How to Think About AI: Richard Susskind on What General Counsel Need to Know Now

Richard Susskind, world-renowned author of "How to Think About AI," joins Axiom’s Daniel Hayter and CJ Saretto for a lively discussion on how AGI will shape the future of lawyers and legal work. Susskind argues GCs must run short-term efficiency programs while building parallel teams planning for the 2030s—when AI moves legal expertise inside the product, not the department, and law firms' clients become the competition. His call to action: Stop automating existing work; build systems that eliminate the need for it.

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Susskind draws on 45 years in AI and research across eight professions to frame legal as among the most technology-resistant fields and the most exposed. He introduces "incremental transformation" as a planning framework, previews compliance becoming embedded in operational systems, and offers a practical starting point: Mandate daily AI use before investing in formal pilots. Lean in.

Show Panelists

• Richard Susskind, Author, Speaker & Independent Adviser; President, Society for Computers and Law; Professor, Oxford University and Strathclyde University
• Daniel Hayter, Managing Director & VP of Europe, Axiom
• CJ Saretto, Chief Technology Officer, Axiom

Key Topics

1.  Why GCs should plan for AGI now—even if its arrival remains uncertain
   
2.  How short-term AI efficiency gains differ fundamentally from 2030s legal transformation
   
3.  What "preventative lawyering" means and why in-house teams should build toward it
4.  Why in-house legal departments, not law firms, are leading AI adoption today
   
5.  How GCs can assess whether a law firm’s AI commitment is genuine or just PR
6.  When human supervision of AI systems may no longer make sense for legal work
   
   

 Episode Resources

• • Richard Susskind's website
  • Richard Susskind’s latest book: How to Think About AI: A Guide for the Perplexed
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