Today we celebrate 12th Annual Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD): A day to raise awareness and highlight advances in accessible technology and the amazing work being done within our communities to bridge the disability gap. Last week I had the chance to see this in action in Liverpool, UK. There, staff at locations around the city engaged in Microsoft training, leveling up their knowledge of digital accessibility and leading to a whole new level of conversation with job seekers. This has kept unemployment and underemployment rates still as high as 80% worldwide, and we can’t wait to see what impact this has.
Technology can have a positive impact on disability inequality. Accessibility is a fundamental right and we are proud to work with people around the world to build technology and raise the bar for equity. Accessibility has long historical roots and we are building on those roots. Find out more about what we explored in his new 2-minute video, Accessibility at the Heart of Innovation, in the story behind the video. And today, new programs and technologies are being launched along with new skills acquisitions and non-profit partnerships along with technological advances in AI, offices, games and people to advance accessibility knowledge and use around the world. We highlight some of them below.
Disability Answer Desk Expands with GPT-4
Over the past few months, the world has been captivated by the possibilities of generative AI. Accessibility is key to delivering inclusive products and is an important part of our Responsible AI Principles. Responsible AI is accessible AI. To put accessibility at the heart of generative AI, we have three guiding principles: AI must be accessible, representative for people with disabilities, and innovative to open doors. It’s great to see examples of how generative AI can change the paradigm for people with disabilities. Start with BeMyEyes.
Microsoft has a longstanding partnership with BeMyEyes, a smartphone app for blind and partially sighted users. With the support of OpenAI, BeMyEyes expands its capabilities by introducing Virtual Volunteer, which allows him to provide his 500 million users with detailed descriptions of AI-generated worlds without the need for sighted people. Did. Since starting our partnership with Disability Answer Desk and BeMyEyes in 2017, our customers have told us that calling DAD through BeMyEyes resolved their issues quickly (95% of the time) and had excellent results (customer satisfaction). We have heard that you can get a rating of 4.5 out of 5).
Today, we’re taking customer support to the next level by announcing a new pilot program that adds GPT-4-powered capabilities to DAD. We hope to please our customers with faster service, unique solutions, and learning about the power of gen-AI for our customers with disabilities. Worked with Hilton, P&G, Sony and National Federation of the Blind. It’s an honor to study with you.
Accessibility in Office just got easier and easier to find
Our business customers and partners build accessibility at the heart of their organizations through Microsoft products, services, and websites. We asked how we can serve IT managers to build a more inclusive workplace. Based on their feedback, we’re proud to announce Accessibility Baseline, an update to the Microsoft 365 Apps admin center and cloud policies. Admins can enable the creation of accessible documents in M365, and a new and improved Accessibility Ribbon for Mac and PC, enhanced Narrator support in Excel, and the Accessibility Checker tool built into Office help ensure accessibility. Easier to find and easier to use.
A game for everyone
Gaming is a huge area of accessibility and Microsoft Gaming is proud to continue driving innovation through accessible gaming for over 427 million gamers with disabilities. Today, we announced that 18,000 Xbox Ambassadors have collectively completed over 1 million Accessibility Explorer Path missions.like that miley girlis an avid advocate for accessibility after learning what features are available and why they matter to users with disabilities. Check out GAAD’s Xbox Celebration to learn more about Xbox Ambassadors, updated accessibility support pages, new features, and Gamer Stories.
Empowerment of people with disabilities
People are at the heart of the work in accessibility. Strengthening our employment pipeline and upskilling is a key part of our efforts to address the disability gap. Over the past two years, more than 1.5 million people have taken Microsoft Accessibility Fundamentals training. That includes 26,000 job coaches in the UK, such as those in Liverpool last week. Today, we are proud to partner with LinkedIn to launch new tools and training to build a more accessible pipeline for talent, whether they are people with disabilities, managers, or advocates. Access Microsoft Accessibility Training, A one-stop shop for upskilling. It contains a pointer to the new resource:
Acceleration through partnerships
Today, we are announcing the 2023 Microsoft Accessibility Nonprofit Tech Accelerator (NTA) grantees. Each non-profit funder promotes accessibility, disability rights, and inclusion around the world. One example is the “Tech for Independent Communication” project, a joint project of the African Health Innovation Center and the Ghana National Association of the Deaf. This project aims to create an accessible video-based survey system for collecting feedback from deaf students in Ghana. Congratulations to all the winners!
Microsoft partners are also innovating, bringing unique strengths and relationships to drive accessibility through solutions at scale. Reddit uses Microsoft Azure Cognitive Service to provide best-in-class alt text captions for millions of images on the Reddit platform. Also, Nicole Dezen, Chief Partner Officer, tells stories about Atos, EY and WPP’s commitment to adopting, building and innovating accessibility in a new blog. Thank you to our partners for investing in accessibility.
to close
Accessibility is a fundamental right and a pathway to innovation. Fostering a culture of accessibility requires everything from technology to skills to partnerships. We are proud of the investment Microsoft has made in our culture of inclusion and in awe of all the people around the world who continue to advance the future and build a more inclusive and accessible world. I’m here. We thank you for your partnership and wish you all a Happy Global Accessibility Awareness Day.
