Today marks the commencement of the 14th Microsoft Ability Summit, an annual gathering of thought leaders aimed at advancing accessibility to narrow the Disability Divide.
This year’s summit revolves around three central themes: Build, Imagine, and Include. The theme “Build” encourages exploration of creating accessibly and inclusively by tapping into the insights of disabled individuals. “Imagine” delves into the best practices for designing accessible structures, events, content, and products. Lastly, “Include” sheds light on the challenges and opportunities that AI brings for creators, developers, and engineers.
The event features discussions with Katy Jo Wright and Dave McCarthy on Katy Jo’s journey living with Chronic Lyme Disease. Insights will be shared by deaf creator and performer Leila Hanaumi, international accessibility leaders Sara Minkara and Stephanie Cadieux, as well as singer and mental health advocate Michelle Williams.
Moreover, the summit will introduce several new initiatives.
Driving Progress in Accessible Technology
Accessible technology plays a pivotal role in empowering over 1.3 billion individuals with disabilities worldwide. With the evolution of AI, new possibilities emerge alongside the responsibility to ensure its ethical use. Microsoft is exploring the impactful applications of AI, from bridging the gap between thoughts and actions to simplifying coding and content creation. The commitment remains strong to leverage technology tools for advancing accessibility.
Highlights of Microsoft’s latest technology and tools include:
- Copilot for Windows: Enhancing accessibility by enabling new skills in Windows, such as Live Captions and Narrator, starting late March 2024.
- M365 for creators: Introducing the Accessibility Assistant toolset to aid in producing accessible content, currently available in Insider preview for Word with Outlook and PowerPoint support coming soon.
- Azure AI for Accessibility: Unveiling six new examples, including expanded language support for Seeing AI and an upcoming Azure AI Audio Description solution accelerator powered by Azure GPT-4 Turbo.
In addition, technology is instrumental in addressing enduring challenges like ALS, with Azure supporting ALS Therapy Development Institute and Answer ALS to amplify clinical and genomic data for research purposes. Microsoft is also developing Custom Neural Voice technology to empower individuals with ALS and speech disabilities to regain their voice.
Upholding Accessibility as a Fundamental Right
Ensuring inclusivity in a digital era necessitates safeguarding fundamental rights, a focus that will be underscored through various partnerships throughout the summit.
Key highlights include:
- A discussion on access to competitive integrated employment and economic equity with Ilene Arenberg and Tanya Harris.
- The British Association for Supported Employment’s efforts to enhance digital skills for disabled individuals in the U.K. using Microsoft Teams.
- The Hunger Project’s initiatives to provide connectivity and support for accessible spaces globally.
- The Rijksmuseum’s collaboration with the blind and low vision community to offer detailed text descriptions for over 1 million artworks using Azure AI Computer Vision and Azure OpenAI.
Next Steps in Your Accessibility Journey
Industry leaders will share insights and best practices during the Ability Summit, with the release of four new Microsoft playbooks covering physical, event, and digital environments. Noteworthy additions include a new Mental Health toolkit in collaboration with Mental Health America and the “ Building Accessible Campus” playbook from Microsoft’s Global Workplace Services team.
For on-demand content viewing, please visit www.aka.ms/AbilitySummit. Technical assistance is readily available through Microsoft’s Disability Answer Desk. Thank you for your dedication to fostering a more inclusive future for individuals with disabilities worldwide.
Tags: accessibility, AI, AI for Accessibility
