Odisha News, Odisha Latest news, Odisha Daily - OrissaPOST
  • Home
  • Trending
  • State
  • Metro
  • National
  • International
  • Business
  • Feature
  • Entertainment
  • Sports
  • More..
    • Odisha Special
    • Editorial
    • Opinion
    • Careers
    • Sci-Tech
    • Timeout
    • Horoscope
    • Today’s Pic
  • Video
  • Epaper
  • News in Odia
  • Home
  • Trending
  • State
  • Metro
  • National
  • International
  • Business
  • Feature
  • Entertainment
  • Sports
  • More..
    • Odisha Special
    • Editorial
    • Opinion
    • Careers
    • Sci-Tech
    • Timeout
    • Horoscope
    • Today’s Pic
  • Video
  • Epaper
  • News in Odia
No Result
View All Result
OrissaPOST - Odisha Latest news, English Daily -
No Result
View All Result

Microsoft AI will empower 1 bn people with disabilities

Post News Network
Updated: October 29th, 2018, 12:18 IST
in Business, Home News, International
0
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on WhatsAppShare on Linkedin

Redmond (Washington State): Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the big buzzword in the world of technology as it promises to change the way we live and interact with devices.

For Microsoft, there is nothing “artificial” about delivering on “intelligence” as the supreme aim is to empower nearly one billion people with disabilities.

Also Read

BJP questions Congress over not nominating Tharoor for delegation on Operation Sindoor

3 hours ago
Indian Startup Funding

Indian startups raise $194 million this week

3 hours ago

The excitement about AI is so evident on the Microsoft campus here that various teams associated with the task have focused their energies towards achieving the impossible — to give differently-abled a normal, dignified life.

The change has been visible in the last couple of years under CEO Satya Nadella who has brought AI to the fore across domains — devices, Cloud, Office 365, Windows and so on.

For him, “Artificial Intelligence represents one of technology’s most important priorities, and heath care is perhaps AI’s most urgent application.”

“AI for Accessibility” is a new, $25 million, five-year programme from Microsoft for developers globally, including in India.

The programme will put AI tools in the hands of developers to accelerate the development of accessible and intelligent AI solutions for people with disabilities.

Jenny Lay-Flurrie, Microsoft’s first-ever Chief Accessibility Officer whose deafness set in at a young age, has a mammoth goal ahead — to utilise AI tools for accessibility and inclusion.

“Accessibility is all about making anything and everything accessible to everyone. We have several programmes for the disabled, like ‘Seeing AI’ and auto alt-text features that are helping narrate the world for people who are blind or have low vision,” Jenny told a group of visiting journalists.

The company has developed apps that describe what people see and feel, help them do text-to-speech and speech-to-text translation and, with predictive text, ensure that people don’t need to type as much.

“We now have eye control, learning tools, ‘Editor’ software, video and audio transcription, and ease of Access settings on Windows 10,” she added.

The “AI for Accessibility” programme provides seed grants of technology to developers, universities, non-governmental organisations and inventors.

At the Accessibility and Inclusion Xbox Lab here, Evelyn Thomas, Senior Programme Manager, is making sure that gamers with limited mobility can enjoy the experience with Xbox Adaptive Controller that has been created to remove barriers by being adaptable to more gamers’ needs.

“Persons with disabilities can now enjoy the immersive experience. You can see here the Xbox family of controllers and devices that are helping such people create a set-up that works for them in a way that is plug-and-play, extensible, and affordable,” Thomas explained.

Microsoft has worked with third-party manufacturers to support external inputs which can be plugged in to the new controller. These inputs include PDP’s One-Handed Joystick for the Xbox Adaptive Controller, Logitech’s Extreme 3D Pro Joystick, and Quadstick’s Game Controller.

Designed for the low-vision community, Microsoft’s app called “Seeing AI” harnesses the power of AI to describe people, text and objects. It can tell visually-impaired persons what is around them. If the phone is pointed at a park, the camera app can describe how the scene looks like.

Similarly, it can tell the amount of your restaurant bill or narrate just about anything it is pointed at.

