Audit season has a reputation for being one of the most stressful periods in any finance team’s year. The weeks leading up to it tend to involve late nights, frantic email chains, and a growing pile of documents that should have been organised months ago.

For many businesses, the experience feels like cramming for an exam they knew was coming but never quite prepared for.

The thing is, most of that stress is avoidable. It doesn’t come from the audit itself. It comes from the systems and processes sitting underneath it, the ones that were never really set up with audit readiness in mind.

The real source of audit stress

When auditors arrive, they need a clear trail of evidence. They want to see how financial decisions were made, who approved what, whether purchases were properly authorised, and whether the numbers in the accounts match the supporting documentation. That’s the job. And when everything is well organised and accessible, audits move quickly and cost less.

The problem is that in many small and mid-sized businesses, that evidence is scattered across inboxes, spreadsheets, shared drives, and sometimes the memory of the person who handled the transaction. Approval records might exist as a forwarded email from six months ago. Purchase orders might have been verbally agreed. Expense claims might have been signed off on paper and then filed in a drawer that nobody has opened since.

Research from Ardent Partners found that organisations without automated processes take an average of 17.4 days to process a single invoice from receipt to payment. When you multiply that kind of lag across hundreds of transactions, you start to see how the documentation trail can become fragmented well before audit season even begins.

Your tech stack is either helping or creating extra work

Most businesses have some form of accounting software in place. That’s a given. But the accounting system itself only tells part of the story. It records transactions after they’ve happened. What it doesn’t always capture is the decision-making process that led to those transactions – who requested the spend, who reviewed it, who gave the go-ahead, and whether it fell within budget.

This is where the broader tech stack matters. The tools that sit around your accounting system, handling approvals, managing purchase orders, routing invoices for review, and capturing supporting documentation, are what determine whether your audit preparation takes days or weeks.

When those tools work well together, the audit trail builds itself as part of everyday operations. Every invoice that gets approved, every purchase order that gets signed off, every expense that gets reviewed leaves behind a clear, searchable record. When audit time comes, you’re not reconstructing the story from fragments. You’re simply sharing what’s already there.

What auditors actually want to see

It helps to think about this from the auditor’s perspective. They’re not trying to catch you out. They’re trying to verify that your financial records are accurate, complete, and supported by proper controls. The easier you make that for them, the faster the audit goes, the fewer follow-up questions come back, and the lower the overall cost.

There are a few things that consistently make auditors’ lives easier:

• A clear record of who approved each financial transaction and when
• Evidence that purchase orders were raised before invoices were paid, not after
• Documentation showing that spending stayed within approved budgets
• An accessible trail of comments, notes, and supporting documents attached to each transaction

None of this is revolutionary. But producing it reliably and consistently is where most businesses struggle, especially when the process for capturing it is manual or informal.

Building audit readiness into daily operations

The most audit-ready businesses aren’t the ones that scramble to prepare in the weeks before auditors arrive. They’re the ones where preparation happens automatically as part of how the business runs day to day.

This is the shift that makes the biggest difference. Instead of treating audit readiness as an annual project, it becomes a byproduct of good financial processes. When your accounts payable automation captures every step from invoice receipt to approval to payment, and when your approval workflows log every decision with timestamps, comments, and the identity of each approver, you’re building your audit file continuously without anyone having to think about it.

The UK’s accounting and auditing industry is valued at £8.8 billion as of 2024, and audit fees have been rising steadily. For SMEs, where every pound spent on professional services matters, reducing the time your auditors need to spend requesting and verifying information can have a direct and meaningful impact on the final bill. Auditors typically price by time, so anything that reduces the hours they spend chasing documentation is money back in your pocket.

The controls gap that catches businesses out

Beyond documentation, auditors also look at internal controls. They want to understand whether your business has proper checks in place to prevent errors and fraud. This is where businesses that rely on informal processes tend to get caught out.

If a single person can raise a purchase order, approve the invoice, and process the payment without any oversight, that’s a control weakness. If there’s no systematic way to check whether an invoice matches the original order, that’s another one. These gaps don’t just create audit findings – they create real financial risk for the business.

