Legal tech document drafting and knowledge management company Definely has raised a $30m Series B funding to accelerate its global expansion and AI product roadmap. The round includes investors from Europe and North America, led by growth investor Revaia, and interestingly including legal tech giant, Clio.
Launched in 2020 by Nnamdi Emelifeonwu and Feargus MacDaeid – who worked together at Freshfields – Definely enables users to semantically locate documents, draft and proof them, all within Microsoft Word. In May it launched an agentic AI system that enables users to analyse a task, create a plan and leverage different aspects of Definely workflow to complete the task.
This major raise follows Definely’s $7m Series A last year. Speaking to Legal IT Insider, Emelifeonwu said: “We’ve run this business very efficiently and prior to this round had raised just $11m. We have close to 100 people so you can appreciate this hasn’t come through investment, but growing our top line revenue. The fact that this round is four times last year shows you the amount of growth we’ve had.
“We’ve been very efficient with the capital we’ve raised and this allows us to take the company to the next level.”
Definely was born to help solve some of the problems faced by co-founder MacDaeid, who is registered blind after being diagnosed with a degenerative eye condition at age 11. Throughout his life, he consistently faced challenges in accessing information efficiently. Emelifeonwu said: “We started with a point solution to solve a problem that Feargus had and then built a best-in-class product and now productivity suite used by over 100 law firms and legal teams that are the biggest names in the world. When you think about the hype of AI, we have been getting on with working with customers to develop real value for them.”
Definely’s customers include A&O Shearman, Slaughter and May, DLA Piper, and Dentons, and in-house corporate counsel for blue-chip companies such as BT Group, Deloitte, and P&O Cruises.
The UK-founded company has gained strong traction in the US market, which now accounts for 30% of its revenue. The latest fundraise will support further expansion, with key employees moving to the East Coast and where Definely has recently appointed a US-based general manager. The funding will also be used to further develop new and existing products.
This is Revaia’s first investment in the UK since opening a London office.
See also:
Product Demo: Create, draft and review contracts in Word – The Definely suite