Third Chair

Third Chair is a legal technology company that provides AI-powered agents designed to support in-house legal teams, with an initial focus on the media and entertainment industry. Founded in 2024 by Yoav Zimmerman and Shourya Lala, the company participated in Y Combinator's W25 batch. Both founders are second-time YC participants; Zimmerman previously founded Trendpop (YC W21), a social media analytics startup that worked with clients like Universal Music Group and Mr. Beast, while Lala founded Fello (YC W22), a fintech platform that grew to 2 million users. The company's core service automates the entire process of intellectual property (IP) enforcement, including identifying IP infringements, collecting evidence, and drafting demand letters, enabling legal teams to operate at scale and recover millions in damages. Third Chair combines software licensing fees with contingency revenue on settlements, aligning incentives with customers while maintaining recurring revenue. The company has crossed $100K ARR and works with major media and entertainment companies. The founders are expanding beyond IP enforcement into adjacent verticals, with brands now using the platform for marketing compliance workflows. The long-term strategy is to become a vertical AI law firm serving multiple practice areas.