Law firms are increasingly hiring staff with technology backgrounds to help them stand out from their rivals. The revolution in generative AI and machine learning has accelerated the legal industry’s search for more effective technology. ChatGPT, owned by OpenAI, is a widely-accessible technology that is particularly suited to time-consuming legal work. Allen & Overy and other Magic Circle firms have already announced chatbot initiatives, and other firms are piloting legal AI ‘assistants’. Weightmans and Travers Smith have hired software engineers to build customized AI models.
