Why the legal system is critical infrastructure, and how we built a sovereign AI solution to protect it in just 24 hours.
The 2:30 AM Reality Check
That glowing heat signature you see? That was the physical manifestation of sleep deprivation, caffeine, and absolute focus. We were 24 hours deep into the European Critical Infrastructure Hackathon, competing against top engineering teams from across the continent.
The exhaustion was worth it. The ZeroMissed team took first place in the Sovereign Communication & Social Media category. 🏆
But this victory isn't just about a trophy. It is a validation of the philosophy we apply every day: that in the era of AI, privacy and efficiency do not have to be enemies.
Law is Critical Infrastructure
Why did we enter a Critical Infrastructure hackathon? Because we believe the legal system is just as vital to national security as energy grids or defense systems.
Currently, European lawyers face an "Impossible Choice":
- Ignore AI: Stay offline to remain compliant, but slowly lose market share to tech-savvy competitors.
- Compromise Security: Use powerful, US-based public models (like ChatGPT) to boost productivity, but risk leaking confidential client data and violating GDPR.
We went to the hackathon to prove there is a third option: Sovereign AI.
Pre-Made Understanding, Not Pre-Made Code
How did we build a winning solution in just 24 hours?
We didn't bring pre-written code to the competition. We brought pre-made understanding. Our prototype was built on the hard-earned lessons and deep market insights we gather every day while building ZeroMissed.ai (TuAsystent.pl). We distilled months of client feedback into a brand new concept tailored for this challenge: a "compliance by design" legal intake system.
The Domain Advantage
Building effective LegalTech isn't just about writing clean code; it's about understanding the nuances of the law.
Crucially, we had a "secret weapon" on the team: Mikołaj Więcek, LL.M. As an attorney, Mikołaj brought massive insider knowledge to the table. While other teams might guess what features lawyers need, we knew exactly where the pain points lay. We focused on saving lawyers hours of tedious workflow like factual analysis and document briefing -without forcing them to compromise on their ethical obligations.
Under the Hood: The Sovereign Tech Stack
To achieve true data sovereignty, we utilized a stack that guarantees data never leaves our control. Here is the architecture that secured our win:
- Deployment: AWS European Sovereign Cloud. We chose this independent cloud, located entirely within the EU, to guarantee that data residency and legal protections are baked into the infrastructure foundation.
- Voice AI: ElevenLabs (Zero Retention). We utilized ElevenLabs running specifically in Zero Retention Mode, ensuring that no voice data is ever stored or used for model training.
- LLM: Bielik AI. We deployed this powerful Polish language model in a closed network, proving that European LLMs are ready for enterprise use.
- Security Layer: The system features advanced OCR, document anonymization, and end-to-end encrypted file exchange.
Sovereignty is About Control, Not Isolation
For a long time, there was a misconception that 'Digital Sovereignty' meant building everything from scratch in Europe. This hackathon taught us a more pragmatic truth: sovereignty is about control. By combining Bielik (a native Polish LLM) with the AWS European Sovereign Cloud, we proved we can leverage world-class, global infrastructure while ensuring data never leaves our legal jurisdiction. We learned that we don't need to reinvent the wheel to be secure - we just need to ensure we hold the steering wheel.
The Team Behind the Win
This victory belongs to the entire ZeroMissed family.
The Hackathon Squad:
- Mateusz Orzoł - Architecture & AI
- Mikołaj Więcek, LL.M. - Legal Domain Expert
- Patryk Kaczmarek - Cloud & DevOps
- Mateusz Mul - Product & Strategy
- Łukasz Ciskowski - Full Stack Engineering
The Home Base: Huge shoutout to Andrzej Melcer and Julia Godny. While they weren't in the trenches with us this weekend, their daily dedication to our core vision provided the strategic foundation that allowed us to execute this pivot so effectively.
Special Acknowledgments: A massive thank you to Marek Godny - our "King of DevOps" 👑 - for the crucial architectural consultations before the event. Your input was key to our deployment strategy.
Finally, thank you to Vidoc Security Lab for organizing such a necessary event. The energy in the room proved one thing: Europe is ready to stop just using technology and start controlling it.