Building strong financial controls into your tech stack means that these checks happen automatically. Purchase orders route to the right approver based on value and department. Invoices get matched against the original PO before they can be paid. Budget limits trigger alerts before they’re exceeded rather than showing up as a surprise at month end. And all of it gets logged in a central audit trail that’s ready for review at any time.

The human side of audit readiness

There’s a people element here that’s worth acknowledging. Finance teams that spend weeks preparing for audits are finance teams that aren’t doing higher-value work during that time. They’re not analysing trends, managing cash flow, or supporting business decisions. They’re digging through filing cabinets and chasing colleagues for documentation.

That’s a poor use of skilled people’s time, and over the long term it contributes to burnout, frustration, and turnover in finance roles. A tech stack that handles the documentation and controls automatically gives those people their time back, not just during audit season but throughout the year.

Final word

If audit season still feels like a fire drill in your business, the issue probably isn’t your finance team’s effort or your auditor’s expectations. It’s the gap between how your daily financial processes run and what your auditors need to see at year end.

Here’s what to check right now. First, look at whether your current systems capture a complete approval trail for every invoice, purchase order, and expense claim, or whether you’re relying on emails and verbal sign-offs that will be difficult to produce later. Second, review whether your internal controls are built into your systems or whether they depend on individuals remembering to follow the right steps. Third, ask your team how much time they spent preparing for the last audit and where the biggest delays came from.

Those answers will tell you exactly where your tech stack is working for you and where it’s creating extra work. Closing that gap is one of the most practical things any business owner can do to reduce audit stress, lower audit costs, and give their finance team the space to focus on what actually matters.

Hatu Sheikh is a Web3 entrepreneur and serial founder, who has worked with some of the most exciting and fastest growing companies and businesses in Web3.

In a world where crypto projects rise and fall overnight, few figures have demonstrated the kind of consistent, long-term vision that Hatu Sheikh has brought to the Web3 industry.

From his early days researching crowdfunding economics at Stony Brook University to co-founding DAO Maker and building CoinTerminal from the ground up, Sheikh has always had an appetite for digital growth.

The Strong Holder Offering at DAO Maker, the open-access model at CoinTerminal, and his advisory work across some of Web3’s most recognised projects are all expressions of Hatu Sheikh’s same core belief: that decentralised finance should be genuinely decentralised.

Innovation, Foresight And Logic: The Hatu Sheikh Way

Hatu Sheikh’s decision to base his work in Dubai predates the city’s recent rise as a Web3 hub. He has continued to invest in Dubai too, with Hatu Sheikh leading the initiative on the development of Dubai Fintech District, a large project in Dubai, establishing financial innovation and infrastructure in the world-leading hub that is Dubai.

The appeal was primarily practical; access to a young, multilingual talent pool, clearer regulatory frameworks and early engagement from public institutions made the region attractive for long-term building.

Since his days in education, Sheikh has maintained a high degree of logic, efficiency and strategicness that serves him and his ventures to this day. These are traits which have positioned him as a trusted and respected authority in Web3, crypto and business.

When Did Hatu Sheikh First Get Involved in Crypto?

The journey of Hatu Sheikh into the world of crypto did not happen overnight. His path into the industry was shaped by years of academic research and a growing fascination with how capital moves on the internet, and, more importantly, who benefits from it.

It wasn’t until 2018 that Hatu Sheikh made his move into the blockchain and crypto industry. His initial involvement centred on helping projects improve their brand representation and token economies, as well as bootstrapping funds through private sales and ICOs.

However, the foundations for this transition were laid much earlier. For more than a decade, Hatu’s thinking had been shaped by a consistent question: how does capital move on the internet, and who ultimately benefits from that movement?

That question first emerged through Sheikh’s academic research into crowdfunding, where he examined how early contributors often carried significant risk without sharing proportionally in the value created later.

The Impressive Educational Background Of Hatu Sheikh

Hassan Hatu Sheikh completed his studies at Stony Brook University, earning a Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics, Economics, and Business. In 2017, he received the award for “Most Outstanding Student in Finance.” His scholarly work on crowdfunding optimisation pinpointed the empirical data points that enhance startup marketing expenditures.

