OpenAI enters the legal market

OpenAI announced Astra for Law on Thursday, a new product designed specifically for lawyers. It includes plugin tools, better legal case search, and custom model tweaks.

Targeting the AmLaw 200

OpenAI is aiming at the 200 largest American law firms, known as the AmLaw 200, plus the broader legal tech industry. The product is built on OpenAI's most advanced and expensive model.

Better legal reasoning, fewer errors

OpenAI tweaked its model to ground it in actual case law, reducing hallucinations and improving legal reasoning. Responses are about twice as long as typical Astra answers because lawyers prefer longer outputs.

“Lawyers like longer responses. That was one thing that came back from feedback.”

Integrations with legal tech partners

Legal tech companies like Harvey and Legora can add Astra for Law to their products. Plugins are also available from Thomson Reuters, iManage, DeepJudge, and others.

Part of OpenAI's sector strategy

Astra for Law is the latest in OpenAI's push into industry-specific products. Last week it launched ChatGPT for Financial Services, and it already has offerings for teachers, clinicians, and life sciences researchers.

Competing with Anthropic's legal AI

Anthropic, OpenAI's chief rival, launched its own legal product in May with similar integrations. OpenAI's version adds custom model tweaks and tools specifically embedded for legal work.