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The Winter Olympics are now in full swing. And for Team GB, they have been record-breaking.
Over the weekend, Tim Weston became the first Briton to win two gold medals at a Winter Olympics, one in the individual skeleton and one in the mixed-team skeleton with teammate Tabitha Stoecker.
Their success is no accident.
Behind every one-minute run down an icy track at 140 kilometres per hour lies a meticulously assembled team at the University of Bath from many disciplines. Weston's and Stoecker's talent is undeniable, but without the right specialists working in concert, gold would have remained out of reach.
The same principle applies to procuring artificial intelligence: it's vital to get team selection right. When this doesn't happen, businesses risk overlooking key stakeholders who can 'make or break' an AI project.
To this end, an article from Corporate Counsel (published by the Association of Corporate Counsel) piqued our interest: Why Legal Should Be at the Center of Your Organization's AI Strategy. In the piece, authors Michael T Moore and Rebecca Hinds note the fundamental change which is required when businesses procure AI:
AI is an organizational shift, not a tool rollout. Successful AI adoption requires rethinking workflows, decision rights, governance, and risk – areas where Legal already operates by design.
We agree.
The roll-out of any new tech isn't something which is just for one team to drive. It affects teams across the business, so it should involve those teams – and also critically, the legal team.
As we highlight in our 2026 Commercial, Technology & Regulatory Handbook:
Rather than being seen as a compliance burden, governance and contracting frameworks are increasingly viewed as a way to differentiate, build trust and prevent mishaps. The conversation is shifting from "Can it be used?" to "How can it be deployed responsibly and commercially and in way that allows swift internal adoption?" and legal teams are rightly being invited into these discussions earlier than ever.
Our experience is that more and more legal teams are now shaping strategy and facilitating alignment between teams. And constructively challenging AI deployment is "increasingly seen as part of the legal function's contribution to responsible innovation".
Now more than ever, it's important for the legal team to be visible when it comes to AI deployment. Legal teams can be strategic enablers helping businesses to reap the benefits that this remarkable tech brings.
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