TikTok rolls out new accessibility tools, including AI-generated ALT text
TikTok announced on Wednesday that it's expanding its suite of accessibility tools by rolling out AI-generated ALT text for photos, a high contrast mode, and support for device-level bold text preferences.
TikTok introduced support for ALT text for photos a few weeks ago, allowing creators to provide descriptive text for photos to help users with screen readers understand the visual content through spoken descriptions. Now, the company is testing AI-generated ALT text to automatically describe photos out loud when creators don't add alt text manually.
The company says AI-generated ALT text will make TikTok more accessible for people with visual impairments. The move comes as Instagram has been using AI for ALT text since 2018.
Image Credits:TikTok
As for the new high contrast mode, users will be able to switch it on with the new 'color contrast' option in the app's accessibility section. Doing so will increase the foreground color of text, icons, and user interface elements. This change will make TikTok more usable for people with low vision or sensitivity to low contrast, the company says.
TikTok now also adheres to a user's device's bold text setting, which means that it will automatically display all in-app text in bold when enabled. This enhances readability for users who prefer or rely on bolder fonts.
'We know that when people feel seen, heard, and supported, they're empowered to share their stories, create and connect with others in meaningful ways,' the company said in a blog post. 'That's why we're focused on continuously building products that serve everyone.' We see accessibility not just as a responsibility, but as an opportunity to innovate and foster a more inclusive platform for our global community.'
The new features join TikTok's existing suite of accessibility tools, which includes features like auto-generated captions for video content, dark mode, text-to-speech, and the ability to adjust text size across the app.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
16 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump and Musk can both hurt each other in their feud. Here's how.
An explosive breakdown in the relationship between President Donald Trump and his biggest political donor turned part-time employee, Tesla CEO Elon Musk, has been foreshadowed since their alliance first took shape. When Trump brought Musk along for the ride as he moved back into the White House, the looming question was always how long the two could possibly stay in sync. After all, neither the most powerful person in the world nor the richest person on Earth is known for keeping his ego in check. The main thrust of the Trump-Musk feud boils down to who can assert dominance over the other. In the intense back-and-forth that had everyone glued to their screens Thursday, we saw bullies used to getting their way desperately trying to find leverage over each other. But unlike the flame wars of old, where internet trolls would hurl insults at each other across message board forums, Trump and Musk can do serious damage to each other in the real world — and to the rest of us in the process. Musk first gained access to Trump through his vast fortune; he donated almost $300 million during last year's election and hasn't been afraid to throw his money around in races this year. Though he said in May he would be 'spending a lot less' on funding political races, he has also been quick to threaten pumping money into the midterms should lawmakers back the massive budget bill currently working its way through the Senate. And Musk has made clear that he expects a return on his investments, having already snidely claimed on his X platform that Trump would have lost and Democrats would have taken Congress without his backing. Trump is reportedly more focused on the midterms than he was during his first term, worried that a new Democratic majority would lead to more investigations and/or a third impeachment. While he's already sitting on $600 million to help hold on to a GOP majority, Musk's money could throw a spanner in the works, especially if he follows through on his public musing about bankrolling a third party to 'represent the 80% of Americans in the middle.' Though Trump has his own social media platform, Truth Social, X remains a much louder microphone to amplify Musk's messaging to the right, including his supposed 'bombshell' about Trump's presence in the Jeffrey Epstein files. (Musk provided no evidence for the claim and Trump has previously denied any involvement with Epstein's criminal behavior.) Trump, in turn, has threatened Musk's lucrative government contracts, which would include billions of dollars funneled toward his SpaceX company, as well as the subsidies that Tesla receives for its electric car production. Musk responded by warning about cutting off access to SpaceX launches, which would potentially cripple NASA and the Defense Department's ability to deploy satellites. But that would prove a double-edged sword for Musk, given how large a revenue stream those contracts have become. By Thursday evening, Musk had already backed down from his saber-rattling about restricting access to the Dragon space capsule, but he could change his mind again. That he made the threat in the first place has raised major alarm bells among national security officials. The Washington Post reported Saturday that NASA and the Pentagon have begun "urging [Musk's competitors] to more quickly develop alternative rockets and spacecraft" to lessen his chokehold on the industry. Notably, Trump isn't alone in his fight against Musk, though as ever those wading into the brawl have their own motives. Former White House strategist Steve Bannon took the opportunity to launch a broadside against Musk. 