Latest news with #BeMyEyes
Forbes
27-05-2025
- Business
- Forbes
The Accessibility 100 -- The Top Innovators and Impact-Makers
getty Accessibility is about far more than wheelchair ramps or live captioning. The field has emerged as a bustling innovation hub, an educational imperative and—unapologetically—a business sector waiting to explode. 'This isn't charity. This isn't just 'doing the right thing,'' says Mike Buckley, CEO of Be My Eyes, whose software in Ray-Ban/Meta sunglasses connects blind and low-vision people to live, seeing volunteers who help them navigate the world. 'It's about seeing a market, innovating, scaling and ultimately ROI. Venture capital is getting more and more involved every day.' The Accessibility 100—a new Forbes list, launching June 17—will unveil the 100 biggest innovators and impact-makers in the field of accessibility for people with disabilities. The list will include the top global forces in accessibility-related fields ranging from consumer products and software to education, AI-driven robotics, sports and recreation, travel, the workplace and the arts, among others. Some will be juggernaut tech companies leveraging their reach and resources to embed their products with crucial accessibility features; others will be smaller entrepreneurs whose innovations are poised to change the world. The Accessibility 100 will be launched on alongside a live panel discussion at the Cannes Lions Festival in France. For the purpose of this list, the disability categories that listees are impacting include the following: For the purposes of this list, 'Accessibility' is defined as software, devices and services that allow people with disabilities to have access to information, content, public spaces and experiences. Examples include: The Accessibility 100 was compiled through interviews with more than 400 experts, along with an expert advisory panel. Emphasis was placed on breadth of true impact across the widest landscape. The final selections will feature companies and individuals from more than 15 countries. — As with all Forbes lists, there was no fee for any company or person to be considered for the Accessibility 100. For questions about the list, please email Alan Schwarz at aschwarz [at] Forbes
CNET
15-05-2025
- CNET
Ray-Ban Meta Glasses Get Smarter for Low Vision Users. Here's How
If you haven't heard, AI now has eyes, and Meta has announced some enhancements for its Ray-Ban Meta glasses. You can now customize Meta AI to give detailed responses based on what's in the surrounding environment for your smart glasses, Meta said in a blog post for Global Accessibility Awareness Day. Artificial intelligence is opening a whole new world for accessibility, with new features coming out in droves. Tech giants like Google, Apple and Meta are putting forth a ton of effort to create a world where people with disabilities, such as low or no vision, can more easily interact with the world around them. While Live AI for the Meta glasses has been around, the additional enhancements for low vision users will undoubtedly be welcomed. Below are some of the other highlights from Meta's accessibility-focused blog post. For more, check out the glimpse of brain accessibility features headed to Apple devices. 'Call a volunteer' feature expanding to 18 countries While not an AI-focused feature, the Meta and Be My Eyes feature, Call a Volunteer, will soon be expanding to all 18 countries that Meta AI is currently available in. Launched in November 2024 in The US, Canada, UK, Ireland and Australia, the expansion of Call a Volunteer will be a very handy (and hands-free) feature for low vision users. Once set up, a Meta glasses user can simply ask AI to "Be My Eyes." From there, you'll be connected to one of over 8 million volunteers that will be able to view the live camera stream from your glasses and provide real-time assistance for whatever you need help with. The feature will be available to all supported countries later this month. Meta additional research and accessibility features Meta also detailed some of its existing features and research taking place in its effort to expand accessibility for its products, especially in the extended reality space. Features like live captions and live speech are currently available on devices like the Quest, Meta Horizon and Horizon Worlds. Also shown was a WhatsApp chatbot from Sign-Speaks that uses its API and Meta's Llama AI models. The chatbot allows live translation of American Sign Language to text and vice versa to create easier communication between deaf and hard of hearing individuals. For more, don't miss the handful of new accessibility features announced by Apple.
