If
your
legal
team
is
exploring
how
to
use
generative
AI
in
practice,
and
let’s
be
honest,
most
are
at
least
testing
the
waters,
the
conversation
often
jumps
straight
to
tools
and
outputs.
Which
chatbot
should
we
use?
Can
we
trust
it
to
draft
something
real?
How
do
we
control
hallucinations?
But
before
you
even
get
there,
there’s
a
more
basic
question
that
many
legal
departments
overlook.
What
are
we
feeding
the
AI
in
the
first
place?
In
a
recent
episode
of
“Notes
to
My
(Legal)
Self,”
Linsey
Krolik,
a
law
professor
at
Santa
Clara
University
and
longtime
in-house
counsel
at
companies
like
PayPal
and
Arm,
made
a
compelling
case
for
what
she
calls
AI
literacy.
But
the
bigger
insight
was
between
the
lines:
you
can’t
use
AI
effectively
in
a
legal
setting
without
understanding
the
inputs,
and
that
means
contracts.
Watch
the
episode
here:
The
AI
Moment
Isn’t
Coming.
It’s
Already
Here.
“We
are
using
generative
AI
today,
whether
we
want
to
admit
it
or
not,”
Linsey
said
during
the
interview.
“It’s
happening.
So
get
on
board
and
we
can
learn
together.”
That
sense
of
collective
learning,
and
the
gap
between
curiosity
and
confidence,
is
something
many
in-house
teams
are
experiencing
firsthand.
There
is
pressure
to
move
quickly,
reduce
turnaround
time,
and
do
more
with
less.
AI
promises
all
of
that.
But
as
Linsey
pointed
out,
we
need
to
start
with
the
basics.
She’s
training
law
students
to
build
real-world
legal
documents
like
terms
of
service
and
privacy
policies
for
early-stage
startups.
These
students
are
already
experimenting
with
AI.
They’re
learning
where
it
helps,
where
it
fails,
and
how
to
critically
assess
its
output.
They
are
developing
muscle
memory
not
just
in
drafting,
but
in
understanding
why
contracts
are
structured
the
way
they
are.
That
foundational
skill,
contract
literacy,
is
what
too
many
practicing
teams
are
missing.
AI
Is
A
Mirror.
If
Your
Contract
Data
Is
A
Mess,
It
Will
Show.
When
lawyers
think
about
AI
tools,
it’s
easy
to
focus
on
the
output.
What
can
it
draft?
What
questions
can
it
answer?
But
what
matters
just
as
much
is
the
underlying
data.
If
your
team
can’t
easily
answer
questions
like
“What
are
our
standard
payment
terms
across
all
NDAs?”
or
“Which
vendor
contracts
auto-renew
in
the
next
90
days?”
then
any
AI
solution
you
implement
will
be
trying
to
find
patterns
in
chaos.
Linsey
emphasized
that
in-house
teams
are
increasingly
being
asked,
“Did
you
use
AI
for
this?”
And
when
the
answer
is
no,
the
follow-up
is
often,
“Why
not?”
That
pressure
to
explore
and
adopt
is
growing.
But
AI
isn’t
magic.
It
won’t
clean
up
your
contract
portfolio
for
you.
It
will
only
surface
what’s
already
there,
or
worse,
what’s
missing.
Contract
Literacy
Isn’t
Just
Knowing
Legal
Terms.
It’s
Knowing
The
Business.
One
of
the
sharpest
observations
Linsey
made
during
the
conversation
was
about
how
contract
education
has
evolved.
She’s
moved
beyond
traditional
legal
writing
assignments
to
include
things
like
AI-assisted
drafting
and
short
business-style
presentations.
Why?
Because
she
understands
that
lawyers
today
don’t
just
write
contracts.
They
explain
them.
They
negotiate
them.
They
implement
them.
And
increasingly,
they
design
workflows
and
data
systems
around
them.
AI
can
support
that
work,
but
only
when
the
lawyer
understands
what
the
business
needs
from
the
contract.
If
you
can’t
articulate
the
difference
between
what
a
procurement
manager
wants
to
know
and
what
your
finance
lead
needs
to
see,
no
AI
tool
will
bridge
that
gap
for
you.
The
Real
Risk
Isn’t
AI.
