Improving Digital Inclusion for Visually Impaired People Using AWS
Overview
Vision Ireland, formerly National Council for the Blind of Ireland (NCBI), wanted to improve digital inclusion and accessibility for its clients. Vision Ireland supports and advises the blind and visually impaired and wants to empower them—both in living their daily lives with the same opportunities as everyone else and in their ability to access information about their condition.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Vision Ireland along with other organizations, received development funding to innovate improved access to services for people with disabilities. Using Amazon Web Services (AWS) and working with Cation Consulting, an AWS Partner, Vision Ireland pursued its vision to deliver resources more effectively to its clients using Amazon Alexa. In 11 months, Vision Ireland and Cation collaborated to develop an innovative Alexa skill, called myNCBI Smart Hub, which helps visually impaired individuals in Ireland by giving them access to a wealth of valuable Vision Ireland information and services.
Opportunity | Using AWS to Develop Opportunity a Voice App for the Vision-Impaired for Vision Ireland
Vision Ireland has been supporting blind and visually impaired people since 1931. The agency helps more than 60,000 people live independently through its services. Its clients access a suite of programs that provide practical support along with rehabilitation and pathways to education, employment, and full participation in community and public life. Vision Ireland has a subsidiary, Inclusion and Accessibility Labs, known as IA Labs, that focuses on using technology as a key area in the digital accessibility space.
Vision Ireland wanted to make more digital resources and technology available to its clients. In September 2020, the organization received a grant from the philanthropic organization Rethink Ireland, which it used to fund the creation of an Alexa skill. Skills are Alexa-specific apps with which customers can use their voices to perform tasks, enjoy media, or play games. “Smart tech devices such as Alexa are powerful tools for people with disabilities,” says Kyran O’Mahoney, chief technology officer at Vision Ireland. “There is a low barrier to entry because using Alexa doesn’t require a lot of technological skill, it’s affordable, and it’s widely available.”
Vision Ireland looked for a collaborator to help create a new Alexa skill and chose Cation Consulting, an AWS Partner that had expertise in voice technologies. Vision Ireland chose to use AWS because of its scalability. “AWS costs are more competitive, and the services that AWS makes available are incredibly robust. The decision was really a no-brainer,” says O’Mahoney.
Outcome Outcome | Making Technology Available to Other Charities
By working with Cation and using AWS to create its new voice-controlled Alexa skill, Vision Ireland can now provide a more robust catalog of audio content and resources to people with sight loss. Clients can use the myNCBI Smart Hub to get support and resources when they need them most. Vision Ireland can also better understand its users and their needs, and the app is seeing a consistent increase in users each month, as well as increased user retention. Vision Ireland is also planning to launch an iOS app and a web application to make resources available through as many channels as possible.
Vision Ireland is also making its technology available to other charities. Because of the architecture that Cation created and the low cost of AWS infrastructure, the application can be replicated at a fraction of its development cost. “We want to use these innovations to empower people with sight loss around the world,” says O’Mahoney.