Legal tech startup August raises $7 million from New Enterprise Associates, Pear VC
ADVERTISEMENT The round also saw participation from Afore Capital, several law schools, and angel investors, including Gokul Rajaram, and senior executives from companies like Ramp, OpenAI, and Bain Capital Ventures.
Founded in 2023 by Rutvik Rau, Thomas Bueler-Faudree, and Joseph Parker, August offers modular AI agents designed to automate document-heavy legal work like contract reviews, due diligence, and discovery preparation. The platform caters specifically to midsize law firms, a segment the company estimates includes over 50,000 firms globally employing more than half a million lawyers.
The New York-based company, previously known as Vecflow, has also been expanding into the Indian market. It is working with law firm Economic Laws Practice (ELP), where it claims to have helped cut due diligence time by 60%. August's tools are also being piloted by other law firms in the country.Unlike generic legal AI tools aimed at large global firms, August said its software is tailored to local legal environments, and its modular AI agents are designed to align with regional laws, disclosure norms, and document standards.'We realised that these midsize firms are actually extremely innovative, because they're trying to provide the best client services. Their clients are extremely cost-sensitive, and that creates the right environment to use AI and really reap the benefits. But at the same time, we saw that most existing players are focussed only on the big law segment,' CEO Rau told ET.
ADVERTISEMENT August said its platform can be deployed securely within a firm's internal network to comply with data residency regulations.With the new funding, August plans to expand its engineering, product, legal, and sales teams. It also aims to deepen its presence in markets like India, where midsize firms are looking to improve efficiency and manage costs through automation.
ADVERTISEMENT 'We see tremendous potential in the midsize legal market, where firms are eager for innovation that drives meaningful ROI,' said Tiffany Luck, partner at NEA. 'August's AI platform and custom agents enable midsize firms to deliver exceptional client value and drive significant growth.'
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