ThoughtRiver announce risk management revolution with the first AI contract review tool developed specifically for the construction industry

Legal tech pioneer promises faster review, negotiation, and approval of construction and engineering appointments, using industry-specific AI.

Cambridge, ENGLAND, May 2022. ThoughtRiver, one of the UK’s leading legal technology companies, has announced the development of a tool tailored to reviewing construction and engineering appointments. The tool is already being used by leading law firm Shoosmiths LLP and Engineering Consultancy Hoare Lea.

ThoughtRiver’s contract acceleration platform, which uses a combination of Natural Language Processing and Semantic Matching to automatically generate a checklist of key risks and recommended actions in moments, is already used by multinationals across the globe including Schindler, DB Schenker and 3 of the ‘big 4’ accountancy firms. This latest development, however, is the first time the AI aficionados have turned their attention to developing a specific solution for the construction industry.

“Contract risk management has become an acute priority in recent years because of increased insurer scrutiny of liability clauses when determining whether to offer cover and at what price. For consultants, this can squeeze profitability and in extreme cases threaten viability. It was clear that our unique technology and content can offer significant benefits when applied to the review of construction and engineering appointments,” says Tim Pullan, CEO, and Founder of ThoughtRiver. “There is such an obvious synergy between what the industry needs in terms of contracting consistency, cost savings and portfolio risk visibility and the capabilities we can offer. We are delighted that we’ve been able to develop a much-needed tool that is also a market first.”

Hamish Gray, Director of Legal and Commercial at Hoare Lea, said “We scanned the market for an AI capability capable of being trained to review our appointments and found a clear winner in ThoughtRiver with a compelling business case supporting the investment. It is no surprise that they lead the way in contract acceleration for larger enterprises. The platform generates its first pass risk review in minutes which is a fraction of the time it takes a human to read through a typical appointment.”

ThoughtRiver have good reason to be confident in the construction industry: their Head of Legal Content, responsible for developing and training the tool, is Iain Murdoch – a well-known figure in the construction law world and ex Head of Construction Law for Practical Law. “I built the tool I would want to use.” Iain says, “ThoughtRiver analyses an appointment and produces a report of key issues very fast. I’m certain that it will prove its value to anyone who uses it!”

Hamish Gray adds, “Working with the ThoughtRiver team has been a really positive experience. I’ve been impressed by their AI technology and their in-depth knowledge of our industry. We were already mature in our risk processes, and they’re developing a tool that should enable us to go to another level.”

The tool works out of the box and is continually trained against a large basket of relevant documents, and coms pre-configured with advice notes and drafting suggestions. It can also be tailored to an organisation’s playbook to create a bespoke review. Anyone interested in seeing ThoughtRiver’s new construction and engineering appointment contract review in action for themselves can request a demo through their website at thoughtriver.com or register for their upcoming webinar: https://content.thoughtriver.com/acceleratingappointments