Hassan Hatu Sheikh co-founded DAO Maker in 2018, which is an on-chain fundraising platform boasting more than 315,000 users verified through KYC. The platform was the first to introduce the Strong Holder Offering framework, which rewards long-term commitment based on on-chain behaviour rather than first-come-first-served mechanics that favour bots and insiders, as designed by Hassan Hatu Sheikh himself.

Which Crypto Projects Has Hatu Sheikh Advised?

Hatu Sheikh, a well-known personality within the blockchain industry and one of the founders of DAO Maker, has provided guidance to numerous crypto initiatives, with an emphasis on tokenisation tactics, marketing efforts, and growth of launchpads.

Hatu Sheikh has advised or held leadership roles in the following projects:

• Polkastarter: Acted as a marketing advisor, offering strategic counsel on initial market positioning and financial viability.
• Inspect (NFT Inspect): Took on the role of Strategic Advisor to help with tokenisation strategies and expansion in the AI/NFT data analytics sector.
• GameFi: Served as an advisor on product strategy and token design to assist with platform growth and link his network to the gaming aggregator.

Hatu Sheikh And The Journey To Success

Hatu Sheikh is one of the most recognised and influential figures in the Web3 industry.

From co-founding one of crypto’s most successful launchpads to building a platform that is redefining how retail investors access early-stage projects, Hatu’s journey is one of commitment to making decentralised finance fairer, more accessible and more trusted for everyone.

Established Experience in Web3

Hatu Sheikh has been active in Web3 since 2017, advising dozens of teams and seed-investing in over 100 projects. He is also a trusted advisor to numerous projects and his experience, track record and expertise are coveted and required by a number of companies operating in Web3, crypto and further afield.

Co-Founder Of DAO Maker: Hatu Sheikh’s Innovation

Hatu Sheikh co-founded DAO Maker, the leader in governance technology, data-supported startup funding and institutional on-chain products. It is this knowledge and experience, in part, that Sheikh carries forward and helps other founders and entrepreneurs as well as businesses with.

To date, DAO Maker has registered over $90 million in total amount raised, with more than $2 billion in total FDV, catering to 315,000 KYCed users and serving 1.1 million wallets.

Founder Of CoinTerminal

Hatu Sheikh is the founder of CoinTerminal, a platform that positions itself as Web3’s most liquid primary market. A crypto launchpad and IDO platform, CoinTerminal offers opportunities to buy in pre-sales alongside investors like Binance Labs, Samsung NEXT and Arthur Hayes.

It is large and established companies in the Web3 and crypto spaces like these, who trust Hatu Sheikh with core parts of their growth. It is with trustworthiness and efficiency that Shaikh continues to operate in his field.

What Makes CoinTerminal Different?

CoinTerminal, founded by Hatu Sheikh, became the first truly open-access launchpad in the industry, eliminating token staking requirements that had previously gated participation.

Users could participate without holding native tokens and were only charged when they generated profit. This is something very important to Hatu, who has built multiple relationships within the Web3 and crypto spaces over the years which remain to this day.

How Hatu Sheikh Has Influenced the Crypto Launchpad Industry

Hatu Sheikh has had a profound and lasting impact on the crypto launchpad industry, consistently pushing it toward fairer, more sustainable and more accessible models. At DAO Maker, his Strong Holder Offering framework emphasised commitment over speculation and went on to influence how later launchpads approached fundraising design, a concept that was novel at the time and that many platforms have since sought to replicate.

When the 2022 bear market hit, and approximately 60% of launchpads from that era either shut down entirely or became inactive zombie platforms, the financial discipline and frameworks Sheikh had developed and pivoted, helping DAO Maker survive while competitors collapsed.

Hatu Sheikh’s influence reached even further with the founding of CoinTerminal, the world’s only free-access cryptocurrency launchpad. Hatu has grown this venture to over 620,000 users and facilitated over $80 million in token distribution by removing token gating, eliminating staking requirements and introducing refundable sales, fundamentally changing what retail investors could expect from a launchpad.

