Outside investors circling law firms may help some shoulder the growing costs of artificial intelligence, according to Mayer Brown's Jon Van Gorp.

"I could see private capital providing specific funding for AI with a use agreement between the firm and the AI vehicle where it's tailored, just like litigation funding," Van Gorp, the firm's chairman, said on Bloomberg Law's On The Merits podcast.

Still, the unique aspects of the legal services business pose challenges for broader outside investment in large firms, Van Gorp said. The "practice of law is still a profession, and lawyers still have their way of doing things," he said.

Van Gorp spoke to Bloomberg Law reporter Roy Strom about AI's "big question that everybody's talking about." He also discussed his firm's focus on servicing energy markets, the turbulent times for private credit markets, and the impact of President Donald Trump's war on the legal industry.

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