What Happened

$71.7 million in funding. Zero product left.

$71.7M
Total funding raised
~200
Employees at peak
$0
Value of the software product when sold
November 2024
Raised $25M Series B Plus from PayPal Ventures and University of Cambridge. Total funding: $71.7M.
January 2025
Named 10th on Sunday Times "UK Tech 100" list. Headcount peaked at ~200 employees.
Mid-2025
Failed to close a targeted $50M fundraise. Investor quoted: growth was "not AI level growth" and losses exceeded £11M in a single year.
October 2025
Mass layoffs. Listed on a distressed sale marketplace. A third of remaining staff cut.
November 2025
HMRC filed a winding-up petition for unpaid tax debts.
December 2025 – January 2026
Scissero acquired the managed services team (~70 staff). Microsoft acqui-hired ~18 engineers for the Word team. Nobody acquired the software product.
The Lesson

Why Robin AI collapsed — and what it means for you

The "AI" was humans

Employee reviews described "a team of paralegals churning out NDA reviews" while marketing claimed AI did the work. The managed services layer wasn't refining an AI model — it was the product itself, covering for technology that couldn't operate autonomously.

Two businesses, neither sustainable

Robin AI ran a SaaS product and a legal services operation simultaneously. The services arm had the cost structure of a law firm. The software arm couldn't stand alone. When funding dried up, both collapsed.

Enterprise sales, enterprise burn

Chasing Fortune 500 logos meant long sales cycles, expensive onboarding, and a cost-per-customer that never scaled. Revenue hit ~$10M ARR, but annual losses exceeded $14M.

The proof is in the acquisition

Microsoft wanted the engineers. Scissero wanted the legal team. Nobody wanted the software product. That tells you everything about where the real value was — and wasn't.

What You Actually Need

Robin AI proved the market. Now you need a tool that lasts.

Vern Available now

Genuine AI contract review. Upload a contract, get a clause-by-clause risk report with traffic-light ratings in minutes. No paralegals behind the curtain. No managed services. No enterprise sales process.

Built by AssurePath in Manchester. Lean team, sustainable business model, transparent pricing. We're not burning through VC cash — we're building a product that works.

Robin AI Shut down

Raised $71.7M across seven rounds. Claimed "80% faster contract review" powered by AI. In reality, much of the review was done by a managed legal services team of paralegals and junior lawyers.

Collapsed in late 2025. Assets split between Scissero (services team) and Microsoft (engineers). The software product was not acquired by anyone.

Feature Comparison

What Robin AI promised vs what Vern delivers

Capability Vern Robin AI
Status Live and accepting customers Shut down (Dec 2025)
AI contract review Genuine AI, no humans in the loop Claimed AI, relied heavily on paralegals
Custom risk playbooks Configure your own risk positions Playbook enforcement was available
Traffic-light risk ratings
Enforceability scoring Vern Score for every clause
AI chat per contract Was available
Word add-in Was available
Email-in submission Forward a contract, get a report back
Review speed Minutes, every time Depended on human review queue
Pricing Free + £249/month, published Undisclosed enterprise pricing
Self-serve signup Start in 2 minutes Required demo and sales process
UK/EU data residency 100% UK/EU Was not disclosed
SOC 2 Type 2 Was certified
Team access 10 users on Pro Was available
Vendor stability Lean, profitable model Burned $71.7M, now defunct
Why Vern Is Different

Built to last, not built to raise

Real AI, no theatre

Vern's contract review is fully automated. There are no paralegals behind the curtain. When you upload a contract, AI analyses every clause against your playbook. The result is genuine, consistent, and instant.

Sustainable business model

Vern isn't burning through venture capital chasing enterprise logos. Transparent pricing, lean operations, and a product that generates revenue from day one. We'll be here next year, and the year after.

Minutes, not dependencies

Robin AI's speed depended on their services team's availability. Vern delivers a complete risk report in minutes because it's genuinely automated. No queue, no SLAs, no human bottleneck.

Built for your whole team

Robin AI targeted Fortune 500 legal departments. Vern is built for ops, commercial, procurement, and finance teams — anyone who signs contracts and needs to understand the risk before they do. No legal training required.

Switching to Vern

If you used Robin AI, here's your next move

1. Sign up free

No demo. No sales call. No procurement process. Create an account and upload your first contract in under two minutes.

2. Set up your playbook

Configure the risk positions that matter to your business. Vern reviews every contract against your rules, not generic templates.

3. Review with confidence

Traffic-light ratings, enforceability scores, and AI chat for every contract. Your whole team can use it — no legal training needed.

Pricing

Transparent pricing. No surprises. No sales process.

Free

£0 forever

1 contract/month, 2 users

  • Full AI review with risk ratings
  • No credit card required
  • See exactly what Vern does before you pay

Pro

£249 /month

25 contracts/month, 10 users

  • Custom playbooks
  • Email-in submissions
  • Analytics dashboard
  • Priority support
  • Cancel anytime

Your contracts can't wait for
the next VC-funded startup to figure it out.

Vern works today. Upload a contract, get your risk report in minutes. No demo, no sales call, no managed services team.

Start Free View Pricing