Tech news: Luca IQ launches e-file approved tax engine for CPAs

Published July 31, 2026 12:20 PM

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Updated August 3, 2026 9:41 AM

1 Min Read

Luca IQ launches with e-file approved tax engine for CPA firms; Workday touts new Financial Audit Agent; Cherry Hill Advisory launches AI-enabled internal audit services; and other accounting tech news and updates.

Luca IQ launches with e-file approved tax engine for CPA firms

Luca IQ co-founder Angelo Policicchio, CPA

Luca IQ, a new tax solutions provider for CPA firms, has launched today with a tax engine built exclusively for firms. It has already passed IRS Assurance Testing and is now an Authorized IRS e-file Provider. The platform automates workpaper preparation, converts source documents into structured tax inputs, calculates returns through a deterministic engine, and gives tax professionals an audit trail and final review before filing. Users upload client source documents, including W-2s, 1099s, K-1s and brokerage statements. Luca IQ reads each document and maps the values to the specific lines of the return they belong on, with every figure traceable back to the document it came from. The engine then computes every return using rules-based logic rather than probabilistic models. Every figure traces back to the rule and the source document that produced it. Luca IQ then transmits completed returns directly to the IRS. It is marketed as an API-first platform that allows firms and fintechs to connect tax filing directly to the rest of their systems while keeping the tax professional in control; a single call returns a completed return as structured data, as a formatted PDF, or as a return e-filed with the IRS. Luca IQ does not sell to taxpayers. It sells only through CPA and tax firms and does not offer a DIY product for clients to file without accountants.

Workday debuts Financial Audit Agent

HR, finance and IT platform Workday announced the availability of its Financial Audit Agent. The new agent works within Workday's Accounting Agent, their broader agent. The new agent automatically gathers audit evidence. Accountants and controllers simply ask for the evidence they need—an invoice, a supplier contract, a bank reconciliation—and the agent retrieves it through a natural language interface, then assembles everything into a compilation package ready to share with auditors and other stakeholders. In the future, the agent will also be able to do audit testing. The Financial Audit Agent's upcoming testing capabilities will test transactions, surface exceptions and recommend remediation—replacing periodic spot-checks with continuous testing.

Cherry Hill Advisory launches AI-enabled internal audit services

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Internal audit and risk management solutions provider Cherry Hill Advisory introduced AI-Enabled Internal Audit Services. It offers predictive risk assessment that builds a forward-looking risk picture built by three AI models running in parallel; AI governance assessments via adversarial scans of LLMs; a map and grading of assurance coverage across three lines; segregation-of-duties conflict detection; third-party risk program audits; SOC report reviews; exposure analysis to IIA requirements; and internal audit function benchmarks.

Workiva launches agents and intelligence layer to coordinate them

Cloud-based financial reporting technology company Workiva announced three AI agents and Workiva Knowledge, a persistent intelligence layer grounded in an organization's data, instructions and content. The Tie-Out Agent performs checks across financial reports, flagging discrepancies and surfacing AI-generated explanations for each variance. The Benchmarking Agent analyzes publicly filed peer data from 10-Ks and 10-Qs filed with the SEC, enabling financial reporting teams to build custom peer groups, identify disclosure gaps, and draft disclosures with insights traceable back to the source filing. The Sustainability Disclosure Agent drafts, checks and improves disclosures against ESRS and ISSB standards, generating gap assessments and compliance scorecards with actionable recommendations. Workiva Knowledge creates a shared foundation for all AI interactions on the platform, informed by an organization's data, custom instructions, and content, from past filings and internal policies to institutional guidance and trusted source documentation. It's enriched with each reporting cycle, so each AI interaction builds on the last one. Knowledge is complemented by Workiva's newly announced Model Context Protocol gateway. The Workiva MCP gateway allows customers to use the AI of their choice and eliminate manual workarounds while maintaining Workiva's permissions, governance and data lineage.

Zuora rolls out quote-to-cash agent "Milo"

Zuora CEO Tien Tzuo at the company's Subscribed conference

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Billing, revenue management and monetization platform Zuora announced Milo. The AI builds a quote-to-cash digital twin of how a company sells, contracts, bills and recognizes revenue. Milo helps teams configure, validate, test and bring new capabilities into production. Once all this is done, it continually optimizes itself after launch with an evolving understanding of the business, identifying opportunities to adapt, refine, and enhance how systems operate in today's rapidly changing business landscape. Zuora global services, customer success and implementation teams remain in the loop to guide decisions, review outcomes and validate critical work to keep projects on track. Milo is now available for every Zuora implementation.

iDenfy launches bank card verification, age verification

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Identity verification management solutions provider iDenfy announced a Bank Card Verification platform within its software dashboard. When a business enables the bank card verification flow, the end user receives a verification link by invitation and has to verify the bank card by choosing and verifying the card ownership by capturing it with a smartphone, iPad or laptop camera, or uploading a card confirmation document that verifies the owner. As an option, users can also be asked to enter the last four digits of their bank card for greater accuracy. Once that login succeeds, iDenfy extracts the relevant authentication data and passes it to the client.

iDenfy also announced the launch of its Age Estimation tool integrated into its onboarding software dashboard. This new Age Verification upgrade gives the ability to create, manage, and review age verification sessions on their own, separately from iDenfy's standard identity verification flow metrics, while still relying on the same level of security. Users who are clearly above the age threshold pass using only a selfie. On the other hand, users whose estimated age falls near the legal limit are automatically routed to a certified ID document check within the same session, where the date of birth on the document, not the model's estimate, makes the final decision.