Engadget
15-05-2025
- Engadget
Meta's smart glasses will soon provide detailed information regarding visual stimuli
The Ray-Ban Meta glasses are getting an upgrade to better help the blind and low vision community. The AI assistant will now provide "detailed responses" regarding what's in front of users. Meta says it'll kick in "when people ask about their environment." To get started, users just have to opt-in via the Device Settings section in the Meta AI app. The company shared a video of the tool in action in which a blind user asked Meta AI to describe a grassy area in a park. It quickly hopped into action and correctly pointed out a path, trees and a body of water in the distance. The AI assistant was also shown describing the contents of a kitchen. I could see this being a fun add-on even for those without any visual impairment. In any event, it begins rolling out to all users in the US and Canada in the coming weeks. Meta plans on expanding to additional markets in the near future. It's Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD), so that's not the only accessibility-minded tool that Meta announced today. There's the nifty Call a Volunteer, a tool that automatically connects blind or low vision people to a "network of sighted volunteers in real-time" to help complete everyday tasks. The volunteers come from the Be My Eyes foundation and the platform launches later this month in 18 countries. The company recently announced a more refined system for live captions in all of its extended reality products , like the Quest line of VR headsets. This converts spoken words into text in real-time, so users can "read content as it's being delivered." The feature is already available for Quest headsets and within Meta Horizon Worlds.
The Verge
15-05-2025
- The Verge
Meta's smart glasses can now describe what you're seeing in more detail
Meta announced two new features designed to assist blind or low vision users by leveraging the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses' camera and its access to Meta AI. The news came as part of Global Accessibility Awareness Day. Rolling out to all users in the US and Canada in the coming weeks, Meta AI can now be customized to provide more detailed descriptions of what's in front of users when they ask the smart assistant about their environment. In a short video shared alongside the announcement, Meta AI goes into more detail about the features of a waterside park, including describing grassy areas as being 'well manicured.' The feature can be activated by turning on 'detailed responses' in the Accessibility section of the Device settings in the Meta AI app. Although it's currently limited to users in the US and Canada, Meta says detailed responses will 'expand to additional markets in the future,' but provided no details about when or which countries would get it next. First announced last September as part of a partnership with the Be My Eyes organization and released last November in a limited rollout that included the US, Canada, UK, Ireland, and Australia, Meta also confirmed today that its Call a Volunteer feature will 'launch in all 18 countries where Meta AI is supported later this month.' Blind and low vision users of the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses can use the feature to connect to a network of over 8 million sighted volunteers and get assistance with everyday tasks such as following a recipe or locating an item on a shelf. By saying, 'Hey Meta, Be My Eyes,' a volunteer will be able to see a user's surroundings through a live feed from the glasses' camera and can provide descriptions or other assistance through its open-ear speakers.
Time of India
14-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Apple introduces new accessibility features including braille note taker
Apple said on Tuesday it is bringing a host of new features later this year that are geared towards making its devices more accessible, including a braille note taker and expanded 'zoom' for its mixed-reality headsets, Vision Pro. For users who are blind or visually impaired, vision accessibility features will be expanded using Vision Pro's camera system. The updated zoom features can help users magnify everything in view using the main camera, the iPhone maker said. "We are dedicated to pushing forward with new accessibility features for all of our products," said Sarah Herrlinger, Apple's senior director of Global Accessibility Policy and Initiatives. Apple will allow approved apps to access the main camera on Vision Pro to provide live, person-to-person assistance for visual interpretation in apps such as Be My Eyes. Be My Eyes is an application that connects people who are blind or visually impaired with volunteers and companies worldwide through live video. The Vision Pro, lauded by analysts for its technology, represents Apple's entry into the headset market otherwise dominated by Meta Platforms. Apple is also introducing 'Braille Access' that turns iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Vision Pro into a braille note taker. With this feature, users can open any app by typing with a connected braille device or Braille Screen Input - an Apple system that allows users to enter braille into their devices. Apple's new features also include a system-wide reading mode designed to make text easier to read for users with disabilities such as dyslexia or low vision, the company said.
