ABA – Stepehen Embry: “I often hear from lawyers and legal professionals from small or solo firms about cost concerns when it comes to the use of AI, particularly for legal research. They worry about being left behind and being placed at a competitive disadvantage compared to large firms with sophisticated tools. They are literally begging for low-cost alternatives. And it’s a fair concern: I have heard more than one high-priced vendor scoff at any notion that their tools are too expensive for many legal professionals, suggesting either they are tone deaf or not very concerned with this market. Enter Descrybe. I came across Descrybe a few months ago. It provides an AI-powered legal research platform with the stated goal of democratizing access to legal information. Many of its features are free.  Descrybe’s tools utilize generative AI to summarize over 3.6 million judicial opinions and other materials from sources including the Harvard Caselaw Access Project. It makes these sources searchable and understandable for users. It recently began offering a more robust version described as “not free but close”. Descrybe was launched in 2023 by Kara Peterson and Richard DiBona. The tools have had several updates since then. (Kara was also named an ABA Woman of Legal Tech for 2024). Descrybe serves law firms of all sizes but primarily focuses on smaller firms. Descrybe recently won the Anthem Award for Responsible Technology: Best Use of AI, for its innovative application of AI to make the law more accessible and for its support of solutions that drive awareness, engagement, and impact. Descrybe made its debut as an exhibitor at TECHSHOW. I had a chance to talk with Kara and Richard shortly before TECHSHOW and caught up with them again recently. First things first, both are passionate about making legal information more accessible to everyone through the use of AI-powered tools. Everyone, they say, includes both lawyers in firms without the resources of the large law firms and individuals. Indeed, Kara and Rich believe they now offer a serious legal research tool for professionals…”