Big 4 accountant EY has signed a deal to begin using Slaughter and May-backed artificial intelligence company Luminance across its global legal network.

Luminance, which was founded in 2016, uses pattern recognition and machine learning algorithms to read legal documents, making contract review processes more efficient.

EY Law's Belfast office was an early adopter of Luminance along with Slaughter and May in 2017, but previously the rest of its network did not have access.

A statement from the company said EY Law intends to use the platform for large-scale document review, particularly M&A due diligence.

EY global law lead Cornelius Grossman told Legal Week he sees AI capability as central in providing "competitive services in the field of contract review and due diligence", and added that the firm looked at a number of products before choosing Luminance.

Luminance CEO Emily Foges said: "Law firms are not traditionally known for their adoption of technology, and it's the opposite for EY."

She added that the firm is "bringing together technology with the law in a way that's very exciting for us".

Last week, Luminance announced its second major fundraising round, which valued the company at $100m (£77.5m). Luminance CEO Emily Foges said the extra capital would be used for new hires at the company's Cambridge headquarters and for financing global expansion.

Along with Slaughters, Luminance also counts Eversheds Sutherland, Bird & Bird, and McDermott Will & Emery as law firm clients.