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AI startup by Columbia graduates raises $7 million to target midsize law firms
By Niket Nishant (Reuters) -August, an AI startup founded by Columbia University alumni and that caters to midsize law firms, said on Tuesday it had raised $7 million in a seed funding round led by venture capital firms NEA and Pear VC. WHY IT MATTERS AI's ability to handle routine, document-heavy tasks is unlocking new efficiencies for lawyers, particularly because the legal field is built on vast volumes of literature such as case law, contracts and filings. By automating time-consuming paperwork, AI platforms such as August are freeing up lawyers to focus on higher-value work. It also helps to cut costs, a crucial benefit for midsize law firms that lack the resources of their deep-pocketed rivals. CONTEXT August was founded in 2023 by Rutvik Rau, Thomas Bueler-Faudree and Joseph Parker, who met at Columbia University. Besides NEA and Pear VC, the startup secured backing from angel investor Gokul Rajaram, Ramp's vice president of product Geoff Charles, OpenAI's head of engineering David Azose and Bain Capital Ventures partner Kevin Zhang. The company is based in New York and currently has a team of 12. It expects to expand the workforce to 25 to 30 by the end of the year, Rau told Reuters in an interview. August operates in a competitive arena dominated by some established players, most notably Harvey, an OpenAI-backed legal AI startup, which caters to elite law firms and big professional services companies. KEY QUOTES "The future is one where AI partners with individuals to be a step further than where the industry is today," Rau said. "We're enabling lawyers to be more productive by eliminating some of the work, so they can actually spend a lot more time working with their clients, understanding their needs and being the strategic value partner for them."
Yahoo
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BP tears up ‘reset' plan after just six months
BP is tearing up its own 'fundamental reset' plan after just six months as the struggling oil giant faces intense pressure to improve financial performance. Murray Auchincloss, the company's chief executive, said on Tuesday that he and incoming chairman Albert Manifold had agreed to 'conduct a thorough review of our portfolio of businesses'. He added that BP would be 'initiating a further cost review'. It paves the way for more asset sales and cost cuts. In a statement, Mr Auchincloss said: 'This is all in service of accelerating the delivery of our strategy. BP can and will do better for its investors.' The announcement comes just months after Mr Auchincloss unveiled what he said was a 'fundamental reset' of the business, amid intense pressure from activist investor Elliott Management to deliver better returns. Mr Auchincloss junked BP's green energy policies in February and announced plans to sell $20bn of assets by 2027. However, the proposals – which were designed to boost BP's share price – were met with a lukewarm response from investors. Last month Elliott, which has built a 5pc stake in BP, made clear it was still unhappy as it accused the company of 'chronic underperformance' and called for 'decisive and effective leadership'. On Tuesday, Mr Auchincloss said: 'We are two quarters into a 12-quarter plan and are laser-focused on delivery of our key targets – and while we should be encouraged by our early progress, we know there's much more to do.' BP has been under pressure to boost profits, cut costs and strengthen its board. It has found itself under the gun after a disastrous pivot to renewable energy in 2020. Earlier this year, Shell was forced to deny it was planning to take over its weakened rival. Half-year results announced on Tuesday showed BP's profits tumbled by nearly a third, albeit largely due to weaker oil prices. It reported a 32pc fall in underlying replacement cost profits – the group's preferred measure of profitability – to $3.7bn (£2.81bn) for the six months to June 30. That compares with $5.5bn (£4.1bn) in the same period last year. The company is refocusing on oil and gas in an effort to appease investors. BP has said it wants to increase fossil fuel output from 2.3m barrels of oil a day now to 2.5m barrels a day by 2030, increasing further after that. BP has had a recent run of oil and gas discoveries, including its biggest find in 25 years announced earlier this week. Shares rose 2pc in early trading on Tuesday and are now up 24pc from their 2025 low in April. Maurizio Carulli, global energy analyst at Quilter Cheviot, said: 'There has been huge speculation of late on the fate of BP and whether or not a rival will look to take them out with a merger. If positive results like this continue to be delivered, that speculation may just end up being a blip in BP's long and storied history.' However, Ashley Kelty of investment bank Panmure Liberum, said 'there is little here to show that a recovery is on the cards'. He added: 'Mr Manifold has his work cut out, and with activist investor Elliott turning up the pressure on costs and strategy, he's likely to have a very short honeymoon period on which to deliver. BP remains a laggard vs peers.' Mr Manifold, the former chief executive of building materials group CRH, was a surprise appointment when he was confirmed as BP's new chairman last month. He will replace Helge Lund, whose imminent departure follows his support for BP's disastrous 2020 decision to cut fossil fuel production 40pc by 2030 and become an 'integrated energy company' focused on low-carbon energy. Tuesday's statements make clear that Mr Lund has already been sidelined ahead of Mr Manifold's official appointment as chairman in October. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
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Veganz Group's Jan Bredack steps down as CEO of loss-making business
Veganz Group founder Jan Bredack is stepping down as CEO of the loss-making vegan food producer and retailer. Rayan Tegtmeier, described as a "seasoned financial expert", will take over the CEO role from Bredack on 1 October, according to a stock exchange filing. Bredack will remain 'closely associated' with Veganz Group as the Berlin-headquartered company's largest shareholder. He will now focus on indoor farming as the managing director of OrbiFarm, the business Veganz Group sold for €30m ($34.6m) to an unidentified 'third party' earlier this year, plus a profit share. Veganz Group said in May it was looking to restructure the business into five business units under the brands Veganz, Mililk, Happy Cheeze, Peas on Earth and Orbifarm. That was before the vertical-farming business asset was sold. Then in July, Veganz Group revealed it was spinning off the Mililk plant-based milk drinks business as part of an effort to raise new funds and in 'preparation for entry of strategic investors'. Tegtmeier's career history includes CFO of online supplements business nu3 Group and a board member of OTI Greentech, a tech solutions provider. He has also "executed multiple buy-and-build strategies across the DACH region", including M&A, according to the filing. Tegtmeier will help steer Veganz Group into its 'next growth phase as a scalable technology company'. The incoming CEO added: "Under my leadership, the focus will be on profitable scaling, efficient capital allocation, and both organic as well as inorganic business expansion. "My goal is to advance the chosen path, tap into new growth markets, and attract institutional investors - thereby helping to address what I believe is a significant undervaluation of the company's share price." Veganz Group's shares traded little changed at €17.70 in Frankfurt today (5 August). They have climbed more than 20% of the past 12 months. Since founding Veganz Group in 2011, Bredack has 'transformed' the business from a vegan supermarket chain to an "innovative producer of plant-based foods with strong growth prospects", the filing read. Reporting its 2024 results in May, Veganz Group said sales dropped 34% to €10.8m. It added that the DACH region, namely Germany, Austria and Switzerland, accounted for 95% of the sales total with Germany the company's largest market at 81%. Meanwhile, EBITDA losses for 2024 narrowed to €2.4m from €6.3m a year earlier, and similarly, the net loss shrank to €4.8m from €9.5m. Last month, Veganz Group announced it had raised €7.1m through a new share issue, which 'significantly strengthened its equity base'. A further capital raise via a private placement with strategic investors is planned, with the shares on offer to be priced at €15 each. "Veganz Group's Jan Bredack steps down as CEO of loss-making business" was originally created and published by Just Food, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
