RELX (LSE: REL) shares have fallen 38% over the past 12 months as concerns around artificial intelligence continue to build. At first glance, that reaction might make sense. After all, this is a business built on information, data, and research. But is the market interpreting the impact of AI correctly?
The core AI concern
The central concern is not that artificial intelligence can generate information, but that large language models could start to disintermediate parts of professional workflow software.
Nowhere is this debate more obvious than in legal services. LexisNexis sits at the centre of how lawyers search case law, build arguments, and manage complex workflows. Investors are increasingly asking whether AI tools could replicate or bypass parts of that process.
At first glance, the case is easy to make. LLMs already summarise legal documents, draft analysis, and retrieve information at speed. If they improve further, it raises a simple question: do traditional legal information providers risk losing relevance in the workflow chain?
A related issue is pricing power. If AI tools from large software groups sit between RELX and its customers, the concern is that control over access, distribution, and monetisation of data could weaken.
In short, the debate is not about whether AI exists, but whether it replaces parts of RELX’s position in the professional workflow stack.
Information vs knowledge
In practice, the concern about AI disintermediation often assumes that legal information is simply a question of retrieval. But the reality is more complex.
Law is not just information. Instead, it’s a structured, precedent-driven discipline built on decades of layered interpretation, professional standards, and jurisdiction-specific nuance.
Accuracy, traceability, and trust are essential — which is why raw AI outputs are not enough on their own.
Embedding AI tools
Rather than being displaced by new AI tools, the group is integrating them into its platforms. Management says it works closely with providers such as OpenAI and Anthropic, constantly testing new models and embedding those that add value.
The key issue is control of the workflow. Where AI improves how customers interact with legal content, it is built into products like Lexis+ AI. Where third-party tools sit outside the content layer, the group does not compete directly, but ensures its data can still be accessed through those environments.
In other words, the strategy is not to resist AI but to sit underneath it as the trusted content layer that powers it.
What’s the verdict
Having recently added RELX shares to my own portfolio after their sharp decline, I think the market may be overestimating the risk from AI disruption to its core legal business.
The concern assumes information can be easily commoditised. In my view, the real value lies in structured, trusted, and workflow-integrated data. The group is also enhancing this by embedding AI into its platforms, not being replaced by it.
That said, there is still uncertainty. If AI models evolve faster than expected, the competitive landscape could shift more than the market currently expects.
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Andrew Mackie owns shares in Relx.
