As we move into a time when artificial intelligence (AI) is not just a reality, but an everyday part of our lives, it poses the question: how might AI affect the experiences of people with disability?
How can AI support people with disability? 
AI is advancing so rapidly that there are already many AI-powered tools people with disability can use.
For example, there is software that supports people with speech impairments by repeating what they say back in a clearer form. There are also tools that transcribe conversations so people with hearing impairments can read what people are saying in a meeting.
In an article by Robert Heyward, John Zambelli describes how he uses AI on a daily basis in his work and personal life. Zambelli is a vision-impaired person, but he can take a picture of a screen or piece of paper, and his device will read it out loud to him. He is one of many people with disability who get high-quality support from AI.
How can AI fall short of supporting people the right way?
AI technology is making huge strides to support people in better and more innovative ways, but there are some things to watch out for.
An article on the Springer Link website, written by Peter and Laura Smith, explains how AI technology can work to help people with high-support needs and how it also fails in many situations. In the article, Peter and Laura recount a ‘day in the life’ of how they navigate the world with carers and AI-powered technology. They reflect on the frustrations of using an AI that is still not perfect and doesn’t work the way it’s supposed to.
According to an article by United Nations Special Rapporteur Gerard Quinn, there is an increasing amount of research that shows AI uses huge data sets, therefore tending to prioritise the experiences of well-represented communities. Quinn uses job recruitment as an example. They explain that if AI technology uses data sets where a certain demographic has found jobs in a particular field, AI might select people from those demographics to get more of those jobs in the future. This could mean AI technology might further exacerbate discriminatory structures and processes, rather than make them more inclusive.
How can AI researchers learn from the way people with disability use technology?
Elain Short writes in their article in the Conversation about making AI more adaptable to the ways in which people are different. They argue that AI researchers and technicians should work to consider AI as an assistive technology, rather than a tool to replace human autonomy. For example, in the same way that assistive technology does, AI should support people with disability to do more. Short shares that this will put human beings in the ‘driver’s seat’ to use AI in ways that support people’s needs.
Looking forward
While there are certainly things to be careful of when it comes to AI, it’s still an exciting new landscape. There are a lot of unknowns when it comes to how AI technology might integrate with the world, but there’s a lot of potential for it to improve disability supports so that they are more meaningful, effective and individualised.
