A Dinner That Turned Into a Discovery
It was supposed to be just a casual dinner with two friends. One works in law, the other in software consulting, and I am a university professor. Three different professions, three different worlds—or so I thought. As the evening unfolded, it became clear that our worlds were not so different after all. In fact, they followed the same hidden pattern. And that pattern explains not only how professions have always worked, but also how artificial intelligence is about to change them forever.
Three Professions, One Playbook
The Lawyer’s World: In court, nothing stands alone. Every argument must be anchored in precedent. Winning cases comes down to organizing evidence within the framework of prior rulings. The Consultant’s World: In software projects, requirements must be scoped, modules defined, and documentation consulted. Without structure and authoritative sources, the project collapses. The Academic’s World: Research is the same. No claim is valid without citations. Every article builds on authority, extends incrementally, and ends with the classic line: ‘further research is needed.’
Explainer Graphic: The Three Pillars of Professional Credibility
The Underlying Pattern
Across law, consulting, and academia, three elements stand out: 1. Structure – frameworks that define the work. 2. Authority – reliance on precedent, sources, or documentation. 3. Incremental Extension – building on what came before to move things forward. This is the DNA of professional credibility across industries.
Enter Artificial Intelligence
Artificial Intelligence doesn’t rewrite this pattern. Instead, it accelerates the very mechanics that already exist: – For lawyers: AI can rapidly surface precedents, summarize thousands of pages of case law, and suggest likely arguments. – For consultants: AI can map system requirements, simulate integrations, and generate structured specifications at speed. – For academics: AI can scan vast literatures, highlight gaps, suggest citations, and organize messy notes into draft articles.
The Broader Implication for Society
The way our institutions work—universities, courts, businesses—has always depended on structure and authority. AI is tipping that balance. Authority can now be surfaced instantly, structure can be generated automatically, and incremental progress can compound at machine speed. This raises urgent questions: If AI can generate precedent-like arguments, how do we ensure legal integrity? If AI can draft research papers, how do we preserve academic rigor? If AI can scope projects instantly, how do consultants maintain trust and accountability?
Conclusion: Patterns and Precedents Powered by AI
That dinner conversation ended with laughter, but also with a profound insight: our professions are not as different as they seem. At the core, they all rely on patterns, precedents, and processes that ensure continuity and credibility. AI doesn’t rewrite that story—it writes it faster. And the real question now is: will we use AI to reinforce the structures that give our work meaning, or allow speed to erode the authority that makes it valuable? That’s the decision facing not just lawyers, consultants, and academics, but all of us.
