Ex-BlackRock VP of Machine Learning joins Avantia as CTO

London, UK – 20 June – Avantia Law, a leading law firm specialising in investment compliance and contract review for private equity and asset management firms, is pleased to announce the appointment of Paul Gaskell as Chief Technology Officer.

Previously VP of machine learning at BlackRock, Paul brings over 15 years’ experience in machine learning, with a proven track record of building AI technology solutions for global private equity firms and financial institutions.  In this new role, he will lead the ongoing development of Avantia’s in-house AI and technology platforms and serve on Avantia's leadership team.

"We are thrilled to welcome Paul to our team," said James Sutton, CEO of Avantia Law. "His extensive experience in creating and using AI to optimise workstreams for global private equity firms aligns perfectly with our firm's vision and the next stage of our growth."

Paul previously served as Group Technology Officer at Access Intelligence where he was responsible for integrating AI solutions across a portfolio of SaaS products. He has also held senior positions at BlackRock and Bloomberg, notably building the AI platform that underpins BlackRock’s private markets technology offering via the Aladdin and Efront/Insight brands. Paul holds a PhD in Web Science from the University of Southampton, where he studied the uses of AI for financial forecasting.

"I am excited to join Avantia Law as they look to transform how legal and compliance services are delivered using technology and AI," said Gaskell "The legal industry is poised for a step change, and we’re already seeing areas where the application of AI can make a huge difference, for both lawyers and their clients."

“We don’t see AI as the end goal though. For the complex challenges our customers face, AI alone won’t be the answer. For us it's about augmenting already expert lawyers with technology that has been specifically developed to help them make better, faster decisions, with instant access to a much wider source of data than would be traditionally available.”