According to the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness, in 2020, 1.1 billion people were living with vision loss worldwide. There is a need for both institutions and systems to become more accessible for blind individuals.
Shopping is an activity that many partake in. It allows people to express themselves. Although those who are blind are not able to see themselves on the outside, it doesn’t mean that they do not care about their appearance.
Currently, there are multiple methods to aid shoppers who are blind. The problem with these methods of shopping is that it is not fully accessible for people who are blind. It’s very difficult to shop without another sighted individual.
When we think of blindness, there are two user personas I can think of: one group who has no recollection of when they had vision such as blindness from birth and the second group who despite vision loss has a memory of how things look. This distinction is critical to knowing the accessibility solution being defined. I am going to be specifically focusing on those who became blind later on in life.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is a technology utilizing computers and machines in order to replicate the human ability to make decisions and solve problems. From a basic standpoint, AI is the science of making computers intelligent like humans. Alan Turing, known as the founding father of artificial intelligence, asked the question, “Can machines think?” This question provides the foundation for what artificial intelligence seeks to prove.
Some examples of where AI is currently being applied include:
Machine learning (ML) is an area of AI that uses data and algorithms to mimic the way in which humans are able to learn. To do this, the algorithms are fed data. From there, the program is able to continuously run and begin to predict outcomes. It becomes more accurate as it learns from its mistakes.
Some examples of where ML is currently being applied include: