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cover of episode Episode 61 of the Legal Tech StartUp Focus Podcast -- An Interview with Michael Stych, Co-Founder and CEO of Contend

Episode 61 of the Legal Tech StartUp Focus Podcast -- An Interview with Michael Stych, Co-Founder and CEO of Contend

2024/9/3
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Legal Tech StartUp Focus Podcast
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Michael Stych: Contend是一个基于人工智能的聊天机器人，旨在帮助普通人轻松获得安全、经济且易于获取的法律信息。它提供初步的法律指导，帮助用户理解法律问题，并引导他们找到合适的资源或专业人士。我将以我父母的经历为例，他们是从捷克斯洛伐克来的政治难民，这与一位Contend的早期用户相似，她是一位来自斯洛伐克的单亲妈妈，当时面临驱逐。Contend帮助她理解驱逐通知，并成功地找到了新的住房。Contend不仅仅提供法律条文或判例，还利用次级资料，例如非营利组织提供的指南，这些资料更易于普通人理解。我们也注重准确性，并会在必要时提醒用户注意潜在的风险。Contend的目标是帮助那些在法律问题上感到迷茫和无助的人们。我们与英国的非营利组织合作，为用户提供更全面的帮助。 在英国，法律咨询的监管方式与北美不同，英国对法律咨询的限制较少，这使得Contend更容易在英国运营。英国的法律创新文化也更加开放和包容，这为Contend的发展提供了良好的环境。 Contend的营销策略最初是付费谷歌广告，但后来转向创建有用的法律内容以获得自然搜索排名，并计划与非营利组织合作。我们发现订阅模式并不适合Contend的用户，因为人们通常只在需要时才使用法律服务。 Contend最大的挑战是建立用户信任，因为人们在处理法律问题时往往非常谨慎。我们通过与用户建立联系，并持续改进产品来解决这个问题。 Contend最大的成功是看到它对人们生活的积极影响，例如帮助一位单亲母亲避免被驱逐，以及帮助其他人解决财务和法律问题。这让我对Contend的未来充满信心，并希望将这项技术推广到更多需要帮助的国家和地区。 Charlie Uniman: 作为主持人，我主要对Michael Stych 的陈述进行提问，并引导话题深入探讨Contend 的功能、市场策略以及在英国的成功经验。同时，我也表达了对Contend 的赞赏，并对它在解决大众法律服务问题上的贡献表示肯定。此外，我还就美国法律科技行业的监管问题表达了自己的观点，并呼吁美国监管机构学习英国的经验，放松对法律科技的监管，以促进创新和更好地服务大众。

Deep Dive

Chapters
Contend is an AI-powered chatbot offering safe, affordable, and accessible legal information to everyday people facing legal issues. It provides initial guidance, signposts to resources, and connects users with professionals or organizations for further assistance. Contend uses secondary source materials, such as guides from nonprofits, to provide practical and understandable information rather than complex legal jargon.
  • AI-powered chatbot for legal guidance
  • Focuses on safe, affordable, and accessible information
  • Uses secondary source materials for practical advice
  • Connects users with legal professionals and organizations

Shownotes Transcript

After Charlie introduces Mike and congratulates him on the recent Time of London article about Contend, Charlie and Mike discuss:

  • Just what it is that Contend (at https://contend.legal) does to provide safe, accessible, and affordable information for "regular people" when those people confront a legal issue (principally, providing both signposts to information resources (often secondary sources aimed at non-professionals) and connecting people to legal professionals and other organizations that can provide additional help)

  • Why Contend at present operates only in England and Wales (primarily because (i) the UK's regulation of the legal services delivery system is less hidebound by outdated and overly broad "unauthorized practice of law" rules and (ii) the UK's legal innovation culture is so well developed)

  • How Contend markets its product offerings (initially focussing on paid Google ads, now coming to rely more on organic Google search of access-to-justice content that Contend creates, and partnering with A2J nonprofits and other brand-building efforts)

  • The significant business challenge Contend has so far faced (customer acquisition - and, in particular, conveying why Contend is a service provider that consumers can trust) and the most significant "win" that Contend is to date most proud of (having as significant and favorable an impact on people's lives as Contend has had)

Link to Times of London article about Contend: https://www.thetimes.com/uk/law/article/we-use-ai-to-make-justice-more-accessible-to-ordinary-people-fk78crxtt