Introduction to Geopolitical Risk

President Donald Trump’s tariffs have highlighted the increasing geopolitical risk faced by businesses worldwide. The situation is constantly evolving due to Trump’s unpredictable deal-making, making it challenging for companies, nonprofits, consultants, and lawyers to stay up-to-date with the rapid day-to-day changes.

"We are drowning in trade updates every hour of every day," said Matthew Oresman, London managing partner of Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, a global law firm, in an interview with TechCrunch.

Hence AI’s Solution

The firm, which has a diverse client base including multinationals, high-net-worth individuals, and companies in tech, energy, and AI, is one of the first customers of London-based startup Hence AI’s new software product, Hence Global. This product utilizes AI to help organizations monitor geopolitical and business risk.

Key Features of Hence Global

The tool has two primary functions. Firstly, it assists companies of any size in tracking risk and provides advice on mitigating that risk. Secondly, it helps service providers, such as consulting and law firms, generate meaningful analysis about the world for their clients.

Democratizing Access to Information

Sean West, CEO and co-founder of Hence AI, described Hence Global as "an AI-powered business advisor that’s riding alongside you." With a base product price of $1,500 per year, Hence is significantly more affordable than traditional consultants, argued West.

"We want to democratize access to this information," West said in an exclusive interview, noting that organizations like startups and NGOs cannot afford to consult lawyers every time they have a question about exposure or spend half a million dollars on a consulting contract.

The Market for Hence Global

"Big companies know how to buy expensive advice, and the richest people will always talk to the smartest people, and they’ll pay for them," West continued. "But most of the market can actually be served by technology."

Background of the Founders

West previously served as the global deputy CEO of geopolitical advisory firm Eurasia Group and recently published a book, "Unruly: Fighting Back when Politics, AI, and Law Upend the Rules of Business." One of his co-founders, Steve Heitkamp, is a Palantir alum with a background in political risk and counterterrorism.

Technical Details of Hence Global

Hence Global is built on Palantir’s Foundry and Artificial Intelligence Platform, allowing the startup to blend different AI models to understand, summarize, and analyze relevant information based on a customer’s specific needs and industry. The system pulls in data from news headlines, Wikipedia, Securities and Exchange Commission filings, press releases, and other public data like sanctions lists or World Bank information.

Example of a Daily Briefing

An example of a daily briefing from Hence Global is provided, showcasing its potential impact. Image Credits: Hence AI

How Hence Global Works

West walked through how the product works to demonstrate its potential impact. Customers start by creating a persona, specifying their industry, topics of interest, and desired analysis. For the purposes of the demo, a cross-border cryptocurrency infrastructure company was used as an example. The system generates a daily update with relevant news and information, flagging stories that could impact the operating environment.

Comparison to Traditional Analysis

"Basically, it does the work that a mid-level analyst would have done in my organization," West said. He added that it would’ve taken said analyst all day to produce a memo that Hence Global churns out in a minute.

Use Cases for Hence Global

Hence Global’s daily briefing is great for companies that want to understand their own geopolitical and business risk, but it’s also helpful for services companies that are tracking this information for their clients. When a customer asks Hence Global to monitor a company, the system asks if that company is a client, competitor, or supplier, which affects how the platform provides information and analysis.

Client Testimonials

"We were desperate for these kinds of tools that can synthesize [information], help us write the client alerts, give us that big kernel of information that we can augment and put our legal knowledge on," Oresman said. "There’s just a firehose of information out there. Having something like this actually gets it to a water fountain so we can actually do something useful with it."

Market Response and Future Plans

Hence Global hasn’t been live for more than a couple of months, but Trump’s tariff situation has already begun bringing in new clients on top of existing customers like TravelPerk, Diversifi Capital, and Three Crowns. Rohitesh Dhawan, CEO of the International Council on Metals and Mining, uses Hence Global to monitor market sentiment and policy.
Dhawan likened Hence Global to Uber Eats — a product you didn’t know you needed until it showed up and made your life easier. He said that businesses in resource-based industries, like agriculture or oil and gas, and companies that are highly regulated or highly exposed to public sentiment, such as tech startups, would benefit most from using Hence Global.

Future Development and Funding

Hence Global is the startup’s second product after Hence Legal, a "solution for outside counsel management, matter management, and litigation management," per West. Hence AI, whose team is spread around the U.K., Rwanda, the U.S., and the Netherlands, has raised about $5.2 million to date and is actively looking to raise more for this product from investors who align with its mission. When asked about whether Hence AI would be open to being acquired by larger research houses, consultancies, or law firms, West said he and his team are less interested in going in-house at any one organization.

Conclusion

"We’re trying to do big things," he added. "And I think the big opportunity here is tapping the market of people who are global, but can’t access advice. And I don’t think that necessarily is what a large corporate service provider would do with this."