Most AI conversations in legal right now are either breathless hype or reflexive skepticism. This one is neither.

Ted Theodoropoulos has spent close to 20 years in legal tech. He's worked with more than half the AmLaw, runs InfoDash (used by about one in four AmLaw firms), and hosts the Legal Innovation Spotlight podcast. He sees what firms are actually buying, where tools actually break, and which firms are actually moving.

We get into vibe coding (what it's good for, where it falls apart), why law firms still spend only 2.4% of revenue on technology, what separates the firms adapting from the firms stalling, and why empathy might be the most undervalued lawyer skill of the next five years.

If you care about AI adoption inside professional services, or you're trying to figure out what to build, buy, or ignore, this one's for you.

Notable quotes

"Vibe-coded apps aren't replacing anything that's rolled out in the enterprise. Even just maintaining compliance with SOC 2, there are certain SDLC processes which have to be followed." — Ted

"Many leaders in the business of law functions were literally hand-picked because of their resistance to change. Now we're telling them: change everything with GenAI and move to the cloud. Is that the best person to be sitting in that seat?" — Ted

"Law firms spend 2.4% of revenue on all technology. Professional services peers spend about twice that." — Ted

"If you fail at change management, it doesn't matter how good your tech is. The project will not succeed." — Ted

"Empathy specifically is going to be a core skill set as the technology delivers more and more of the legal work product." — Ted

Timestamps

00:00 Vibe coding: what it is, where it works, where it breaks
09:12 Enterprise disruption and the collaboration model that actually works
15:20 Why law firms spend 2.4% on tech (and why it's not enough)
22:59 Which firms are moving fast and what they're doing differently
27:34 From bespoke services to SaaS: InfoDash's transformation story
33:24 Forward-deployed engineers, high-touch delivery, and the future of collaboration tools
40:07 Measuring AI success and the soft skills lawyers need to build