LexLab at UC Law San Francisco has announced the second cohort for its Justice Technology Accelerator Program. Since its inception in 2019, LexLab has been a pivotal hub for fostering innovative legal tech startups. However, the program recently pivoted to concentrate on justice technology—targeting startups that develop solutions to aid communities impacted by the justice system and bridging the gap in access to justice.
This year, LexLab has collaborated with several key organizations, including the Justice Technology Association, Dream.Org, gener8tor, and Village Capital. As part of this collaboration, Dream.Org has significantly increased the prize pool to $10,000, the highest it’s ever been, according to JTA executive director Maya Markovich.
The recently announced cohort consists of eight startups, each selected to partake in a 10-week program featuring weekly online meetings and a robust curriculum from the host organizations. This program will culminate in a Demo Day on November 19, providing a platform for these startups to present their innovations to investors and the justice tech community. Additionally, UC Law San Francisco is offering a complementary course titled “Justice Technology: Building a Startup,” with select student teams from the course also participating in Demo Day.
The startups included in this year’s cohort span a variety of justice tech solutions:
- Advocord: A software tool designed to help guardians and conservators manage the welfare of adult dependents.
- Brightwayz: A digital platform connecting vulnerable communities with essential services and resources.
- descrybe.ai: A generative AI tool for making caselaw research more accessible and understandable.
- Kosigner: A platform that co-signs for renters with low credit or criminal records to improve housing quality.
- OpenProBono: An AI-powered platform offering legal information and resources.
- Redo.io: Helps identify individuals in the carceral system eligible for resentencing under justice reform laws.
- Thurgood: Uses AI to aid victims of arbitration-eligible claims by streamlining client intake and paperwork generation.
- We Decide: A platform that uses automation and empathy to assist divorcing couples with financial and property complexities.
For more details on the program and the participating startups, visit the official announcement here.