Did you see this study? If you follow #legaltech in any online sphere, it was ubiquitous.
[pretty infographic here, 40-page PDF – you have to submit your name and email to download it directly from Lawgeex]
Which led to such headlines as:
Being an optimistic contrarian (no, it’s not a thing, I just made it up), I like reading and hearing reasonable, skeptical takes on new technology. Ken Adams, author of A Manual of Style for Contract Drafting, has given some thought to the study and what it purportedly shows. Do note that he’s not against AI software for contract review or drafting.
And fifth, my biggest question about the new crop of “AI” technologies isn’t the technology per se, it’s the humanoid expertise it incorporates. That concern applies to all services that address contract content. I’m toying with the slogan “Editorial expertise is the new black box.” In the case of services that offer contract templates, if I don’t know who prepared a template, I’m not going to trust it. Even if I do know, I’ll be skeptical unless given good reason not to be. Relying on someone’s contract language requires a leap of faith, so I know that I have to not only be an expert but also appear to be an expert. The same goes for services that assist with review.
So, not to take away from LawGeex’s achievement, but thoughtful, non-reflexive discussion and expertise is valuable in discussions of innovation … right?