Context Engineering - Lessons Learned from Scaling CoCounsel

Learn how to transform powerful AI models into reliable professional products through this 20-minute conference talk by Jake Heller, who built CoCounsel, an AI legal assistant that helped secure Casetext's acquisition by Thomson Reuters. Discover the breakthrough moment when GPT-4 achieved 90th percentile performance on the bar exam compared to GPT-3.5's 10th percentile, and understand how this leap enabled professional-grade legal AI applications. Explore the three essential steps for developing AI products: defining customer experience, distinguishing between linear and agentic tasks, and mastering context engineering. Examine practical examples from legal research workflows and contract analysis to understand how to structure AI interactions effectively. Master prompt engineering techniques including writing effective prompts, leveraging context strategically, and overcoming common challenges in prompt development. Gain insights into advanced topics like reinforcement fine-tuning and model selection strategies that enable AI systems to perform reliably in demanding professional environments. Access detailed coverage of early GPT-4 experimentation, the pivot to CoCounsel development, and practical tricks for optimizing AI performance in real-world applications.