Why Waiting to Adapt AI is an Expensive Choice

Many BigLaw leaders are budgeting for higher AI spend. As Roy Strom reported in Bloomberg Law, firms expect costs to climb in 2026 and 2027 as pilots become full deployments. Wait long enough and you likely won’t just pay more, you also lose room to negotiate.

Early movers are already getting value. Thomson Reuters notes that agentic AI lifts productivity, gives top performers a(nother) reason to stay, and makes fixed-fee experiments more practical. Delay has a price. You spend more time training, more money catching up, and you give competitors a head start.

This plays out at the individual level too. Attorneys who learn these tools now turn work faster, provide more value for clients in less time, and build a reputation for practical innovation. When prices rise in 2026, they will already be fluent. Late adopters will still be figuring out the basics!.

There is also a simple financial point. In 2025, vendors want adoption. That is when multi-year terms, usage tiers, and carve-outs are most flexible. Once the market tightens in 2026 and 2027, the menu shrinks and the price goes up. We saw a version of this with e-discovery. Early buyers locked workable rates. Firms that waited paid a premium after the tools became mandatory.

Clients are already asking what your AI plan looks like. Those Able to point to early action and concrete results will project stability in foresight. The firms that stall will spend more and explain more.

If you plan to use AI, act while the economics favor you. Lock terms you can live with, build the habits now, and enter 2026 ahead of the curve, not chasing it.

Ayven Dodd advises attorneys, law firms, and investors on everything from legal AI to MSOs, ABS models, and M&A. He serves as a Legal AI and M&A Consultant, helping firms modernize without losing their edge. Reach him at ad@sheltonsteele.com