US contract drafting startup DraftWise has raised a $20 million Series A round led by venture capital firm Index Ventures.
Existing backers Y Combinator and Earlybird Digital East Ventures also participated in DraftWise’s latest capital raise, which follows a $5m seed round in June last year.
DraftWise helps attorneys to draft and review contracts faster by accessing their firm’s cumulative knowledge and data directly in Microsoft Word. It integrates with document management systems and other knowledge management resources.
The New York-founded company was founded by former Palantir engineers James Ding and Emre Ozen, alongside Ozan Yalti, who was a lawyer at global law firm Clifford Chance. The company got its start as part of Silicon Valley startup incubator Y Combinator in the summer of 2020 and later participated in law firm incubator programs, including at U.K. law firms Mishcon de Reya and Allen & Overy.
Ding said the company has differentiated itself by using law firms’ records of past client work and other unique data to help them better tailor their contracts. Having access to that history of work in one place can help in the negotiating process, he said.
“The thing that we embrace, is to lead with data and not with AI, because I believe that AI will be a commodity,” he said.
Ding said the company, which has nearly 30 employees, has used AI in combination with other technologies since its launch. It incorporated generative AI using large language models last year.
DraftWise’s current law firm customers include Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe, Gunderson Dettmer, Katten Muchin Rosenman, Womble Bond Dickinson and Mishcon de Reya.
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DraftWise raises $5m and adds Orrick to its law firm investor base