AI-Powered Search
AI Search is not yet available. This page describes how the feature will work when it is released. If you don't see AI Search in your Locker sidebar, it hasn't been released to your account yet.
AI Search will let you ask plain-language questions about your documents and get direct, cited answers. Instead of searching for the right keyword, you'll be able to ask "Which vendor agreements include an auto-renewal clause?" and get an answer with links to the source documents.
Screenshot: locker-ai-search, screenshot of the AI search interface with a question field and answer card showing source citations
How to Use AI Search
- Go to Locker → AI Search in the sidebar.
- Type a question in the Ask a question field and press Enter.
- Locker returns a direct answer with source citations, links to the specific documents and passages used.
- Click any citation to open the source document and verify the context.
Screenshot: locker-ai-answer-card, screenshot of an answer card with cited document snippets
AI Search vs. Full-Text Search
| Full-Text Search | AI-Powered Search | |
|---|---|---|
| Input | Keywords and phrases | Questions in plain language |
| Output | List of matching documents | A direct answer with source citations |
| Best for | Finding a specific document you know exists | Understanding what your documents say |
| Precision | Exact, finds what you search for | Interpretive, synthesizes an answer |
| Verification | The result is the document | Always verify against the cited source |
Use full-text search when:
- You know the document name, a party name, or a specific term you want to find
- You want to see all documents containing a phrase
- You need a definitive list of matching documents for reporting or auditing
- Precision matters and you can't afford an incorrect result
Use AI Search when:
- You want to understand what your documents say about a topic
- You're looking for a clause or obligation across multiple contracts without knowing exactly how it's worded
- You want a quick synthesis before opening individual files
- You're exploring a topic you haven't searched for before
What AI Search Does Well
AI Search is most reliable for:
- Finding clauses and provisions, "Which contracts have a 60-day notice period for termination?"
- Cross-document summaries, "What are the common liability caps in our vendor agreements?"
- Locating parties and counterparties, "Do we have any contracts with Acme Corp?"
- Identifying document types, "Show me all agreements that include an indemnification clause"
- Surfacing renewal and expiration language, "Which contracts auto-renew unless cancelled?"
Example Queries
Use these as a starting point. AI Search works best when your question is specific about document type, party name, clause type, or date range.
| Query | Result quality | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| "Which vendor contracts include an auto-renewal clause?" | ✅ Reliable | Specific clause type across a document category |
| "Do we have any signed agreements with Acme Corp?" | ✅ Reliable | Named party lookup |
| "Which NDAs have a governing law of New York?" | ✅ Reliable | Specific clause + jurisdiction |
| "What are the notice periods in our service agreements?" | ✅ Reliable | Cross-document clause extraction |
| "Which contracts expire in the next 90 days?" | ✅ Reliable | Date-bounded search |
| "Summarize the liability caps across our vendor agreements" | ✅ Reliable | Cross-document synthesis, always verify figures |
| "What is the total value of all active contracts?" | ⚠️ Verify | Numbers, confirm each value in the source document |
| "Which documents were uploaded last Tuesday?" | ⚠️ Use filters instead | Date-based file queries work better in Filters |
| "Is this NDA enforceable under California law?" | ❌ Not suitable | Legal interpretation, consult qualified legal counsel |
| "What should our contract policy be?" | ❌ Not suitable | AI Search describes documents, it does not give advice |
- Name the document type, "vendor contracts", "NDAs", "service agreements" performs better than "documents"
- Name the clause or topic, "termination clause", "liability cap", "payment terms" rather than "terms"
- Add context, "with Acme Corp", "signed in 2024", "governing law New York" narrows the result
- Ask one thing at a time, compound questions ("which contracts expire soon AND have auto-renewal?") are less reliable than two separate queries
Limitations and When Not to Rely on AI Search
AI Search synthesizes answers from document content, it can make mistakes. Understand these limitations before acting on AI Search results:
Verify specific numbers, dates, and dollar amounts. AI models can misread or misreport precise figures. A contract value, payment deadline, or notice period reported by AI Search should always be confirmed by opening the source document.
AI Search does not provide legal interpretation. It describes what documents say, not what they mean legally. Do not use AI Search output as a substitute for legal review.
Not all documents are indexed for content. AI Search indexes PDF (with embedded text), DOCX, and plain text (.txt) files. Legacy Word (.doc) and all Excel files (.xlsx, .xls) are stored in Locker but their content is not indexed, AI Search won't find content inside them, though they remain searchable by name and metadata. Scanned PDFs (image-only, no text layer) are stored but yield no meaningful AI results, use full-text search or check the document's text layer.
Very long documents may be partially indexed. For very large files, AI Search may not use the full document text. Critical clauses near the end of a very long document may not be surfaced. Use full-text search for precision in these cases.
Results depend on document quality. Inconsistent formatting, low-quality scans, or poorly structured documents reduce AI accuracy. Well-formatted PDFs with clear text yield the best results.
Reading Source Citations
Every AI Search answer includes citations, links to the specific document passages the answer is based on. Always use these to validate the answer:
- Click the citation to open the source document and the referenced passage.
- Read the full context, the cited snippet is the most relevant part, but surrounding clauses may change the meaning.
- If the citation doesn't support the answer, treat the answer as unreliable for that specific point and use full-text search to find documents manually.
Screenshot: locker-ai-citation-source, the source document view after clicking a citation, showing the referenced passage highlighted in context
A high-quality AI answer cites clear, specific passages. If an answer cites vague or tangentially related passages, it's a signal that the answer may be extrapolated rather than directly found.
Access and Audit
When AI Search is available, it will be accessible to team members whose plan includes it. Queries and cited responses will be recorded in your organization's Audit Logs so admins can review usage.
If AI Search isn't visible in your navigation, see Troubleshooting below.
Data Privacy
Your documents are processed within your organization's isolated environment and are never shared across organizations or used to train shared models. AI Search answers are generated only from documents in your organization's Locker repository.
Queries and answers are logged in your Audit Log for compliance and review purposes.
AI Chat
AI Chat is not yet available.
In addition to AI Search, Locker will provide AI Chat — a multi-turn conversational interface for your document library where you can ask follow-up questions and explore topics across multiple documents in a single session. AI Chat is best for open-ended exploration where you're not sure exactly what you're looking for.
Troubleshooting
AI Search isn't available in my navigation. AI Search is not yet released. When it launches, it will be a plan add-on. If Locker → AI Search doesn't appear in your sidebar, it hasn't been released to your account yet.
Related
- Full-Text Search: Exact keyword and phrase search across document content
- Filters: Narrow results by category, owner, date, and tags