Chatbots are a growing part of the legal tech. There’s a lot of tasks that they can do to help out lawyers. Yet, there are some who are resistant to them. One of the reasons that resistance exists is because there’s a misconception that they will put lawyers out of business. There’s a prevalent idea that all chatbots used in legal tech get smarter as they’re used.
Where Did This Idea Come From?
It makes sense that so many people believe that chatbots have the ability to get smarter through use. ZDNet lists some of what they consider the best movies that feature AI. Some of the movies on the list are:
- Blade Runner 2049
- Bicentennial Man
- Resident Evil
- Westworld
- Chappie
- Tron
AI that gets smarter is something that’s been part of entertainment for decades. The problem? The portrayal of the AI’s ability to get smarter doesn’t tell the entire story. Hollywood often portrays machine learning capabilities as a standard part of AI. And it’s not.
Not All AI Has Machine Learning Capabilities
Just because technology relies on artificial intelligence doesn’t mean that it has machine learning capabilities. Chatbots, as part of legal tech, are usually designed to do only certain things (such as provide office hours, help with client intake, or answer basic questions). It’s similar to how you may use Word because you know although it can do many things, it is primarily designed as a word processing program. Chatbots are similar in the sense that it’s designed to help you do something. You can use it how it benefits you. Unless you want it to have the ability to learn, it can only do what it was designed to do.
Machine learning is part of AI, but it’s used in every option. For something to have machine learning capabilities, it must be designed to do so. At that point, it would have the capability to learn without more specific programing.
Learn How a Chatbot Can Help You
If you’re curious about how a chatbot could help you as part of your overall legal tech plan, check out LawDroid. You can automate tasks and basic conversations to get more done in your day. Schedule your demo and learn how you can capture more business by using a bot made specifically for lawyers!
Tom Martin is a legal AI advocate, lawyer, author and speaker.
He is CEO and founder of LawDroid, a Generative AI Legal Technology company, and co-founder of the American Legal Technology Awards.
Tom has been recognized as an ABA Legal Rebel and Fastcase 50 Honoree.
Tom has presented as a speaker at ABA Techshow, LegalWeek, ILTACON, Clio Con, Legal Innovators, and many others. Tom’s writing has been published in the ABA’s Law Practice Today, Law Technology Today and GP Solo Magazine, to name a few; he has also been featured on numerous podcasts, including Legal Rebels, Un-Billable Hour, Lawyerist, the Digital Edge, and New Solo.
Tom also has his own podcast: LawDroid Manifesto on iTunes. Subscribe to his Substack at lawdroidmanifesto.com.
He serves as a mentor at the Yale Tsai Center for Innovative Thinking and ATJ Tech Fellows. Tom is a graduate of Yale and UCLA School of Law.
Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, Tom now lives in Vancouver, Canada with his wife and two daughters.