“AI can help people develop professional skills and influence workplace culture and inclusive hiring,” Jenny said, adding that AI is capable of hearing, seeing, and reasoning with increasing accuracy.

By making software and devices smarter, and keeping them affordable, people gain independence to perform daily tasks and personalise tools for their unique needs.

“AI-driven technology can create possibilities for all people, regardless of how they listen, speak, or write,” Jenny said.

The truth is that only one in 10 people with disabilities globally has access to assistive technologies and products. And, according to Nadella, it is important for us to figure out how to empower more people.

“It has been a personal passion of mine to help people suffering with disabilities like amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and autism,” Nadella said recently.

Nadella’s personal passion (his son has cerebral palsy) has now turned into a massive mission at Microsoft, with several teams working towards harnessing the power of AI to empower people with disabilities.

Agencies

Tags: disabilitySatya Nadella
Share6TweetSendShare
Suggest A Correction

Enter your email to get our daily news in your inbox.

 

OrissaPOST epaper Sunday POST OrissaPOST epaper

Click Here: Plastic Free Odisha

slide 2 to 4 of 30
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Archana Parida

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Subhajyoti Mohanty

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Narendra Kumar

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Pitabas Tripathy

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Shreyanshu Bal

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Arya Ayushman

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Amritansh Mishra

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Smitarani Sahoo

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Lopali Pattnaik

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Faiza Firdous

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Anasuya Sahoo

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Pratik Kumar Ghibela

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Jhili Jena

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Rajashree Pravati Mohanty

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Saishree Satyarupa

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Archit Mohapatra

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Priyabrata Mohanty

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Tabish Maaz

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Praptimayee Biswal

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Ramakanta Sahoo

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Sisirkumar Maharana

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Ramakanta Sahoo

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Pratyasharani Ghibela

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Sipra Mishra

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Kamana Singh

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Pratik Kumar

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Adyasha Priyadarsani Sendha

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Sarmistha Nayak

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Priyasha Pradhan

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Bijswajit Pradhan

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Archana Parida

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Subhajyoti Mohanty

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Narendra Kumar

December 12, 2019
#MyPaperBagChallenge

Pitabas Tripathy

December 12, 2019

Archives

Select Month

    Editorial

    Bureaucratic Foresight

    May 17, 2025

    Hostilities between India and Pakistan have ceased, for the moment, but when your neighbour has a history of lobbing more...

    Read more

    Sound & Fury

    China-US
    May 14, 2025

    The outcome of any war between two unequal forces could be predictable – maybe the stronger side wins and the...

    Read more

    Breaking Walls

    Pope Leo XIV
    May 13, 2025

    I t is of great significance that Robert Francis Prevost, who has succeeded Pope Francis, repeated the word ‘peace’ ten...

    Read more

    Dangerous Liaisons

    india pakistan
    May 12, 2025

    India and Pakistan have halted military actions for now, a day after Pakistan breached a ceasefire initially announced to the...

    Read more
    • Home
    • State
    • Metro
    • National
    • International
    • Business
    • Editorial
    • Opinion
    • Sports
    • About Us
    • Advertise
    • Contact Us
    • Jobs
    Developed By Ratna Technology

    © 2024 All rights Reserved by OrissaPOST

    • News in Odia
    • Orissa POST Epaper
    • Video
    • Home
    • Trending
    • Metro
    • State
    • Odisha Special
    • National
    • International
    • Sports
    • Business
    • Editorial
    • Entertainment
    • Horoscope
    • Careers
    • Feature
    • Today’s Pic
    • Opinion
    • Sci-Tech
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Jobs

    © 2024 All rights Reserved by OrissaPOST

      • News in Odia
      • Orissa POST Epaper
      • Video
      • Home
      • Trending
      • Metro
      • State
      • Odisha Special
      • National
      • International
      • Sports
      • Business
      • Editorial
      • Entertainment
      • Horoscope
      • Careers
      • Feature
      • Today’s Pic
      • Opinion
      • Sci-Tech
      • About Us
      • Contact Us
      • Jobs

      © 2024 All rights Reserved by OrissaPOST