In a historic first, a ‘robot’ lawyer powered by artificial intelligence will help a defendant challenge a traffic ticket in a US court on 22 February.
How Does AI Work?
The AI was developed by DoNotPay, a US company, which will use the world’s first robot lawyer to defend a client in a real-world scenario. According to the New Scientist, the company’s AI creation will run on a smartphone, listening to court arguments and formulating responses for the defendant. It will then instruct the defendant what to say in real-time through headphones. The case's exact location or the defendant's name has not been disclosed.
The company’s robot lawyer will be tested later in the month in another speeding case, which will take place via zoom.
DoNotPay has acknowledged that there are risks involved in relying on AI in court but has agreed to cover any fines in case the AI loses either case.
What is DoNotPay?
DoNotPay was launched in 2015 as a chatbot that provided legal advice to consumers dealing with fines or late fees. Founder Josh Browder was inspired to set up the company following his own experience of receiving ‘countless’ parking tickets. The company successfully contested 160,000 parking tickets in New York and London in less than two years. Following a technological breakthrough, it moved into AI. The company mission promises to help people ‘fight corporations, beat bureaucracy and sue anyone at the press of a button.’
Looking Ahead
There may be more AI cases to come as Browder has also offered via Twitter to pay anyone with an upcoming case in the Supreme Court £1 million to wear AirPods and let its robot lawyer argue their case.
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