Information Technology

May 28, 2024

The Evolution of AI in Law Libraries

Law libraries are undergoing a transformation fueled by Artificial Intelligence (AI). While AI isn’t replacing librarians, it’s becoming a powerful tool that’s changing how legal research is conducted and how libraries serve their patrons.

The history of artificial intelligence in law libraries is a fascinating journey marked by technological evolution, legal industry demands, and the gradual integration of advanced tools to support legal research, information management, and decision-making processes. Here’s a historical overview of this subject:

Early Beginnings and Development

April 15, 2024

Google to Update Google One Subscriptions

by David Badertscher

We received the following message from Google regarding subscription updates to Google One scheduled to begin on May 15 and are forwarding it to our readers for their convenience:

“We’re writing to let you know about some updates coming to your Google One subscription starting on ‌M‌a‌y‌ ‌1‌5‌. These changes are designed to streamline your benefits while ensuring you have a valuable subscription experience.

Key changes:

March 13, 2024

Microsoft Reveals Plans to Support Classic Outlook Until at Least 2029

by David Badertscher

According to Paul Thurott, award winning technology journalist and blogger, Microsoft has revealed ” that it will support the classic version of Outlook for Windows through at least 2029, which should placate those commercial customers who are concerned about the lackluster quality of the new Outlook. That said, the new Outlook will soon reach general availability (GA), and when that milestone occurs, it will replace the classic app in new Microsoft 365 installs”.

“ ‘Currently, the new Outlook for Windows is available for preview for commercial customers and is getting closer to readiness for General Availability,” Microsoft’s Margie Clinton writes in the announcement post. ‘“The migration will be a multi-year journey delivering more capabilities in new Outlook, working with customers assessing feedback and readiness, and providing admin guides and tools to ensure customers have what they need to prepare accordingly.’ ”

February 12, 2024

A Collection of Essays on the Future of AI

by David Badertscher

Microsoft has sponsored and published a valuable collection of essays on the future of AI written by a group of experts, with specialties encompassing a broad spectrum—spanning the fields of business, economics, education, engineering, healthcare, history, law, mathematics, medicine, mental health, psychology, and the sciences—to explore the capabilities of GPT-4 before its public release and provide their insightful reflections” on the future of AI. The collection includes an Introduction, Reflections on AI and the Future of Human Flourishing. by Eric Horvitz, Chief Scientist at Microsoft.

Experts who participated in this project were asked to consider the following two questions when preparing their essays:

How might this technology and its successors contribute to human flourishing?

February 8, 2024

The View of Generative AI at Top Law Firms and Corporations: A LexisNexis Legal Innovation Survey

by David Badertscher

Between December 3, 2023, and January 3, 2024, LexisNexis Legal and Professional conducted a survey across 266 Managing Partners and other leaders at American Law 200 and other large law firms. Nearly a third of the executives surveyed indicated their firms had a dedicated budget for generative AI for 2024 and almost 90% indicated they expect their investment in generative AI to increase over the next five years. “Findings include results from 114 executives across 68 Am Law 200 firms, 102 executives across 79 other large law firms, and 50 executives across 44 Fortune 1000 companies. Firms recognize the potential return on their investment, with 47% believing generative AI technology will decrease costs and 30% believing it will increase revenue. Nearly half of executives are exploring new business opportunities made possible by the technology (47%).” Surveys were conducted in English via the Forsta survey platform.

For more details regarding survey findings, Click here to view the Executive Summary (an overview), Findings (Full Survey Results), an Appendix, and a discussion of the methodology.

January 16, 2024

AI Predictions for 2024: A Glimpse into the Future

by David Badertscher

The year 2024 promises to be a pivotal year for Artificial Intelligence (AI), with advancements across various sectors and a growing focus on real-world applications. Here are some predictions taken from various sources including my own expressing a variety of opinions as to what we can expect in the near future. The predictions are grouped into six broad categories: Widespread Integration, Generative AI, Practical Applications and Explanability, Health Care, Legal and Ethical Considerations, and Emerging Trends, followed by a list of references to materials discussing various aspects of the topic. For those who may be less familiar with AI, I have also included under References a citation to a posting by Bill Gates that can be read as a general introduction.

Widespread Integration of AI:

AI will become increasingly ubiquitous, seamlessly integrated into homes, businesses, and everyday activities. This could range from personalized AI assistants to smart homes that anticipate your needs.

