Session Details and Synopsis:Title: Female Founders of Legal TechLocation: Washington Hilton, International Ballroom
Panel Overview:The session brought together trailblazing women in legal tech to discuss female leadership, innovation, entrepreneurship, and the role of AI in transforming the industry. The panelists included:
Stephanie Curcio, CEO & Co-Founder of NLPatentLourdes Fuentes, CEO of Karta Legal LLCKara Peterson, Co-Founder of descrybe.aiCecilia Ziniti, CEO & Founder of GC AI
Moderator: Allyson Kapin, General Partner at W Fund
Key Themes and Insights:
● Career Shifts to Founder Roles:
Panelists shared personal stories about transitioning to entrepreneurship.
- Stephanie Curcio highlighted how leveraging early AI technology revolutionized patent research and led to the growth of NLPatent.- Lourdes Fuentes emphasized stepping into the legal tech space to address inefficiencies in technology adoption through innovative methodologies like Lean Six Sigma and Agile.- Kara Peterson shared the inspiration behind descrybe.ai, rooted in a personal challenge with legal accessibility.- Cecilia Ziniti described her journey from law firm associate to in-house counsel, then COO, and finally founder of GC AI, driven by a desire to solve problems and innovate.
● Fostering Innovation:
Panelists discussed fostering an innovation mindset within their teams.
- Lourdes Fuentes emphasized creating a culture of continuous learning and integrating client insights into strategic innovation.- Kara Peterson noted how an outsider perspective in law allowed her team to develop creative solutions.- Stephanie Curcio shared her team’s focus on client feedback through leadership roles in the IP space.- Cecilia Ziniti described the "AI as an overeager intern" metaphor, helping lawyers understand how AI supports their work.
● The Role of AI in Legal Tech:
AI's transformative potential in legal tech was a core discussion point.
- Lourdes Fuentes outlined a "people first, process second, technology third" approach to adopting AI, emphasizing strategic planning and ethical considerations.- Cecilia Ziniti highlighted GC AI's impact on streamlining work for in-house lawyers, with 100,000+ AI-driven chats showcasing real-time results.- Kara Peterson shared her platform’s recent advancements, including Spanish translations and simplified legal summaries, expanding access to justice.
● Gender Gaps in Technology and Funding:
The session addressed the systemic disparities women face in legal tech and AI:
- Women comprise 22% of AI talent globally and less than 14% of senior executive roles in AI (Stiftung Neue Verantwortung).- Only 16.5% of inventors in international patent applications were women in 2020 (WIPO Data).- Startups founded solely by women received just 2% of U.S. venture capital funding in the last decade (TechCrunch).- Generative AI usage is higher among men (59% vs. 51% for women aged 18-65) with a wider gap among younger users (71% men vs. 59% women aged 18-25).
● Breaking Barriers and Building Community:
The session underscored the need for mentorship, diversity, and support networks to close gender gaps in AI adoption and entrepreneurship.
- Lourdes Fuentes highlighted the creation of Hispanic Innovators in Legal Tech (HILT) as a call to action to empower underrepresented voices through mentorship, training, and collaboration.- Cecilia Ziniti emphasized the importance of maintaining women-led cap tables and supporting female founders through investment.
Closing Messages:Panelists inspired attendees to embrace their roles as decision-makers, foster innovation, and leverage their positions to support female-led ventures. Kara Peterson encouraged diverse representation in AI to create inclusive tools. And Lourdes Fuentes reminded attendees that leadership is about intentional choices that ripple across industries, shaping the future of legal tech and equity.
This session was a powerful reminder of the collective responsibility to innovate ethically, invest in women, and build supportive networks to ensure progress for all.