19 May 2025
What people think about AI in the Accessibility Industry
A few months ago, we asked our customers and consumers to share their views on Artificial Intelligence in relation to accessibility. We were keen to understand how the impact of AI is perceived and if people have already taken it on board.
So let’s dive in and see what our respondents answered on this very on trend topic.
General feeling about AI
People have different views on AI-some are excited, some unsure, and the majority (54%) sit somewhere in between. Many feel cautiously optimistic, seeing it as a helpful tool for things like summarising information or making content more accessible, especially for disabled people.
This being said, many think that there is still a strong need for human input and that AI still misses the mark when it comes to expressing emotions, tone, or those subtle human touches, especially in creative tasks. Some people are curious but a bit nervous about how fast AI is evolving, while others haven’t really felt its impact yet.
Overall, there’s a hopeful sentiment, but with a clear message: AI is great when it’s used well, but it should support people, not replace them.
Let’s see what our respondents’ think about the use of AI for various formats:
- Creating Easy Read documents
- Digital voices for audio
- Automatic subtitling on videos
Are digital voices a good substitute to human voices for audio content?
While 27% of respondents think digital voices are a suitable substitute, 72 % of them genuinely prefer a human voice or think that digital voices need to be improved.
For short descriptive content aimed at web or social media, or for reading long strings of numbers (e.g. bills) digital voices seem to be a good fit. However, for longer types of documents or inspirational ones, a warm and friendly human voice is by far preferred. Intonations and accents can sound diluted with digital voices, which can make the voice sound rather artificial and have a negative impact on the listener’s attention.
Is AI suitable for creating Easy Read documents?
81% of respondents think that human oversight is essential to create Easy Read documents.
While AI is probably capable of breaking down the original content and replace it by simplified language, its understanding of complex terminology and its selection of images may not always be relevant nor suitable due to the lack of cultural context. AI could potentially also use stereotypes which humans would typically try to avoid.
Research by A2i also indicates that AI does not summarise documents sufficiently, and doesn’t often select the most important information to explain. Easy Read documents usually need to be a lot shorter than the original standard print version in order to be accessible.
Is automatic subtitling on videos reliable for people with hearing loss?
63% of respondents think that automatic subtitling work well but they could be improved further and still require human supervision.
Listening is a skill and as humans we sometimes hear the same thing but interpret it in different ways. People mumbling, speaking softly, using acronyms or simply speaking with a different accent can create confusion in our understanding. And this happens even while we are watching a video and understanding the physical context of what is being said. So imagine what AI would take from these challenging situations. While it can certainly get a large portion of the content correct, there certainly is room for errors which would inevitably need to be rectified by a human.
In essence, while AI offers promising support in the accessibility space, the consensus is clear: it’s most powerful when paired with human insight. From Easy Read documents to digital voices and subtitling, respondents value the potential of AI but remain cautious about relying on it too heavily. There’s a shared hope that with the right balance, AI can truly enhance accessibility rather than compromise it.
But this brings us to a bigger, ongoing question: how do we ensure that AI evolves in a way that genuinely reflects the diverse needs and experiences of the people it aims to serve?
A2i are using humans for transcribing Easy Read and subtitling videos. We are currently experimenting with AI and will likely embrace it to streamline our process and shorten our turn around time but the final product will always be reviewed by a human. It might also be worth noting that some of our clients specifically do not wish for us to use AI, fully respect and accommodate by ensuring their projects are handled exclusively by human professionals.
If you’re not quite ready to embrace the AI technology and would like support with creating your accessible content, please feel free to explore our transcription services portfolio for reference and inspiration; or get in touch:
Telephone: 01179 44 00 44
Email: info@a2i.co.uk
Website: www.a2i.co.uk
