This is a conference about making technology accessible, especially the web. It is an opportunity for programmers, designers, developers, students, usability professionals, accessibility experts, and end-users to share information and learn from each other.
2019 sponsors include my own program, INDEX, which has free information about programs, providers, and services for people with disabilities in Massachusetts. See DisabilityInfo.org. We build accessible web applications and online courses. See INDEX Technical Services. We also develop mass-scale, artificial-intelligence-driven Web text simplification for people with cognitive disabilities. See EasyText.AI.
For the American Expert Speaker Program of the U.S. Department of State, I will give 3 presentations and participate in roundtable discussions in Tokyo, Fukuoka, and Beppu, Japan, from September 7 through September 23, 2019.
For two of them, I will focus on Artificial Intelligence (AI) empowerment and fairness for people with disabilities, especially how AI empowers companies to hire a more diverse workforce. This will include the work of my colleague, Frances West, author of Authentic InclusionTM: Drives Disruptive Innovation.
For one of them, I will focus on the functions and activities of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver Center and its INDEX Program, which I direct, as part of a larger discussion about independent living, the Internet of Things, and AI for people with disabilities. This will include my EasyText.AI research.
These activities are arranged and sponsored by the:
AXS Chat recently posted to YouTube an interview of me about my artificial intelligence (AI) research and work for people with disabilities. I talk, in part, about:
the promise of a text-comprehension parallel between AI and people with intellectual disabilities;
how AI-driven Web text simplification will benefit other populations, such as non-native language speakers; and
my work to make sure people with intellectual disabilities and/or autism are not left out of online education.
The conference was great with accessibility. I was assigned an employee who guided me everywhere and was just wonderful. The conference website was accessible and easy to navigate. When I identified accessibility problems with the mobile app and with SageMaker tools, Amazon personnel immediately assured me they would be fixed.
The sponsorship included participation in the re:MARS VIP Leadership Networking Reception. I was honored to speak with members of Amazon leadership as well as senior researchers from industry and academia.