Disruptive innovation and smart contracts — what is the future of legal agreements? By Monisha Prem Disruptive innovation displaces old systems, products and technology. It is the radical changes in industry that often result from technical advancements such as automation — in other words, turning tradition on its head. Uber and Airbnb are prime examples of companies who have disrupted their respective traditional industries by providing modern, easy and cost-effective solutions. Even with no assets to speak of, these companies are worth billions of US dollars. A critical component of disruption is the social ease of accessing traditionally inaccessible products and experiences. The financial sector, for example, is experiencing disruptive innovation in the form of FinTech or crowdfunding (online lending or investing without traditional financial systems) and Bitcoin (cryptocurrencies). How does disruptive innovation impact the legal industry? According to the techies, t...