Newly released documents from Epstein’s estate and congressional records reveal extensive communications between bestselling author and wellness advocate Deepak Chopra and the late financier Jeffrey Epstein, showing a friendship that continued for years after Epstein’s 2008 conviction for soliciting prostitution from a minor.

The files, part of more than 3 million pages unsealed in late January 2026 under the Epstein Files Transparency Act, include hundreds of emails and text messages between Chopra and Epstein from 2016 through 2019. A CNN review published Feb. 23 highlighted the depth of their relationship, describing frequent contact via email, text and in-person meetings, even as Epstein faced renewed scrutiny for sex-trafficking allegations.

Chopra, an Indian-American author of more than 90 books on spirituality, alternative medicine and mindfulness, initially distanced himself from Epstein following the financier’s 2019 arrest and death. In a February statement on social media, Chopra described any contact as “limited” and said he was “deeply saddened by the suffering of the victims in this case.” He added that some exchanges reflected “poor judgment in tone” but denied any involvement in criminal or exploitative activities.

The correspondence paints a picture of a casual yet intimate rapport. In one February 2017 email, Chopra invited Epstein to join him on a trip to Israel, writing, “Come to Israel with us. Relax and have fun with interesting people. [If] you want use a fake name. Bring your girls. It will be fun to have you. Love.” The invitation came nearly a decade after Epstein’s guilty plea in Florida.

Other messages show discussions on philosophical topics like consciousness, God and human biology — with Chopra once declaring “God is a construct” and “cute girls are real” — interspersed with more mundane exchanges about finances, social events and travel. Epstein sought Chopra’s input on various matters, and Chopra reportedly followed Epstein’s legal developments closely, responding positively when charges were dropped in some cases.

In additional exchanges detailed in reports from Voice of San Diego and other outlets, Epstein offered to send “two girls” to one of Chopra’s events, an offer Chopra accepted. Another message from Epstein reportedly praised Chopra for “zero[ing] in on your prey.” The documents also link Chopra to Epstein’s funding of research at the University of California, San Diego’s Center for Brain and Cognition, where Epstein routed $25,000 through his Gratitude America foundation following an introduction from Chopra.

The revelations have drawn renewed attention to Epstein’s ability to maintain connections with prominent figures in entertainment, academia and wellness circles long after his initial conviction. Epstein cultivated relationships with intellectuals, scientists and celebrities, often using his wealth and access to broker introductions and opportunities.

Chopra, who has positioned himself as a leading voice in holistic health and meditation, has faced backlash from some followers and critics. Social media posts and articles have expressed disappointment, with one Instagram user describing feeling “betrayed” by the associations. Chopra has not issued further public comments beyond his initial statement as of Feb. 23.

The Justice Department’s massive document release, which began in late January, has exposed links involving dozens of high-profile individuals across politics, business and culture. While many names appear in passing or in non-incriminating contexts, the volume of material has fueled ongoing public interest and calls for accountability. No new criminal charges have stemmed directly from the files for most mentioned figures, including Chopra, whose communications do not allege participation in Epstein’s crimes.

Epstein died by suicide in a Manhattan jail cell in August 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex-trafficking charges. His associate Ghislaine Maxwell was convicted in 2021 of related offenses and is serving a 20-year sentence.

Analysts say the files underscore how Epstein rebuilt his social network post-conviction, leveraging personal relationships to sustain influence. For Chopra, the disclosures complicate his public image as a spiritual guide promoting transcendence and well-being. The wellness industry, including brands associated with Chopra such as Augustinus Bader cosmetics, has seen some reputational fallout, with reports noting potential impacts on partnerships.

As scrutiny continues, experts emphasize that appearing in the Epstein files does not equate to wrongdoing. Many contacts were professional or social, and redactions in the documents protect sensitive information. Chopra has expressed willingness to cooperate with authorities if needed, stating he hopes “all of the truth comes out after ongoing and proper investigations.”

The release continues to ripple through public discourse, with media outlets combing through the trove for additional insights into Epstein’s network. For now, the detailed portrait of Chopra’s interactions stands as one of the more prominent examples from the latest batch of unsealed records.

Most of the people who become building inspectors don’t do it for the applause. The job is, for the most part, quiet, technical, and even thankless. This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t put in the work to stand out, since the consequences of doing it well, or even badly, ripple outwards for decades.

