What to look for in a trusted GenAI assistant

What is a GenAI assistant?

A GenAI assistant is a digital tool that handles essential but time-consuming tasks, such as research or document drafting, so professionals can focus on more profitable uses of their time.

These assistants are powerful professional tools. They sort through data at high speed, uncovering beneficial information that would take humans hours or even days to find. However, the AI-assistant sector is still new, and choosing the wrong one could work against achieving those objectives. As a professional, how do you choose the right tool for your organization?

What to look for in a GenAI assistant

The following are some key considerations to evaluate as you examine your options.

Will it access and provide reliable information?

You should feel confident about the accuracy of the information a GenAI assistant provides, and the verification of that information. For instance, it should access reliable sources like fact-checked libraries or databases rather than gleaning potentially false — or at least incomplete — answers and insights from unreliable content, like the open internet.

Does the developer understand your industry?

The company marketing its GenAI assistant technology should be able to prove it has expertise in your field. The company should demonstrate a deep knowledge of the challenges, regulations, and ethical concerns your type of organization needs to address. For instance, if you’re an attorney, you should determine whether the developer understands the legal profession’s current workflows and concerns. Licensed attorneys should be involved in the development of the assistant.

Can it be integrated into your digital toolbox?

Technology is most effective when it plays well with other tech. Is the GenAI assistant you’re considering able to interconnect with Microsoft 365, database management tools, and other platforms you use in your work? Will it streamline the complicated work you already do or become yet another program to run each day?

How experienced is the vendor’s AI talent?

Does the company offering the assistant have an extensive track record with GenAI development? Can it demonstrate an ability to continuously update and innovate as new challenges and needs arise? How well does the company’s technology ensure data privacy? A technology provider's history in AI and technology development, along with their demonstrated sophistication, are critical factors to consider.

Does it have the capabilities you need?

Sorting through massive datasets for crucial information is an essential capability. That’s just one of the many benefits a truly useful GenAI assistant can do. It can also perform trustworthy research and draft sophisticated documents — to name a couple of others. While a GenAI assistant's broad skill set can positively impact organizational success, the greatest benefit arises from its versatility combined with the ability to address the specific needs of your most critical tasks.

GenAI’s impact on traditional work

Professional industries have always made productive use of new technologies, and AI is very much a part of that tradition. That said, the changes GenAI brings are likely to be profound.

In the 2025 Generative AI in Professional Services Report from the Thomson Reuters Institute, researchers gathered insights to examine how GenAI is changing how legal, tax and accounting, and risk and fraud professionals work. GenAI adoption is rapidly increasing, with enterprise usage nearly doubling from 12% to 22% in the past year. Additionally, 95% of respondents expect it to be central to their workflow within five years. The report also reveals that GenAI skills are increasingly valued in hiring, with 24% now considering it a "nice-to-have" and 2% considering it a “must-have” qualification for new employees.

GenAI assistants certainly won’t do away with human expertise. What they can do is relieve professionals from mundane tasks and allow them to focus on more strategic and creative work requiring their distinctive knowledge and experience.

At a high level, a GenAI assistant is best suited to help with:

• Performing complicated research, like identifying the most on-point authorities within a vast case law database.
• Processing and analyzing large quantities of information, quickly and accurately, ensuring efficiency without sacrificing precision.
• Drafting specialized content, based on existing examples and your project's needs.

Not only do these workflows require tremendous amounts of information, but they’re also tedious and particularly prone to human error. A GenAI assistant can not only automate these processes, but it can also complete them more thoroughly and efficiently.

The most effective GenAI assistant should be at your side, just like a human assistant, but seamless and unobtrusive. It should integrate naturally with your other software, your network, and your team. The right tool supports complicated workflows and works seamlessly across applications and documents. It also takes on time-consuming, repetitive tasks — freeing you to focus on strategic work requiring your human expertise.

CoCounsel: A trusted GenAI assistant, with you every step of the way

When looking for a trusted GenAI assistant, you’ll need to choose one that understands the work you do as a professional and can help you clarify the complex. Because this technology and solutions built on it are advancing so quickly, those who don’t adopt the best GenAI available now will be left exponentially further behind.  Let us show you the trusted assistant you need, CoCounsel.

CoCounsel stands out for professionals seeking a comprehensive and adaptive solution. Unlike other AI tools that focus on single tasks, we’ve designed CoCounsel to manage entire workflows, providing seamless integration and enhanced productivity. This capability makes CoCounsel a true assistant that accelerates current tasks — utilizing authoritative content you can trust — proving an essential partner in clarifying the complexities of your professional landscape.

With AI rapidly transforming the legal, tax and accounting, and risk and fraud professions, and clients expecting more than ever before, having a trusted AI assistant you can rely on will be truly invaluable Thomson Reuters is the industry-leading technology company for decision-makers faced with an increasingly complex world. We continuously innovate and develop AI technology, so you can work today and navigate tomorrow with unwavering confidence.