Fried Frank Launches FundAssist AI for Asset Management Tasks
Fried Frank unveils FundAssist, an AI platform tailored for asset management workflows.
Why it matters: This new AI tool highlights BigLaw's move to improve efficiency and client service in niche practice areas by integrating advanced technology.
- FundAssist uses OpenAI's latest models to analyze past work and draft fund formation documents.
- It operates in Fried Frank's private cloud, ensuring client data security with ring-fenced interfaces.
- The platform features client-specific precedent libraries, enhanced search, and document drafting capabilities.
- It automates responses to complex investor requests called 'side letters' involving up to 100 bespoke terms per investor.
Fried Frank Harris Shriver & Jacobson LLP has developed a proprietary artificial intelligence platform called FundAssist to enhance its asset management practice. FundAssist leverages OpenAI's most current AI models to analyze previous legal work and identify client-preferred language patterns. This capability allows the platform to generate initial drafts of long-form fund formation documents, speeding up traditionally time-intensive drafting tasks.
The platform is securely hosted within Fried Frank's private cloud environment, featuring a customized ChatGPT interface for each client. This ring-fencing approach prevents cross-pollination of sensitive data between clients, supporting strict data security and confidentiality.
Key functionalities include client-specific precedent libraries and enhanced search functions tailored to asset management workflows. Notably, FundAssist is designed to automate responses to investor requests for specialized provisions in funds, known as 'side letters,' which can include as many as 100 unique terms per investor. This feature aims to streamline a complex and repetitive process often requiring significant manual review.
To complement FundAssist's capabilities, Fried Frank has integrated the ProVision platform into its Asset Management Practice, further supporting efficient management of side letters for fund formation clients.
Scott Hines, Fried Frank’s Chief Information Officer, remarked, "Everybody has the technology; what’s different about this is, it’s our experience." Partner Becky Zelenka, Co-Head of the Private Equity Funds Group, added, "We are continuously looking for ways to enhance our client offering." These statements reflect the firm's strategic commitment to innovating client services through tailored AI solutions.
The launch of FundAssist aligns with a broader trend in BigLaw, where firms adopt AI to increase efficiency, reduce turnaround times, and offer more precise, client-specific legal services particularly in specialized areas such as asset management.
By the numbers:
- 100 bespoke terms — average number of unique provisions in investor 'side letters' handled by FundAssist
- 1 — proprietary AI platform launched (FundAssist) by Fried Frank
- Latest OpenAI models — technology powering FundAssist's document drafting and analysis