When Code Becomes Evidence: Proving and Testing AI and Tech Claims in Arbitration

Presentation

When disputes turn on source code, data architecture or algorithmic behaviour, traditional arbitral frameworks are put under pressure. How do tribunals meaningfully assess highly technical, dynamic and sometimes opaque digital evidence? How should arbitration adapt when the key exhibit is not a document, but a software repository?

This Bird & Bird panel will explore how international arbitration can be calibrated for technology-driven disputes in which code itself becomes central evidence. From the choice of an arbitral institution and seat, to the intervention of experts and organisation of the procedure, the discussion will examine the structural decisions that shape the quality and enforceability of awards in tech cases.

Bringing together the perspectives of leading arbitrators, experts and counsel, this panel will address practical challenges faced by clients and arbitration practitioners alike, and explore a way forward for thoughtfully tailoring arbitral procedure to ensure it remains effective and fit for purpose in technology-driven disputes.

This session will be of particular interest to in-house counsel in technology-intensive sectors, arbitrators, arbitration practitioners and experts regularly involved in disputes where software, data and algorithms are not background context, but the core of the case.