Qualcomm Invests in SpotDraft's On-Device Contract AI

Qualcomm's investment arm, Qualcomm Ventures, has invested $8 million in the AI-powered contract management platform SpotDraft. This strategic Series B extension investment aims to advance SpotDraft's privacy-focused, on-device contract review technology. Following the investment, SpotDraft's valuation is reported to have reached approximately $380 million. This figure represents nearly double the company's valuation from last year.

Privacy Concerns Are Moving AI On-Device

Especially in heavily regulated sectors like law, defense, and pharmaceuticals, sending sensitive data-containing contracts to cloud-based AI systems is often hindered due to privacy, security, and compliance concerns. Industry research shows data security is the primary barrier to AI adoption in professional services. This situation is driving companies like SpotDraft to develop solutions that perform core processing on the user's own device. A similar emphasis on privacy and performance is evident in hardware developments like Microsoft's new 'Maia 200' chipset, specifically designed for AI processing.

Contracts Can Now Be Reviewed Offline

SpotDraft's tool, 'VerifAI,' works integrated within Microsoft Word, analyzing contracts without disrupting the workflow legal teams are accustomed to. The tool can scan contracts using in-house policies and rules, perform risk scoring, and provide editing suggestions. At Qualcomm's 2025 Snapdragon Summit, it was demonstrated that this workflow runs entirely offline and seamlessly on laptops with Snapdragon X Elite processors. While an internet connection is required for user login, license verification, and collaboration features, the contract review process itself can be completed without sending data to the cloud.

A New Trend in Enterprise AI

SpotDraft's founders note that the legal sector is an early testing ground for on-device AI. They state that on-device models are rapidly closing the gap with cloud-based systems in terms of both output quality and response times. This development brings to mind, for those wanting to understand how AI works, explanations about the working principle of OpenAI Codex CLI. Similarly, Anthropic's Claude gaining direct application access via an MCP extension highlights the importance of deeper integration of AI tools into workflows.

For those wanting to see the broader context of such strategic investments and technology moves, attention is turning to one of the industry's leading meeting points. The rapid sell-out of tickets for the TechCrunch Disrupt event showcases the intense interest in platforms where similar innovations are discussed. On the other hand, AI is poised to transform not just the corporate world but also education. The project developed by former Google employees for children serves as an inspiring example of how AI's potential in text processing can be applied to different fields.