And while you want every job you do to be based on safety, trust, and long-term value, you also want to understand what it takes to grow in this field. Here’s what you should know about that.

What Does the Career Progression Look Like?

One of the most vital pieces of information you will need to help you grow in this career is what the journey looks like. This way, you can trace where you are on the map and forge the best path to where you want to be. In most cases, growing in this career requires you to balance between taking your building inspector Continuing Education (CE) course and gaining hands-on experience.

Here’s a closer look at what the journey looks like.

• Junior Building Inspector (0-2 yrs): At this level, you should aim to learn as much as you can about site safety, code enforcement, and blueprint reading. It’s best to work under supervision so that you can get guidance and assistance when needed.
• Building Inspector (2-5 yrs): Working as a building inspector means you are coordinating with contractors and architects, ensuring compliance with regulations, taking responsibility for project inspections, and also working on your communication and problem-solving skills.
• Senior Building Inspector (5-8 yrs): When you get to this level, you will be responsible for leading complex inspections, handling quality assurance and risk management tasks, and mentoring junior inspectors. Expect to manage multiple projects at the same time.
• Lead or Principal Building Inspector (8+ years): Rising to this level is a great achievement in your career. It, however, comes with more challenging responsibilities, such as shaping inspection program strategies, promoting organisational adherence to updated safety codes, and creating policies. With this title, you can easily pivot into different roles, such as Quality Control or Construction Manager.

Depending on your interests and external factors like demand, you can also focus a lot more on specialisations and lateral moves. A good example of this is pursuing inspections focused on plumbing, electrical, structural, or environmental fields. This way, you can always transition into fields like code enforcement, plan review, or consulting roles.

Quick Tips for Continuous Growth

It’s quite easy to progress in the building inspection field, as long as you apply deliberate effort. Here are some tips to help you with that.

1. Invest in Continuing Education (CE)

Even though continuing education isn’t always enjoyable or easy to complete, especially with a busy schedule, it goes a long way in helping you learn more about the latest building codes and inspection techniques. In addition to state-mandated CE courses, you should also take certifications from reputable organisations like the International Code Council (ICC) to boost your chances of qualifying for advanced positions.

2. Seek Mentorship

Your textbooks and courses will certainly provide valuable knowledge and best practices, but none of it will ever get close to the practical skills and career advice that you can get from established building inspectors. So, make sure that you have mentors who help you navigate challenges and open doors within the industry.

3. Network As Much As You Can

This is one of the industries where your network really determines your worth. So, make sure to connect with industry professionals by attending conferences and joining associations like the International Association of Certified Home Inspectors or the ICC. Such groups will give you even greater access to top conferences, specialised workforces, and high-value job leads that will significantly optimise your career trajectory.

4. Specialise

This tip isn’t mentioned enough, but it works great if you want to advance in this industry. Focusing on niche areas like code enforcement or commercial property inspections gives you the power you need to differentiate yourself. When you specialise, you can easily handle more complex assignments and position yourself as an expert in the highly sought-after areas.

Join the Winning Team Today

Becoming a building inspector offers you amazing job stability in an industry that’s constantly in demand. You, however, are the one to choose what your trajectory will be like. By investing in inputs that help you grow, you can take advantage of an even greater demand and a more rewarding market.

So, what is it going to be? Will you head over to rocketcert.com today to boost your knowledge as the first step, or will you keep procrastinating until the competition is uncomfortably high?

A ferocious nor’easter pounded Massachusetts on Monday, February 23, 2026, dumping heavy, wet snow and unleashing damaging winds that toppled trees, snapped power lines and plunged more than 210,000 customers into darkness across the state.

The storm, which intensified overnight and peaked during the morning hours, triggered widespread power outages, blizzard conditions in many areas and treacherous travel that officials described as nearly impossible. The Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) reported escalating outages throughout the day, with figures climbing rapidly as wind gusts exceeded 70 mph in southeastern regions and snow accumulated at rates of 2 to 3 inches per hour in parts of the state.

