Munich Startup: What does Silverflow do? What problem do you solve?
Lukas Ballweg, Silver River: We're building an automation platform that helps law firms handle more cases. Many firms face the challenge of not finding enough paralegals to grow or handle existing cases.
Our solution supports these law firms in handling their cases. One example is the handling of an accident in a traffic law firm. From recording and classifying the facts of the case to drafting various letters and pleadings to insurance companies and the police, to coordinating with experts and other parties involved, Silberfluss handles many tasks that would otherwise consume a significant amount of time for the firm's staff.
After receiving a few inquiries from the public sector, we realized that our solution was a good fit and solved a problem there as well. In the medium term, we also want to support public administration and the judiciary in processing cases more quickly and in a more citizen-centric manner. Initial pilot projects are already being planned.
Pilot projects for public administration and justice
Munich Startup: But that's been around for a long time!
Lukas Ballweg: Unfortunately not. What sets us apart from other process automation solutions in the law firm sector is that we support law firms in the entire client processing process, across various legal areas. Existing solutions that integrate into the law firm ecosystem usually only help with a specific niche task.
What sets us apart in the public sector is that we combine both the front office (the point of contact with applicants) and the back office (internal administrative processes) in a single solution, and everything can be configured via a no-code interface. This offers the crucial advantage of enabling faster and easier implementation of digital end-to-end processes without media disruption, rather than just digitizing a specific process step.
Munich Startup: What is your founding story?
Lukas Ballweg: We are a team of four founders and met mostly through the German Business Foundation (sdw). We took the first steps toward Silberfluss through an sdw startup initiative. I studied computer science with a minor in law and have therefore already worked on several projects in the legal tech sector. That's where the idea for Silberfluss came from. We've been working on Silberfluss for over two years now. We've been working on Silberfluss full-time for about a year, since most of us finished our studies.
The question of commitment and risk
Munich Startup: What have been your biggest challenges so far?
Lukas Ballweg: In the initial phase, it took time for us as a team to agree on our long-term goals, expectations, motivation, and how much commitment and risk we were willing to take. This wasn't an easy process, as our expectations were extremely different. But it has now turned us into a perfectly functioning team.
Above all, the last few years have been an immense learning process, one in which we've repeatedly pushed ourselves to our limits. The feedback we received during the initial phase in particular has taught us to delve deeper into and understand our customers' needs and challenges every day—and thus deliver real added value.
Silberfluss: “We are satisfied”
Munich Startup: How are things going?
Lukas Ballweg: We're satisfied. Since we acquired our first pilot clients a year ago, we've grown steadily. We currently work with a low double-digit number of law firms. Our clients achieve time savings of up to 90 percent in the handling of mass litigation cases thanks to Silberfluss. Through partnerships, we expect to add several hundred more law firms this year.
Munich Startup: How have you experienced Munich as a startup location so far?
Lukas Ballweg: When applying for the Exist start-up grant, we had the choice of applying through Heidelberg University or Munich University of Applied Sciences. Ultimately, we chose Munich. This was a conscious decision. Munich has a strong startup and investor network, and we had already received intensive support from Munich University of Applied Sciences. Munich is clearly making a significant effort when it comes to startup funding. Furthermore, the mountains are closer in Munich, which was another reason for me personally to choose our location.
Munich Startup: Public transport or bicycle?
Lukas Ballweg: Definitely a bicycle, but only if there is a free space for it on the subway.