Caseware debuts "30 Under 30 Excellence Network"

Audit solutions provider Caseware launched the Caseware 30 Under 30 Excellence Network, a community that connects the inaugural class of 30 Under 30 honorees so they can continue learning from one another, sharing perspectives, and helping shape the future of assurance and accounting together, alongside the platforms Caseware is building to support that future. The network, which gives the profession's rising leaders a standing forum rather than one-time recognition, will hold its first gathering on July 30, 2026. The initial cohort of 30 Under 30 honorees was first recognized in May at CwX North America 2026, the same event where the company unveiled Caseware Verity, its industry-first agentic platform built directly into assurance engagements. The network will bring honorees together to discuss emerging trends across audit, accounting and assurance; share perspectives on adopting AI and agentic tools responsibly in practice; access mentorship from senior leaders, including Barry Melancon, chair of Caseware's Global Advisory Board and former president and CEO of the AICPA and CIMA; help identify and evaluate nominees for future 30 Under 30 cohorts; and contribute thought leadership content and speak at future CwX events. Connor Crow, the program's inaugural first-place winner and associate chief at CPAClub, will be among the network's founding voices.

Integrations and partnerships and M&A

Payroll and HR platform Deel announced the availability of its services in the Microsoft Marketplace. Organizations that run their operations on Microsoft Azure and Microsoft 365 can now find and deploy Deel's Employee of Record, Managed Payroll and contractor hiring solutions directly through Microsoft Marketplace. They can further optimize cloud spend by applying Deel toward existing Azure Consumption Commitments. … Intuit has established multiyear partnerships with Anthropic and OpenAI to bring new sales invoicing, payroll and lending intelligence in Claude and ChatGPT, moving beyond read-only access to user data. The features enable small business users to perform tasks such as creating invoices, looking up payroll details and accessing loan benchmarking through conversation. … Value-added reseller and managed services provider Net at Work announced the acquisition of Kinzit Technologies, a managed services provider and cybersecurity firm. Kinzit's employees will join Net at Work and continue to serve their existing clients while gaining expanded career growth opportunities. Kinzit clients will get access to a broader suite of applications that optimize workflows and support business growth. … LexisNexis Legal & Professional and Neil Jesani Tax Advisors, a national full-service tax advisory firm, announced plans to collaborate on Tolley+ with Protégé to advance tax advisory services for CPA firms. LexisNexis will support Neil Jesani Tax Advisors with access to authoritative tax content and AI-powered research tools. … Big Four firm E&Y announced an expanded alliance with SymphonyAI in manufacturing and supply chain services, allowing more organizations to build AI operations from the ground up rather than bolting AI onto legacy structures. SymphonyAI's industrial AI platform will be embedded into EY's Order-to-Cash Master Value Blueprint, which helps EY clients scale AI across manufacturing and business operations. This expansion builds on EY and SymphonyAI's original alliance, which focused on bringing GenAI applications to retail and financial services. The expanded alliance will bring services to EY clients in manufacturing-intensive industries including industrial products, consumer goods, life sciences and energy. … FreshBooks, a business management solutions provider, and Grasshopper, a full-service digital bank, announced a strategic partnership. FreshBooks will bring Grasshopper transactions into one place, turn transactions into clear reports, pair Grasshopper's with FreshBooks' invoices, online payments and payment reminders, and help users scan receipts. … Vena Solutions, a provider of financial and operational planning solutions, has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Morpheo AI, subject to closing conditions. Vena is acquiring Morpheo AI's technology and the team behind it to advance Vena AI through Vena Omega, a cumulative context engine designed to deepen organizational intelligence and enable company-specific AI capabilities. The acquisition also brings new capabilities to Acterys, transforming fragmented enterprise data into a structured context that AI can understand and act on.

New hires and appointments

GruntWorx, a tax automation solutions provider, announced the appointment of Stacy Penna as president. Penna previously served as vice president of sales and marketing and has played a central role in strengthening the company's brand and deepening its connection to the accounting profession. Penna will oversee strategic growth initiatives, practitioner experience and the continued development of GruntWorx's technology enabled tax workflow solutions. … Small business accounting platform Xero promoted Jonathan Meltzer to U.S. managing director. He was previously senior vice president of customer growth and experience, where he led the team responsible for driving growth and retention across Xero's small business customers and accountant and bookkeeper partners. He will report to Maninder Sawhney, who will join Xero as chief business officer in August, bringing sales, marketing, business development and customer experience together under one leader. In this role, Meltzer will also partner closely with Matan Bar, CEO of Xero's U.S. and Melio business, to deliver integrated accounting and payments solutions for U.S. small businesses and their advisors…. Professional services automation provider Kantata announced three strategic additions to its executive leadership team. Joining Kantata are Lisa Bianco as chief marketing officer, Jeff Balistrere as vice president of enterprise sales, North America, and Keith Bendy as global vice president of the alliances and channels ecosystem. … XcelLabs, the company behind Navi, announced that Michael Parness has joined the organization as managing director of business development. In this role, Parness will focus on introducing firms to Navi and helping leaders identify where stronger conversations can create greater value. He will also help XcelLabs deepen its relationships across the profession, refine how it supports firms in adopting and expanding Navi, and identify opportunities to help firms navigate change through XcelLabs' learning and consulting capabilities.

Other news

BlackLine, which provides automation software for accounting and finance, announced the general availability of Verity Prepare, which debuted last fall. Verity Prepare orchestrates a specialized digital workforce to autonomously analyze supporting documentation, match transactions, identify reconciling items and assemble audit-ready reconciliations.