By mid-afternoon, PowerOutage.us and utility reports showed Massachusetts leading the Northeast with around 181,000 to over 210,000 affected customers, part of a regional total exceeding 511,000 outages stretching from New Jersey to New England. Eversource Energy, the state’s largest utility, reported more than 135,000 of its customers without power at one point, while National Grid cited tens of thousands more in its service areas. Cape Cod and southeastern Massachusetts bore the brunt, with Barnstable County seeing over a quarter of customers impacted and towns like Plymouth reporting nearly 10,000 outages.

The nor’easter arrived Sunday night after days of forecasts warning of its potential historic impacts. A blizzard warning remained in effect for eastern, central and southern Massachusetts until 7 a.m. Tuesday, covering areas from Greater Boston to the Cape and Islands. The National Weather Service in Boston highlighted the dangerous combination of heavy, wet snow — up to 18 to 24 inches in many spots — and sustained winds that created whiteout conditions, reduced visibility to a quarter-mile or less and posed life-threatening risks for anyone venturing out.

Governor Maura Healey declared a state of emergency effective Sunday evening through early Tuesday, urging residents to stay home and avoid unnecessary travel. “This is a high-impact storm with blizzard conditions, and power outages will be likely,” Healey said in pre-storm briefings. Officials mobilized resources early, staging hundreds of utility crews and emergency personnel, but restoration efforts faced severe constraints: bucket trucks and line workers can only operate safely when winds drop below 35 mph, delaying repairs in the hardest-hit zones.

Utility spokespeople warned that some outages could persist for days. Eversource estimated potential restoration times of three to five days in severely affected areas, while National Grid emphasized the challenges posed by fallen trees entangling lines amid ongoing snowfall and gusts. Customers were advised to report outages directly to their providers — Eversource at 1-800-592-2000 or online, National Grid at 1-800-322-3223 — and to sign up for alerts. Both companies urged residents to charge devices, prepare emergency kits and never approach downed wires.

The storm’s ferocity stemmed from its rapid intensification, with barometric pressure dropping sharply to create bomb cyclone characteristics. Wind gusts reached 70 mph or higher along the coast, contributing to coastal flooding risks in low-lying areas. Snow fell heaviest in southeastern Massachusetts, where blizzard conditions were most pronounced, while inland areas saw accumulations closer to 12 to 18 inches.

Travel ground to a halt across the region. State police and transportation officials restricted non-essential driving, with similar measures in neighboring states like Rhode Island and New Jersey. Airports faced widespread cancellations, and public transit services suspended or limited operations. Schools and non-essential businesses remained closed, with many communities activating warming centers for those without power.

The outages compounded safety concerns, as residents relied on generators — with warnings to operate them outdoors to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning — or sought shelter elsewhere. MEMA directed those without electricity to call 211 for warming center locations.

Meteorologists noted the storm’s wet, heavy snow as a key factor in the outages. Accumulating on trees and power lines already stressed by wind, it created widespread structural failures. Forecasters predicted the worst conditions through midday Monday, with winds easing and snow tapering by evening, leading to partial clearing Tuesday with temperatures near freezing.

This nor’easter follows an active winter pattern for Massachusetts, which had already seen significant snowfall earlier in the season. The state recorded 43.3 inches seasonally before this event, and totals from the storm could push many areas well above average.

As crews worked amid hazardous conditions, officials reiterated calls for patience and safety. “Our focus is public safety and stabilizing the system as conditions allow,” said Eversource spokesperson Olessa Stepanova. Restoration priorities target critical infrastructure like hospitals and emergency services first.

The storm’s regional scope left neighboring states similarly battered: New Jersey reported over 129,000 outages, Delaware nearly 72,000 and others in the tens of thousands. The Northeast’s power grid faced one of its most severe tests of the season, underscoring vulnerabilities to extreme winter weather amplified by heavy precipitation and wind.

Residents were urged to monitor updates from MEMA, local authorities and utilities as the storm slowly moved offshore. With sunshine forecast for Tuesday, melting could begin, but lingering outages and potential refreezing posed ongoing risks.

