Auditor enablement over employment

Laika is building the operating system around the auditor, not trying to become the audit firm itself. That matters because SOC 2 still requires an independent CPA firm, so the winning product is the one that keeps company data, evidence, comments, and testing inside one shared workflow. In practice, Laika sells software that both the company and the outside auditor use, which turns a messy handoff into a repeatable in product process.

• The old model was a heavy service engagement. Companies collected screenshots, filled out spreadsheets, emailed files, and waited on auditors working in separate systems. Laika moves evidence collection and control checks into connected software, then extends that same workspace to the auditor so review happens on top of live system data instead of scattered documents.
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• This is closer to a marketplace plus workflow software model than a vertically integrated service firm. Laika does not carry auditor headcount, but it still captures the center of the process by making auditors use its tooling. That keeps independence with the CPA firm while letting Laika standardize how audits get prepared, reviewed, and completed.
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• The strategic upside is the same pattern seen across Vanta and peers. Compliance platforms win by becoming the shared system of record for customers and audit partners, then layering recurring subscriptions on top of annual recertification, additional frameworks like ISO 27001 and HIPAA, and adjacent security workflows.
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Going forward, the center of gravity in compliance shifts toward the software layer that auditors and customers both live in. That makes auditor enablement, not auditor employment, the stronger position. The platform that owns evidence flow and review workflow can expand from one audit into continuous monitoring, more frameworks, and broader security operations.