Harvey's Reddit row is actually a sign of how far legal tech has come

Harvey, certainly the most talked-about legal AI startup, has found itself at the centre of a controversy triggered by an anonymous Reddit thread.

An "ask me anything" post on the legaltech subreddit - purportedly from a former employee (but naturally treat with caution) - accused Harvey of low usage, average tech and more. Anonymous digs are hardly new, but the volume and tone were enough to spark a flurry of activity on LinkedIn - screenshots, commentary from other legal tech founders - and also a response from Harvey itself.

Not mentioning the debacle, co-founder Winston Weinberg took to LinkedIn to publish some of the company’s key SaaS metrics in a move even he acknowledged was "pretty uncommon". Those included revenue retention figures and "seat utilisation" (a measure of usage). An unusual act of transparency prompted by an anonymous Reddit thread rather than a funding announcement or similarly positive milestone.

Scrutiny as a positive

That the debate unfolded in the way it did probably says more about how far legal tech has come. A decade ago, "tech" in law firms basically meant fixing laptops and printers - I know, I was there. But now, generative AI has turned the sector into one of the most exciting corners of the industry which really is transforming how lawyers deliver their services to clients - nobody’s wasting Reddit threads on products that don’t matter.

Harvey, with $700 million raised, $100 million in annual recurring revenue and (it says) nearly half the Am Law 100 as customers, is the obvious focal point. Blitzscaling can bring a lot of very helpful attention but it naturally also invites scrutiny.

Legal tech isn't going anywhere

The episode highlights that the stakes are rising all the time. Legal AI isn’t going anywhere. The market is huge and the well-funded frontrunners are battling for market share. Legal tech is growing fast on both sides of the Atlantic and successful, fast-growing companies get scrutinised - fairly or unfairly - in public.