We Are About To Thank ChatGPT for Making Web Accessible
- By Winston Thomas
- February 13, 2023
If you read the tech news, you would think that ChatGPT was the biggest thing that ever happened in IT since the world wide web.
But for one group of people, ChatGPT offers a practical solution that can improve their lives. People with disabilities, which the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates as 16% of the global population (as of the end of last year), will benefit most as generative AI goes mainstream.
We have an attitude problem
Building accessible websites is not a new thing. There are many guidelines and legislation. Unique to these is The American With Disabilities Act (ADA), which was established before the internet.
In the U.S., the ADA, along with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, covers all websites. While the intention has been laudable, many serial plaintiffs and law firms have used this legislation to “extort” easy settlements that never reach the courts.
So, why are many websites in a precarious legal situation at a time when we are championing diversity and inclusion? The root of the problem is our attitude toward what’s important to web design.
“Accessibility is often not a primary consideration in web design because it is seen as a secondary concern compared to other design priorities such as aesthetics, functionality, and user experience,” says Ran Ronen, chief executive officer at Equally AI.
Then you have misconceptions. Accessibility is often linked to making websites available for those with various disabilities. Designers use economics to rationalize the return on investment for focusing on a small group of people.
From the WHO figure (quoted above), this idea of a smaller population is inaccurate. And even if they represent a subsection, that’s not even the point of accessible web design. Instead, it is about making websites usable for a wide range of people, regardless of whether they have disabilities.
Ronen summarized the five factors that are stopping designers from using accessibility guidelines:
- Lack of Awareness: Many developers may not know or appreciate the importance of accessible website design.
- Time Constraints: Making a website design accessible can take up valuable time, although part of the problem is that many designers do this after the launch of the initial design.
- Complexity: For those new to accessibility, creating an accessible website can be complex, and they may lose themselves in the technical requirements.
- Legacy Systems: Older website designs may not be easy to redesign for accessibility or may require special skills that are hard to find.
- Immediate risk: Designers can also be ignorant and may not see the immediate risk of lawsuits or fines as an immediate worry — not when they have other risks to consider.
Chatting up accessibility
For Ronen, ChatGPT is “a game-changer” in accessible web design.
“We saw the potential of combining ChatGPT's powerful capabilities for creativity and development with our accessibility data, unlocking the full power of this technology for good,” he explains.
Their product is called Flowy, and it essentially assists web designers who may not have the accessibility knowledge.
“With Flowy, we're revolutionizing accessibility by making it easier for more people, not just developers who understand accessibility, to make websites accessible,” says Ronen.
“At Equally AI, we recognized the need for a solution to make websites accessible to all. We saw the opportunity to simplify the process and make it more user-friendly through our widget, which takes the effort from the website owner and uses technology and human touch to manage accessibility,” says Ronen.
The way Equally AI does this is through integration. Flowy leverages ChatGPT’s natural language processing capabilities to analyze and track accessibility issues. It offers web designers a checklist of issues and suggested fixes that are less like a dashboard and more conversational.
Flowy is no silver bullet for designing accessible websites. For example, it is not specifically designed to enforce compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
“We must recognize that full compliance with the ADA requires a multifaceted approach, and access to technologies such as ChatGPT and Flowy is just one piece of the puzzle,” Ronen warns.
But with the integration with ChatGPT, it can be easier (Ronen even calls it “enjoyable”) to create an accessible website.
Taking the edge off predictability
So why ChatGPT? “Its extensive training on a diverse range of data has enabled it to develop a human-like understanding that sets it apart from conventional AI systems,” says Ronen.
A human-focused design is compatible with Equally AI’s attempts to make websites accessible to everyone.
However, ChatGPT is not without issues; the chief one is predictable outcomes. There is always a high chance that it will offer another reply to the same question (although it does learn fast which answer is more apt).
So, Equally AI is using their experience and results from manual tests to reinforce the learning. “As a result, our customers can be confident that they're getting the best possible solution for their specific needs,” says Ronen.
Ronen also makes it clear that Equally AI is not tying itself to the whims of ChatGPT either. It is also exploring other large language models like Bard. But beyond that, Ronen is keeping the future roadmap close to his chest.
The start of a beginning
According to Ronen, the results have been “awe-inspiring” when ChatGPT is used as an assistive technology.
“The technology is still in its early infancy, and it’s only to be expected that there are some gaps in its abilities to suit all use cases perfectly, especially in the context of understanding and responding to complex, nuanced questions,” says Ronen.
He feels the “kinks” are being ironed out and expects the technology only to get “smarter, more nuanced, and produce better results in the near future.”
The winners will be everyone, adds Ronen. “This is just the beginning of our mission to make the internet a more accessible place for everyone.”
Winston Thomas is the editor-in-chief of CDOTrends and DigitalWorkforceTrends. He’s a singularity believer, a blockchain enthusiast, and believes we already live in a metaverse. You can reach him at [email protected].
Image credit: iStockphoto/AaronAmat
Winston Thomas
Winston Thomas is the editor-in-chief of CDOTrends. He likes to piece together the weird and wondering tech puzzle for readers and identify groundbreaking business models led by tech while waiting for the singularity.