'People including myself are recommending to the president that he pull every contract associated with Elon Musk,' Bannon told NBC News on Thursday night. Bannon requested that 'major investigations start immediately' into, among other things, Musk's 'immigration status, his security clearance and his history of drug abuse.' There are already several federal investigations of Musk's companies that have been underway for years, which critics had previously worried might be stonewalled due to his influence with Trump. While the extremely public breakup makes for high drama and more than a little schadenfreude, the pettiness masks a deeper issue. The battle Musk and Trump are waging is predicated on both wielding a horrifying amount of unchecked power. In a healthy system of government, their ability to inflict pain on each other wouldn't exist, or at least such an ability would be severely blunted. Musk being able to funnel nearly unlimited amounts of spending into dark money super PACs is an oligarchical nightmare. Trump using the power of the presidency to overturn contracts and launch investigations at a whim is blatant authoritarianism in action. In theory, there are still checks to rein each of them in before things escalate much further. Musk's shareholders have been unhappy with his rocky time in government, and the war of words with Trump sent Tesla's stock price tumbling once more. Trump needs to get his 'One Big Beautiful Bill Act' passed into law and — next year — ensure Congress doesn't fall into Democrats' hands. Trump and Musk have incentives, then, to stay in each other's good graces despite their wounded pride. Trump made clear to NBC News in an interview Saturday that he has no real interest in patching things up with Musk, warning that there will be "very serious consequences" if his one-time ally funds Democratic campaigns. Even if the two eventually reach a détente, it's unlikely to be a lasting peace, not so long as one feels his authority is challenged by the other. The zero-sum view of the world that Trump and Musk share, one where social Darwinism and superior genetics shape humanity, doesn't allow for long-term cooperative relationships. Instead, at best they will return to a purely transactional situationship, but one where the knives will gleefully come back out the second a new opening is given. Most importantly, there is no protagonist when it comes to the inciting incident in this duel, as a total victory won't benefit the American people writ large. Trump wants Congress to pass his bill to grant him more funding for deportations and to preserve his chances of staying in power. Musk wants a more painful bill that will slash the social safety net for millions. No matter what the outcome is as they battle for supremacy over each other, we're the ones who risk being trampled. This article was originally published on
Yahoo
23 minutes ago
- Yahoo
IPO Filings Remain Low in Q2
The muted IPO market which has become commonplace in the last few years continued in that fashion through the first five months of 2025. However, the last few weeks has brought a renewed focus to dealmaking after a couple of highly anticipated IPOs began trading, and a cryptocurrency unicorn filed to IPO. Recently, MNTN and Hinge Health made their public debuts to much fanfare. On May 21, adtech platform MNTN went public at $16 a share, putting its valuation at $1.2B, the high end of analyst estimates.[1] The following day, digital physical therapy company, Hinge Health, made their debut. Shares were priced at $32, at the high end of the expected range, denoting a valuation of $2.6B.[2] Both companies had tremendous first day results, with MNTN shares popping 65% and Hinge Health up 17%. List of 52-Week Lows List of 3-Year Lows List of 5-Year Lows Last week the IPO buzz continued when stablecoin issuer Circle announced it is readying itself for a public debut. The company looks to raise about $624M at a $5.65B valuation. They plan to sell 24M shares of common stock at an expected range of $24-$26 per share, but no official trading date has been announced.[3] Stablecoins are a type of cryptocurrency that is pegged to another currency such as gold to maintain a stable price. The announcement comes as stablecoins are more frequently in the news cycle, with a recent report suggesting Meta is eyeing potential stablecoin partners as it looks to give users crypto support.[4] Bitcoin is also on a run, hurtling over $111,000 on May 22. Despite that fanfare, May only saw ten companies announce plans to go public, the slowest month since December 2024 recorded only 9 IPO filings. This has also been the lightest two month start to a quarter in a year with only 38 filings vs. Q2 2024 which saw 35 filings. Source: Wall Street Horizon, Data Licensed from IPOScoop The decision to go public has been somewhat tumultuous in 2025 as macroeconomic uncertainty and stubbornly high interest rates led to some high profile IPO delays earlier in the year. Since then however, those on the sidelines such as Chime Financial, Circle, Hinge Health and Stubhub have either already made their debut or announced plans to do so. Klarna is one of the big holdouts, further delaying their long-awaited IPO to later in the year.[5] Beyond the Trump tariff market turmoil in 2025 and high interest rates, there may be other reasons why private companies have been timid about going public. One potential explanation could be that many IPO debuts in the last couple of years haven't gone so well for the companies making them. In aggregate, companies that went public in 2024 returned 8%, significantly underperforming major indexes such as the S&P 500 which was up 25% and the Nasdaq Composite which was up 35% for the year.