement," said David DeMasi, Head of AI in Stout Strategy. "But the final deliverable is only as good as the data and the team that drives it. This acquisition accelerates our vision by connecting the technology directly with Stout's institutional knowledge and high-caliber professionals."

Learn more about Flightline and its role at Stout.

About Stout

Stout is a global advisory firm delivering clarity and confidence in high-stakes financial, operational, and strategic situations. 

We combine financial expertise with data-driven insights to produce work that is timely, defensible, and built to withstand scrutiny. Our approach is practical and grounded in real-world experience. We bring expertise without complexity, making us a trusted partner that is both rigorous and easy to work with. 

Discover how Relentless Excellence® drives everything we do at stout.com.

About Flightline

Flightline, now part of Stout, is an agentic AI company that helps professionals deliver consistent, high-quality work on complex advisory engagements.

Our technology coordinates AI agents that conduct research and analysis, drawing on internal and external data sources. Structured workflows and independent scoring hold each output to defined quality standards. Professionals use the platform to drive their work and exercise final judgment. Our team combines decades of experience in private equity investing, strategy consulting, and AI engineering.

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SOURCE Stout