Nicholas (Nik) Reed has taken on the role of chief executive officer at Knowable, a contracts analytics and management firm where he previously served as senior vice president for product and research development since 2019. Reed’s ascension comes as Mark Harris shifts from CEO to chairman of the board. Harris, an instrumental figure in the company’s history since its separation from Axiom in 2019, expressed confidence in Reed’s abilities to lead the firm into a new phase of growth. Reed’s extensive background in legal technology, particularly in the application of language-based AI for legal purposes, positions him well to navigate the evolving landscape of legal tech.
Prior to his role at Knowable, Reed was COO at Ravel Law, a legal research company he co-founded in 2012 with Daniel Lewis, a Stanford Law School alumnus now heading LegalOn. Ravel Law’s focus on legal analytics and visualization led to its acquisition by LexisNexis in 2017, where Reed subsequently served as vice president of product strategy. His time at LexisNexis was marked by the integration of Ravel’s tools into its legal research platform. This experience laid the groundwork for Reed’s 2019 transition to Knowable, after learning about it through its collaborative venture with LexisNexis.
The origins of Knowable trace back to Axiom’s establishment in 2000 by Mark Harris and Alec Guettel. A leading provider of on-demand legal expertise, Axiom expanded into technology and managed services. Preparing for a potential IPO, Axiom spun off two entities in 2019: Knowable, which concentrates on leveraging machine learning to enhance contract comprehension, and Axiom Managed Services, which later rebranded as Factor. This company provides outsourced legal support through a combination of personnel, processes, and technology.
Since then, Knowable continues to operate in partnership with LexisNexis, a relationship formed in July 2019 to leverage LexisNexis’s extensive resources while maintaining operational autonomy. This strategic alignment marks a significant chapter in Knowable’s journey, giving the company the capability to scale and enhance its offerings in the legal tech domain.
For further insights into Mark Harris’s journey from Axiom founder to his roles at Knowable, consider exploring LawNext’s Episode 56 which discusses his experiences and perspectives.