Feeling ‘Disruptive’ After LegalTech New York

Artificial Intelligence and other emerging trends in legal

LegalWeek NY 2017 – Photo: Carmen Natale/ALM

As we arrived at LegalTech New York for the first time ever we really didn’t know what to expect. Our first experience was with the opening day keynote speech by celebrated author and MIT scientist Andrew McAfee. Although his speech had nothing to do with the legal vertical, it had everything to do with what legal needs, “disrupters.” He called them, “evidence driven, outward-looking platform builders with geeky leadership.” I thought to myself, okay, I’m going to like it here.

We here at Helm360 embrace this “disrupter” approach with the innovative product improvements we’ve been making over the last several months. We’ve listened to our customers, we’ve run the numbers and we’ve improved our technology; all on the shoulders of our leaders, some geekier than others.

If you had a chance to stop by our booth you would’ve learned a bit about what to expect from Helm360 in the coming months, but I can tell you now it is based on one of the hottest topics of this year’s show, Artificial Intelligence (AI). You couldn’t turn a corner, enter a session or have a coffee without someone mentioning AI.

AI took the keynote stage on the last day of the show with respected panelists all agreeing, AI is still in development. Although still in the early stages, the impending breakthrough AI may have on our lives is generating anxiety in the field. Many are fearful for their jobs, or their inability to understand the technology. Panelist, Natalie Pierce, co-chair of Littler Mendelson’s robotics, AI and automation industry group, cautions us all, “to not use the technology available, that’s how lawyers and all other occupations are going to be left behind.”

Many fear what they don’t understand, but we all need to understand that the business of legal is changing. Bottom lines matter, and whatever you can do to make your business more profitable will be something you must embrace or you will be as Pierce stated, “left behind.”

-Yanna Constantinou, Helm360