December 24, 2023

2023 Year End Messsage From the Internet Society

by David Badertscher

Message From the Internet Society:

As 2023 comes to a close, we’re thinking a lot about what lies ahead for 2024. How many of the 2.6 million people who are unconnected get Internet access next year? How many of the threats to the Internet from governments and corporations around the world be mitigated?

Luckily for us—and the Internet—you’re a part of our global community and you have the power to make a difference. Here are some of the ways you can impact the growth and protection of the Internet next year:

December 22, 2023

Judge Scott U. Schlegel: A Call for Education Over Regulation (Artificial Intelligence)

by David Badertscher

Judge Scott U. Schlegel of the Fifth Circuit Court of the State of Louisiana currently serves as Chair of the Louisiana Supreme Court Technology Commission, and is recognized as a pioneer in using technology in the Louisiana State Courts. He has managed what is considered by many to be one of the most advanced technology courts in the nation in terms of delivering online justice.

According to the Fifth Circuit Court Of Appeals of the State of Louisiana website, “he is the Immediate Past President of the Louisiana District Judges Association (LDJA) and serves on many other committees. Judge Schlegel has received numerous awards including the National Center for State Courts’ 26th Annual William H. Rehnquist Award for Judicial Excellence, one of the highest judicial honors in the country. Judge Schlegel was also featured on the cover of the American Bar Association Journal and is a nationally recognized speaker on legal tech and the modernization of the justice system including matters related to artificial intelligence and the law,”

Judge Schlegel has also been appointed as a member of the Advisory Council of the ABA Taskforce on Law and Artificial Intelligence in recognition of his efforts to understand and communicate the important issues and challenges related law and artificial intelligence. On November 28,2023, Judge Schlegel wrote the following open letter which we think is an important addition to this discourse and needs to be distributed widely. Therefore we are reproducing Judge Schlegel’s letter, titled A Call for Education Over Regulation An Open Letter in full and hope you will find it helpful:

December 14, 2023

Google Announces the Public Release of Gemini: Can it be Used to Support Legal Research?

by David Badertscher

“Google launched its most ambitious AI model called Gemini on Wednesday [December 6, 2023], which is described as Google’s “largest and most capable AI model.” The company announced a “Gemini era” where the model will be used widely in companies and consumer devices like Google Pixel phones. Unlike existing AI models that focus on one type of input like text or images, Gemini is “multimodal” and can accept different types of media like text, images, audio and video as inputs. Google’s AI chatbot Bard has been upgraded with Gemini, and Google plans to add Gemini to widely used products like Search, Chrome and its cloud services”

Benzinga News, December 7,

INTRODUCTION

December 13, 2023

Update to Open AI Terms of Use and Privacy

by David Badertscher

Yesterday, December 12, 2023, we received an email from Open AI announcing changes to their Terms of Use and Privacy Policy that will make it easier to understand what to expect from Open AI when you use their services. The changes will become effective on January 31, 2024. Below is a copy of an overview of the updates we are posting for the convenience of our readers. To see the complete documents click on the links below:

FROM OPEN AI:

We want to let you know about some upcoming changes to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. These changes will make it easier for you to understand what to expect from OpenAI as you use our services. The Terms of Use and Privacy Policy will take effect on January 31, 2024.

We encourage you to read the updated policies, but here is a quick overview of some key changes:

Terms of Use

Separate business terms. We’ve removed the sections of the Terms of Use that relate to the use of our services for businesses and developers, namely ChatGPT Enterprise and our APIs. We’ve created a new set of Business Terms that apply to those services.
Updated arbitration procedures. We’ve updated some of the procedures by which we will resolve any arbitrated disputes.
Improved readability. We’ve re-organized and clarified some parts of our Terms of Use (yes, with a little help from ChatGPT) to make them simpler and easier to understand.

Privacy Policy

Personal information we collect. We’ve provided additional details and examples about the information we collect, such as when you participate in OpenAI’s events or surveys.
Business accounts. We’ve provided information about how administrators of ChatGPT Enterprise and team accounts can access and control accounts associated with their organization.

If you have questions about any of these changes, please see this Help Center FAQ.

You don’t need to take any action in response to this update. By continuing to use our services after January 31, 2024, you are agreeing to the updated Terms of Use and acknowledge that our Privacy Policy applies to data processed in OpenAI’s services. If you do not agree to the updates, you may delete your account.

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