Solve Intelligence raises fresh $12M to bring AI to IP, patent workflows

Summary

Legal tech has come a long way, but the bulk of an intellectual property or patent lawyer’s work today is still done with spreadsheets, word processors and PDFs. A startup out of Delaware, Solve Intelligence, is using generative AI to speed up that work, believing its tech is uniquely suited to the needs of patent attorneys who need both domain expertise and legal knowledge to do their work. Solve offers an in-browser document editor that works like Google Docs but is powered by an AI model to help attorneys with the drafting and writing required for IP work and filing patents. The company says its AI can help with patent drafting, office action response, claim charting, and invention disclosure generation and enhancement. Now, the startup has raised $12 million in a Series A funding round, led by 20VC, to further build its momentum on the back of growing traction, a widening customer base and increasing revenue. Solve’s co-founder and CEO, Chris Parsonson, told TechCrunch the startup’s product is now used by 200 IP teams across the U.S., Europe, and Asia, including manufacturers like Siemens and Avery Dennison, as well as law firms DLA Piper and Finnegan — all without any sales or marketing staff. “We now have millions of dollars in ARR, our revenue has been growing ~25% month-on-month since our launch, and we’ve hired a team of world-class patent attorneys, AI researchers, and software engineers,” Parsonson said. He did not disclose a number for the company’s recurring revenue. The two-year-old company is now profitable, Parsonson said, adding that before the Series A, it had more money in its bank account than the $3 million seed it raised when it started in 2023. Some of that traction seems to have come not only due to more enterprises allowing their lawyers to use AI, but thanks to advances in AI development have helped the startup flesh out its product. “Eighteen months ago, it wasn’t possible to build software for patent workflows. Now it is,” said co-founder...