A post-COVID-19 world may be paving the way for contract solutions providers looking to enter a crowded e-discovery market that has traditionally been dominated by a series of longstanding incumbents. But while the technology may be in place, contract tech vendors may have trouble replicating the wide breadth of institutional knowledge that e-discovery thrives upon.

However, that doesn't mean they won't try. Luminance, for example, rolled out the latest version of its Luminance Discovery platform last month, including 3-D visualizations of data sets and additional integrations with Microsoft. Originally built in 2018, the tool uses the same AI-engine that powers Luminance's contract due diligence services.

Jason Brennan, CEO of Luminance, indicated that outside of a couple new workflows, building an e-discovery platform required little in the way of technology the company wasn't already deploying. Tending to the larger cultural shift required to succeed—mainly persuading change-resistant lawyers to experiment with new e-discovery products outside of the usual string of incumbents—has been a longer work-in-progress.