Will AI allow us to dispense with all or most accessibility regulations?

Join us for a discussion on AI and accessibility. Gregg Vanderheiden is a Professor in the School of Information Studies (iSchool) at the University of Maryland, College Park, and Director of the Trace Research & Development Center at the University of Maryland. Dr. Vanderheiden is the principal investigator of the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center on Information Technology Access, and a co-principal investigator for the RERC on Telecom Access funded by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research.

With advances in AI, computer vision, and interface understanding, there is the potential to offload much of the work currently spent by companies’ developers in making products accessible. There is also the potential to move our major accessibility approach from an ‘inclusively-designed-products-plus-AT focus to a ‘universal-interface-transformer focus. This would be a major reversal of approach and have significant ramifications for legislation, regulation, and the established large-scale accessibility industries that have grown up around them. Such a disruption would require concrete evidence that such a change would, in fact, be better for people with disabilities. It would also require a path from the former to the latter. This paper presents the case for such a shift, some of the benefits and ramifications, and the developments necessary to make the shift. It also outlines a hybrid approach between inclusive design and bespoke custom interfaces. Learn more about the talk on the Digital Library website.

Event Agenda:
7:00 pm — Event begins, welcome new members. Accessibility industry job announcements & job seeker intros.

7:15 to 8:15 pm — Talk: Will AI allow us to dispense with all or most accessibility regulations?

8:15 to 8:30 pm — [Optional] Socializing & networking in zoom breakout rooms, for anyone who'd enjoy hanging out online after the talk to chat with old friends & new meetup members.

ZOOM DETAILS:

• How to participate via zoom:

The Zoom URL will be shared via email with people who RSVP via Meetup app or site. It will and also published on this event page on the day of the event.

Check to make sure your email settings are enabled to receive "event updates from organizers" (https://www.meetup.com/account/comm/a11ybay/) in your account settings or you may not receive the message.

• How socializing in break out rooms will work:

We’ll use the zoom breakout rooms feature to give folks an opportunity to network and chat with others in smaller conversations with randomized participants.

If you do not feel comfortable making conversation with other people during this meetup, we'll pause briefly after the main talks so you can log off. Those who want to chat just stay on the zoom!