a23s "Cloud Legal" and NX Wanbishi Archives Partner in Legal DD Sector ― Supporting Accelerated M&A with a One-Stop Solution from Mass Document Digitization to AI Review ―

Collaboration between Cloud Legal and NX Wanbishi Archives

a23s Inc. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; CEO: Yasufumi Sakichi), provider of the GenAI-powered corporate legal ALSP "Cloud Legal," and NX Wanbishi Archives Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; President: Yutaka Takahashi) of the NIPPON EXPRESS Holdings Group, announced on December 16 that they have launched a partnership in the field of legal due diligence (Legal DD).

By combining NX Wanbishi Archives' document digitization services, "WAN-Scan" and "AI-OCR x BPO," with Cloud Legal's Generative AI legal support, the companies aim to significantly streamline the verification process for the massive volume of contract documents generated during M&A and business succession.

■ Conquering Mountains of Paperwork with "Digitization x AI"

Flow of Legal DD through this collaboration

In M&A legal due diligence, it is necessary to scrutinize a vast number of contracts and regulations of the target company within a short period. However, the time and cost required to digitize paper-based documents and have them reviewed by experts has long been a challenge.

In this collaboration, NX Wanbishi Archives will first digitize large volumes of paper documents using "WAN-Scan" and convert them into high-precision text data using "AI-OCR x BPO." Subsequently, the digitized documents will be imported into "Cloud Legal," where a hybrid team of Generative AI and lawyers/experts will conduct the review.

■ Achieving Cost Reductions and Lowering Risk of Oversights

This one-stop solution is expected to significantly reduce man-hours and costs compared to traditional manual work. Furthermore, the double-check system utilizing both AI and experts is designed to prevent the risk of overlooking critical issues.

Both companies intend to promote Legal DX (Digital Transformation) and provide higher quality and more efficient support in the M&A market, where rapid management decisions are essential.

■ About the ICT Startup League
This support program started in FY2023, sparked by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications' "Project to Support Exploratory Research and Development for Startup Creation."
The ICT Startup League supports startups through four main pillars:
1. R&D Funding / Hands-on Support
Up to 20 million yen in R&D funding is provided in the form of grants. In addition, through hands-on support, the selection evaluation committee members who were involved in the selection of league members continue to stay close and promote growth after selection. For companies that the evaluation committee members rated as "must-select," a dedicated, enthusiastic support structure (akin to "fandom") is built, where the evaluators themselves provide ongoing support, such as advice on business plans and offering growth opportunities.
2. Discovery & Incubation
We provide opportunities for learning and networking to encourage business growth for league members.
We also expand the scope of the program by discovering those who aim to start businesses in the future.
3. Competition & Co-creation
Functioning like a sports league, this serves as a positive competitive arena where startups learn together and improve through friendly rivalry to win the necessary funding (up to 20 million yen). We also provide a space for co-creation where league members can collaborate to expand their businesses through various opportunities, such as sessions with selection evaluation committee members.
4. Dissemination
We broadcast the initiatives of league members in collaboration with the media! By letting more people know about their businesses, we aim to expand the field for new matching and opportunities.

Column COLUMN

a23s "Cloud Legal" and NX Wanbishi Archives Partner in Legal DD Sector ― Supporting Accelerated M&A with a One-Stop Solution from Mass Document Digitization to AI Review ―

■ Conquering Mountains of Paperwork with "Digitization x AI"

■ Achieving Cost Reductions and Lowering Risk of Oversights

Other Columns

Column
COLUMN