INTERVIEW: Making a splash

Max Riggsbee, Founder and Chief Product Officer of Gadget Software, is a multi-disciplinary technologist with decades of leadership experience across Wall Street, Silicon Valley, consultancy, and startups. 

For much of the past decade, he has focused on transforming complex text into atomic structures and metadata descriptors using AI. As the co-founder and Chief Product Officer at Gadget Software, he works to make public policy documents – which he describes as “grey literature” – more accessible and understandable.

Earlier this year Gadget Software launched TopicLake Policy Alerts, which helps organisations keep track of federal regulations easily and affordably. It uses advanced AI to scan for relevant rules, sends timely email alerts, and offers a personalised dashboard for managing updates.

Max explains: “The concept for TopicLake Insights arose from the need to simplify federal policy. We realised that government regulations, particularly those published in the Federal Register, could be overwhelming in volume and complexity.

“Our text atomisation technology, combined with generative AI, offered a way to break down these complex documents into manageable, topic-based insights, making it much easier for businesses and researchers to navigate and understand regulations.”

The TopicLake Policy Insights API is updated daily and includes more than four years of AI-generated topics, summaries, and notes on regulations from all federal agencies. 

Max explains that TopicLake Insights works in three main steps: “First, we use AI to retrieve documents from sources like the Federal Register. Then, we atomise these documents – essentially breaking them down into individual topics. Finally, we use AI to generate six different metadata perspectives for each topic, helping users quickly grasp the key points of the document without needing to read through the entire text.”

Insights for academia

Outlining some of the potential key benefits for the scholarly communications ecosystem, Max said: “The value of TopicLake Insights lies in its ability to identify key concepts in government policy documents (legislation and regulations) using metadata-driven discovery rather than keyword search.

“The increasing volume and velocity of government policy documents make it nearly impossible to cross-reference content, whether for research in academia, business, or government. Our AI technology helps researchers, librarians, and policy professionals sift through massive datasets of grey literature and find relevant insights faster, allowing them to focus more on critical analysis and application.”

At present, TopicLake is dedicated to the US Federal Register – but Max believes the system is applicable to other countries, and there are plans to embrace other jurisdictions and different applications: “Yes, we definitely have plans for expansion. 

“TopicLake Insights is currently focused on US Federal Register documents, but we are expanding our Policy Insights service to cover federal legislation, state legislation, state regulations, state bulletins, and even international regulations.” He says the technology is versatile, and believes it can be beneficial to other jurisdictions facing similar challenges in navigating complex regulatory environments.

“In addition to Policy Insights, we offer Business Insights, helping companies generate metadata for internal documents, such as Law Enforcement Incident Notes. We're also developing features to create dynamic insights briefs and podcast briefs. Podcast briefs transform text into a moderated listening experience. 

“This new media will complement our metadata, providing users with more engaging ways to consume information.”

Max has a busy family and social life – Max and his wife, keen fans of NY Red Bulls and NJ/NY Gotham FC soccer teams, have four adult children, as well as two dogs and two cats who keep them busy. 

But he still devotes a large proportion of his spare time to orchestrating and publishing AI literature: “It's a fascinating space where technology and creativity meet, and it's something I'm very passionate about.”

TopicLake Insights has been selected for the Charleston Premieres presentation at Charleston Conference on 14 November. These sessions are designed to offer publishers and vendors the chance to showcase their newest and most innovative products, platforms, and content. TopicLake is clearly one to watch.

Interview by Tim Gillett