It is excessively rare to see computer science make a substantial dent in another white-collar field. That is because mastering computer science and all of its attendant sub-disciplines – programming, data architecture, user interface design – is a daunting challenge that takes up most of a lifetime. Similarly, other scientific fields also require a lifetime to master. The result is that the event of someone happening to possess both extensive computer insight and significant knowledge in another field is a staggering rarity.
The legal profession is one such case. The legal industry, with a history going back as long as civilization, has traditionally been slow to adapt to new technology. Likewise, very little software produced in Silicon Valley is particularly helpful to lawyers, since it’s a specialized field with its own unique challenges. But legal professionals have gotten a major boon to productivity in the last couple of years, and it’s been thanks to the rare collaboration of graduates from both Harvard Law and MIT.
Evisort has been that rare innovation that inspires both the legal and computing fields. It represents a bridge between new methods in artificial intelligence and cloud storage with office automation. It’s also the sort of thing that used to be the sole domain of science fiction, but now captures the imagination of new students seeking AI careers – a computer that can “read.” So to speak…
Evisort is a contract management platform for the legal profession.
Anyone who has used a search engine is familiar with how computers can quickly scan reams of documents for raw text. But “understanding” that text in context has evaded the artificial intelligence field until the advent of deep learning algorithms, which can be trained via mere exposure to bulk data to semantically parse contracts for key terms. The Evisort system does just this, and mines the data into an easily accessed database that can quickly identify provisions within each contract, such as named parties, dates, dollar amounts, forfeiture terms, and other key data points.
This is possible because the legal contract language is a very precise and predictable linguistic system. The mechanics of business law are repeated in tens of thousands of contracts that form the strata of modern business agreements. Evisort’s system has been trained by this massive data pool and functions as a virtual paralegal, able to pull up dozens of documents and collate their key terms into charts and lists, 24/7. Moreover, it’s a virtual paralegal with total recall who never makes mistakes. What would have been weeks of research can be done in minutes, saving millions of dollars collectively for legal departments.
Evisort is riding the wave of an AI revolution we’ve all been waiting for.
Evisort’s story has been one of a meteoric rise. With enthusiastic interviews everywhere from Forbes magazine to Harvard Law Review, the Evisort team has spread its message of easy cloud-based, AI-assisted, legal contract access. The company also landed rounds of investor funding to the tune of $4.5 million and counting, from the likes of Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos. This was only the first round, as more investors have been drawn to it since.
Since then, the company has expanded to offices in both Boston and Silicon Valley, doubling its company size several times in the past year. They’re still expanding, as evidenced by their new website at Evisort Careers. They’re currently hiring experts in engineering, data science, sales, customer service, and more. They also continue to snap up Silicon Valley elites as they migrate in from other industries, attracting some of the top talents in the field.
Evisort’s clients include Fortune 500 companies, Am Law 100 firms, legal departments of every size from every industry, hot tech startups, and even the entertainment field. As founder Jerry Ting mentions, this is a product that every legal professional wants. When they see a demo of how this software can crack a 30-page document in seconds, they ask themselves “Why have I spent ten years of my life doing this manually?”
Meanwhile, the corporate culture brings back memories of the San Francisco dot-com boom. With the call of “let’s create amazing AI together,” they offer benefits such as unlimited PTO, gym memberships, catered meals, and full medical. It may be a cliché to call the climate that of a home for “rock star” developers, but the AI field hasn’t seen a revolution like this in a long time.