[6] Another reason for lighter IPO numbers as of late could be the availability of private capital. Mega startups such as Stripe, OpenAI and SpaceX have delayed the need to go public by raising huge sums of private capital, often from major international institutions. While dealmaking activity remains light in 2025, there is hope that a big IPO could jump-start the market. Optimism for new listings remains high as technology trends like AI and crypto have made significant progress. The major indices have been on a 6 day run due to certain tariff pauses and the blocking of some of the steepest tariffs by federal judges. If markets can remain resilient and the Federal Reserve begins to cut interest rates at their July meeting as currently expected, then perhaps that opens the window for stronger IPO activity in the second half of the year. 1 MNTN Announces Pricing of Initial Public Offering, Business Wire, May 21, 2025, Hinge Health prices IPO at $32, the top end of expected range, CNBC, Ashley Capoot, May 21, 2025, Circle Launches Initial Public Offering, Business Wire, May 27, 2025, Report Says Meta Looking For Stablecoin Partnership To Give Users Crypto Support, Forbes, Billy Billy Brambough, May, 11, 2025, 5 Klarna doubles losses in first quarter as IPO remains on hold, CNBC, Ryan Browne, May 19, 2025, These Were The Winners And Losers In A Boring Year For Startup IPOs, Crunchbase, Joanna Glasner, December 9, 2024, Copyright 2025 Wall Street Horizon, Inc. All rights reserved. Do not copy, distribute, sell or modify this document without Wall Street Horizon's prior written consent. This information is provided for information purposes only. Neither TMX Group Limited nor any of its affiliated companies guarantees the completeness of the information contained in this publication, and we are not responsible for any errors or omissions in or your use of, or reliance on, the information. This publication is not intended to provide legal, accounting, tax, investment, financial or other advice and should not be relied upon for such advice. The information provided is not an invitation to purchase securities, including any listed on Toronto Stock Exchange and/or TSX Venture Exchange. TMX Group and its affiliated companies do not endorse or recommend any securities referenced in this publication. This publication shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor may there be any sale of any securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction. TMX, the TMX design, TMX Group, Toronto Stock Exchange, TSX, and TSX Venture Exchange are the trademarks of TSX Inc. and are used under license. Wall Street Horizon is the trademark of Wall Street Horizon, Inc. All other trademarks used in this publication are the property of their respective owners. This article first appeared on GuruFocus. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
27 minutes ago
- Yahoo
OpenAI chairman's career advice? Remember what Eric Schmidt told Sheryl Sandberg about joining Google.
OpenAI chairman Bret Taylor believes you shouldn't allow pride to stand in the way of success. If someone offers you a seat on the "rocket ship," you don't ask which seat, you get on, he said, recalling Eric Schmidt's conversation with Sheryl Sandberg. Flexibility and perspective are key in both your career and life, he said on an episode of the "Grit" podcast. Bret Taylor, the chairman of OpenAI, believes that if you have the chance to attach yourself to success, you shouldn't let ego get in the way. "I think this is the quote I always heard, was Eric Schmidt to Sheryl Sandberg: 'If someone offers you a seat on a rocket ship, don't ask what seat,' you know? I like that philosophy of life," Taylor said on an episode of "Grit." At the time, Sandberg, who would famously later become Facebook's chief operations officer, was deciding whether or not to join a different tech company: Google. Google was a tiny fraction of the size in 2001, with fewer than 300 people. Eric Schmidt had recently been brought on by cofounders Sergey Brin and Larry Page to be CEO. Sandberg talked about her conversation with Schmidt during a speech to Harvard students. "So I sat down with Eric Schmidt, who had just become the CEO, and I showed him the spreadsheet and I said, this job meets none of my criteria," Sandberg recalled. "He put his hand on my spreadsheet and he looked at me and said, 'Don't be an idiot. Get on a rocket ship. When companies are growing quickly and they are having a lot of impact, careers take care of themselves. If you're offered a seat on a rocket ship, don't ask what seat. Just get on.'" Sandberg did end up taking the job, and joined as the general manager of Google's business unit, which had four people at the time. "I do think, especially in Silicon Valley, there's just unique moments, and you just have to be self-aware and aware of the market," OpenAI's Taylor said. Beyond being ready to jump at opportunity wherever it comes knocking at your door, remaining broadly flexible is also important, he added. "Most of the unhappiest people I know are rigidly following a plan and not observant of their own happiness or observant of the opportunities around them," Taylor said. "I actually think that a big part of life is recognizing when there's a unique opportunity that you didn't plan for, and asking yourself the question, 'Should I change my plans?' Whether that's in your personal life or your professional life." Taylor's own career spans Big Tech and startups alike — from leading the team that helped create Google Maps and acting as co-CEO of Salesforce, to founding his own AI company, Sierra. "The idea of sitting on the sidelines, and drinking a mai tai on a beach, doesn't give me joy at all," he said. "I want to build." Just as Taylor was leaving Salesforce, ChatGPT was released. After a conversation over lunch with his cofounder, Clay Bavor, Taylor said the decision to start Sierra was set. But even if he wasn't heading this particular company, he added, he would still be working in an adjacent sphere. "I would be building open source software if not running a company right now, because I just want to work in the technology and help shape it," Taylor said. "Because it's the most exciting technology of my memory, and I want to play a part in shaping how we all use it." That's another key piece of Taylor's personal philosophy: being as involved as possible in shaping the trajectory of the world. "There's this Alan Kay quote: 'The best way to predict the future is to invent it.' And that is like, my operating principle," he said. "I want to impact the future, and I want to help invent it." Read the original article on Business Insider
