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AtkinsRealis tackles some of the world's most important infrastructure and energy challenges, with global projects spanning transportation, nuclear, buildings, water, and defense. Behind that work is a massive foundation of complex, high-stakes contracts that demand total precision. AtkinsRéalis’ in-house team is one of the most innovative in the sector, and we’re incredibly proud that they have trusted Spellbook’s AI to power their contract workflows.

Michael Bloom is the founder and CEO of Praktio, the training platform law firms use to enable new associates to develop practical skills through training that feels like doing the work. Before that, he ran the Transactional Lab & Clinic at University of Michigan Law School and taught at Chicago Law. In this conversation, Michael and Mike discuss if AI is quietly making lawyers worse at their own jobs. They cover the MIT and endoscopist studies on AI-driven cognitive decline, why "practice-ready" was always a strawman, why skills and judgment can't be pulled apart, why junior associates say feedback has dried up, and the looming "tragedy of the commons" as AI eats the bottom of the associate pyramid. 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝘂𝗯𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗱𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1RqIrtqTgbng2BGuzr4aAq Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-redline/id1896630797 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆's 𝗴𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bloomich/ https://praktio.com/ 📌 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗱𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗡𝗲𝘄𝘀𝗹𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿: Get the latest news, trends, and tactics in legal AI—straight to your inbox. ➞ join free: https://www.spellbook.legal/newsletter 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗠𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗮𝗻: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikewhelanjr/ 💎 𝗦𝗽𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸: Draft and review contracts 10x faster ➞ try it free: https://www.spellbook.legal 𝗧𝗶𝗺𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗺𝗽𝘀: 0:00 - Introduction 0:36 - Meet Michael Bloom and Praktio 2:36 - Why using AI on a task makes you worse at that task 7:04 - Driver's seat vs. along for the ride 9:08 - The microscope test: amplification vs. atrophy 10:12 - The London cabbies and the cost of standardization 13:56 - Who actually owns lawyer training today 17:52 - Judgment isn't taught, it's built 19:20 - Inside Praktio's feedback-loop sandbox 23:56 - The tragedy of the commons in the associate pyramid 27:44 - Who foots the training bill in five years 34:52 - Connect with Michael