It’s
Staying
Unprepared.
Linsey
acknowledged
the
ethical
concerns
around
AI,
confidentiality,
accuracy,
and
unauthorized
reliance,
but
she
also
made
it
clear
that
the
bigger
risk
is
paralysis.
“There’s
a
lot
of
uncertainty
now,”
she
said.
“But
I
think
we
need
to
start
being
more
curious
and
less
scared.”
She
teaches
her
students
to
disclose
when
they
use
AI,
to
reflect
on
why
they
used
it,
and
to
evaluate
the
quality
of
the
output.
In
doing
so,
they
learn
how
to
build
trust
in
the
tools
and
in
their
own
judgment.
That
same
framework
applies
to
in-house
legal
teams.
Instead
of
asking
whether
AI
is
perfect,
start
asking
whether
your
team
is
ready.
Can
you
explain
what
your
standard
indemnity
clause
looks
like?
Can
you
audit
vendor
agreements
for
renewal
triggers?
Do
you
have
a
structured
way
to
compare
terms
across
contracts?
These
are
contract
literacy
questions.
And
until
you
can
answer
them
confidently,
AI
will
remain
a
shiny
solution
looking
for
a
problem.
Want
To
Get
AI-Ready?
Start
With
Your
Contracts.
Linsey
Krolik
is
training
the
next
generation
of
lawyers
to
think
critically,
use
emerging
tools
responsibly,
and
work
directly
with
the
business.
If
today’s
law
students
are
learning
to
draft,
structure,
and
analyze
contracts
with
AI
as
a
companion,
then
the
rest
of
the
legal
world
needs
to
catch
up
fast.
AI
readiness
starts
with
knowing
what
you
have,
what
it
means,
and
how
to
use
it.
That
begins
not
with
software,
but
with
skill.
Not
with
automation,
but
with
understanding.
Contract
literacy
isn’t
the
end
goal.
It’s
the
starting
line.
Watch
the
full
interview
with
Linsey
here.
Olga
V.
Mack is
the
CEO
of TermScout,
an
AI-powered
contract
certification
platform
that
accelerates
revenue
and
eliminates
friction
by
certifying
contracts
as
fair,
balanced,
and
market-ready.
A
serial
CEO
and
legal
tech
executive,
she
previously
led
a
company
through
a
successful
acquisition
by
LexisNexis.
Olga
is
also
a Fellow
at
CodeX,
The
Stanford
Center
for
Legal
Informatics,
and
the
Generative
AI
Editor
at
law.MIT.
She
is
a
visionary
executive
reshaping
how
we
law—how
legal
systems
are
built,
experienced,
and
trusted.
Olga teaches
at
Berkeley
Law,
lectures
widely,
and
advises
companies
of
all
sizes,
as
well
as
boards
and
institutions.
An
award-winning
general
counsel
turned
builder,
she
also
leads
early-stage
ventures
including Virtual
Gabby
(Better
Parenting
Plan), Product
Law
Hub, ESI
Flow,
and Notes
to
My
(Legal)
Self,
each
rethinking
the
practice
and
business
of
law
through
technology,
data,
and
human-centered
design.
She
has
authored The
Rise
of
Product
Lawyers, Legal
Operations
in
the
Age
of
AI
and
Data, Blockchain
Value,
and Get
on
Board,
with Visual
IQ
for
Lawyers (ABA)
forthcoming.
Olga
is
a
6x
TEDx
speaker
and
has
been
recognized
as
a
Silicon
Valley
Woman
of
Influence
and
an
ABA
Woman
in
Legal
Tech.
Her
work
reimagines
people’s
relationship
with
law—making
it
more
accessible,
inclusive,
data-driven,
and
aligned
with
how
the
world
actually
works.
She
is
also
the
host
of
the
Notes
to
My
(Legal)
Self
podcast
(streaming
on Spotify, Apple
Podcasts,
and YouTube),
and
her
insights
regularly
appear
in
Forbes,
Bloomberg
Law,
Newsweek,
VentureBeat,
ACC
Docket,
and
Above
the
Law.
She
earned
her
B.A.
and
J.D.
from
UC
Berkeley.
Follow
her
on LinkedIn and
X
@olgavmack.