Fans eagerly awaiting a follow-up to the blockbuster animated musical KPop Demon Hunters will likely need patience, as co-director Maggie Kang has confirmed a “long wait” for any potential sequel due to the extended production demands of high-quality animation.

In a recent Bloomberg interview published Feb. 19, 2026, Kang addressed the future of the Netflix hit, which shattered streaming records upon its June 2025 release and became the platform’s most-watched animated film ever. While she stopped short of official confirmation, Kang acknowledged the strong demand for more stories featuring the demon-slaying K-pop girl group HUNTR/X — Rumi, Mira and Zoey.

“I can’t really say that officially, but in a world that loves sequels, I don’t think it’s a surprise that something else could be coming,” Kang told interviewer Mishal Husain. “But it’s going to be a long wait unfortunately, because animation takes a long time.”

The comment tempers earlier optimism around a quicker turnaround. Reports from late 2025 indicated Sony Pictures Animation and Netflix had agreed to develop a sequel targeting a 2029 release, roughly four years after the original’s debut. However, recent statements from Sony executives, including Animation President Kristine Belson, have downplayed that timeline as overly ambitious.

In interviews with outlets like IGN and The Hollywood Reporter, Belson emphasized the intense workload facing animation studios, including commitments to other projects and the meticulous process required for feature-length animated films. “There’s been a lot to tend to,” Belson noted, suggesting 2029 might prove unrealistic given current priorities and the labor-intensive nature of the medium.

Kang’s update arrives as KPop Demon Hunters continues its award-season momentum. The film, co-directed by Kang and Chris Appelhans, earned nominations and wins at events like the 2026 Annie Awards, where it dominated categories for character animation, music and direction. Its blend of K-pop energy, supernatural action and cultural representation resonated globally, spawning fan communities, viral edits and live performances by the voice cast portraying HUNTR/X.

The original story followed the trio balancing idol fame with secret battles against demons threatening the world, voiced by talents including Ejae, Audrey Nuna, Rei Ami and others, with Lee Byung-hun as the villainous Gwi-ma. Kang has previously teased untapped potential in character backstories and expanded lore, including side stories cut from the first film and possibilities for global demon-hunting adventures beyond Korea.

In a Collider interview following an FYC screening, Kang and Appelhans described their vision for a sequel as “bolder and bigger,” promising heightened stakes, deeper emotional layers and boundary-pushing elements. “We’re up for the challenge,” Kang said, hinting at darker, more ambitious storytelling while maintaining the humor, heart and musical spectacle that defined the original.

Despite the enthusiasm, the animation pipeline remains a significant hurdle. Feature animation often spans four to six years from concept to completion, involving storyboarding, voice recording, intricate character design, complex effects for demon battles and music production. The success of KPop Demon Hunters has only intensified expectations, but Kang stressed the importance of quality over speed.

“Animation just takes a long time,” she reiterated in the Bloomberg piece, echoing industry-wide realities amid staffing shortages and rising production costs. Sony Pictures Animation, which developed the film before its Netflix deal, continues negotiations for the follow-up, with Kang and Appelhans expected to return if talks progress.

Fan reactions have been mixed. Social media buzz reflects excitement tempered by disappointment over the delay, with some expressing concern that a prolonged wait could diminish momentum for the franchise. Others praised Kang’s candor and commitment to delivering a worthy successor rather than rushing production.

The film’s cultural impact extends beyond streaming metrics. It introduced broader audiences to K-pop elements while celebrating Korean heritage through storytelling, music and visuals. Kang, a Korean-Canadian filmmaker, has spoken about creating the project for her younger self, emphasizing representation and empowerment for young viewers.

As award season continues — with potential Oscar buzz lingering — attention shifts to how Sony and Netflix navigate the sequel’s development. No official greenlight or detailed timeline has been announced beyond Kang’s tempered outlook.

For now, fans can revisit the original on Netflix, stream the soundtrack topping charts or engage with fan creations. Kang expressed gratitude for the support, noting the “whirlwind” response has been overwhelming yet grounding.

While a sequel appears inevitable given the film’s unprecedented success, the road ahead underscores the patience required in animation. As Kang put it, the wait may be long, but the promise of bolder adventures could make it worthwhile.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-tdLYsc-KBY