[Definitive Guide] Empowering People with Disabilities through AI: Enhancing Lives with Reiwa Era AI Techniques

Do you use AI in your daily life? Many people find AI intimidating, thinking it's complicated, and tend to shy away from it. However, AI has rapidly become widespread in recent years, becoming a tool accessible to many. It can even help solve issues faced by people with disabilities, so we encourage everyone to master its use.

This article explains how to use AI tailored to the characteristics of different disabilities. Master AI correctly and achieve a richer life.

1. Why "AI Utilization for People with Disabilities" is Important Now

1-1. AI is No Longer Just for IT Experts

In the past, AI was something only those with advanced programming skills or IT companies dealt with, making it far removed from the average person. However, this perception has dramatically changed in recent years, and now AI is a convenient tool accessible to everyone in daily life and work.

For instance, in a survey conducted in the caregiving and disability support sector, 71.2% of staff use generative AI at least once a week. This indicates that AI is no longer a special technology but a familiar presence in everyday life.

Being able to utilize AI is likely to become an essential skill in the future.

1-2. A Tool to Address Challenges Due to Disabilities

People with disabilities or chronic illnesses face various challenges in their daily lives and work. In such situations, utilizing AI can sometimes compensate for what is lacking. In other words, AI can act as the eyes, ears, and brain for people with disabilities, significantly expanding their possibilities and activities as a "supporter".

1-3. New Ways of Working with AI

Recently, new work styles utilizing AI skills, such as "IT-specialized employment transition support," have emerged. For those who want to learn AI in depth, taking advantage of such support systems might be a good option.

AI is still a relatively new industry, so people with high skills are in demand, and the demand is expected to grow more and more. This means that in the future, AI skills will become a significant asset regardless of whether one has a disability.

With AI, you can do more, and your employment opportunities will expand. This might be a good opportunity to try side jobs.

If you're interested in side jobs, please also check out the following article.

Reference:

2. [By Disability] AI Tools to Enhance Your Life

2-1. [Physical Disabilities] Reduce the Burden of "Writing and Typing" with Voice Input

If you have a disability that makes handwriting or keyboard input difficult, utilize the "voice input" feature to smoothly handle administrative tasks and communication using just your voice. Without keyboard operations, you can create documents and gather information, minimizing physical fatigue while maintaining high productivity. Here are some recommended tools for voice input:

• ChatGPT

A conversational AI service developed by OpenAI. It generates responses to user inputs (prompts) across a wide range of tasks, including text generation, summarization, translation, and information retrieval.

Reference: ChatGPT｜OpenAI

• Microsoft Copilot

An AI assistant provided by Microsoft. It leverages advanced AI for information retrieval, document creation, image generation, and integration with Office products, enhancing user productivity and efficiency.

Reference: Microsoft Copilot: Your AI Assistant｜Microsoft

2-2. [Visual Disabilities] Understand Images and Graphs with Words! AI Complements Vision

Recent AI developments have seen an increase in "multimodal capabilities," allowing the processing of images alongside text. Advanced AI technology now enables verbal explanations of images and graphs, which traditional screen readers couldn't recognize.

Additionally, using an AI-powered navigation app can make AI your eyes, explaining the surrounding environment. This not only supports independent outings for visually impaired individuals but also helps detect obstacles and dangers early. Recommended AI tools for the visually impaired include the following two:

• Gemini

A cutting-edge generative AI developed by Google. It can understand not only text but also images and videos, and it handles audio and code. For example, by uploading a document containing complex graphs or diagrams and asking, "What can be inferred from this graph?" it can accurately explain the numbers and key points within the graph in text. It's versatile for brainstorming, programming, image generation, and more.

Reference: Google Gemini｜Google

• Eye Navi

A navigation app for the visually impaired.

AI recognizes over 20 types of obstacles, such as people, car stops, pedestrian signal colors, and tactile paving, and informs users via voice. It also provides directions, routes, and information about nearby facilities, ensuring safe independent outings for visually impaired individuals.

Reference: App for the Visually Impaired - Eye Navi｜Computer Science Institute

2-3. [Hearing Disabilities] AI Converts Speech to Text in Real-Time! Delivering Information and Conversations Visually

For people with hearing disabilities, daily meetings and discussions can be challenging. By using AI for real-time transcription and summarization, you can visualize the content of meetings and conversations, breaking down communication barriers.

Recommended AI tools for hearing-impaired individuals that can be used in work or educational settings include the following:

• YYsystem

A series of real-time transcription apps by Aisin Corporation.

It supports multilingual translation, making it convenient not only for hearing-impaired individuals but also for speakers of foreign languages. Additionally, it features AI-driven conversation summarization, ensuring long meetings or fast-paced conversations are manageable. With seven different apps available for various scenes and purposes, find the one that suits you best.

Reference: Record, Save, and Analyze Conversations with Apps｜YYSystem

• Focus on AI Transcription + Summarization Devices

Currently, AI-driven "transcription + summarization" devices are gaining significant attention among people with hearing disabilities.

While transcription smartphone apps are capable, dedicated devices separate from smartphones are becoming a trend. For example, AI-equipped real-time transcription voice recorders like Plaud NotePin and Notta memo are emerging. These AI-powered transcription devices greatly contribute to improving work efficiency not only for hearing-impaired individuals but also in business settings. If interested, give them a try.

Reference: Automatic Transcription, AI Voice Recorder, Meeting Minutes Creation ｜ Plaud

Reference: Automatic Transcription Service｜Notta

2-4. [Developmental Disabilities] AI as a Reliable Partner for Task Management and Interpersonal Communication

For individuals with developmental disabilities, "multitasking" and "understanding others' intentions" can be challenging due to their characteristics. AI can often support these challenges. Useful AI tools for people with developmental disabilities include the following:

• Notion

An all-in-one workspace integrating notes, task management, wikis, and databases. It helps organize thoughts and manage tasks, making it easy to visualize priorities even if your thoughts are scattered. It also features "Notion AI," an AI tool that can assist with communication, such as crafting an email to decline politely without offending the recipient.

Reference: Connected Workspace for Notes, Documents, and Tasks｜Notion

• Perplexity

A next-generation AI search service combining a search engine and generative AI. It provides the source web pages as references for its answers, making it easy to verify the reliability of information, making it suitable for research.

The paid version offers a "task" feature that automatically runs predefined research or checks at specified times. It's recommended for those who want to be regularly notified via email without having to gather information themselves.

Reference: Perplexity｜Perplexity AI, Inc.

2-5. [Mental Disabilities] Consult About Invisible Struggles and Hardships

For individuals with mental disabilities, daily fluctuations in mood and thought confusion can be significant barriers in life and work. AI can be helpful in addressing these invisible challenges. Additionally, AI can sometimes help streamline work. Recommended AI tools for individuals with mental disabilities include the following:

• AI Chat-kun

A conversational AI tool available within the LINE app, powered by ChatGPT. You can easily receive mental health consultations or assistance with writing from the familiar LINE interface at any time.

Reference: AI Chat-kun｜LINE Official Account

• notebookLM

An AI-powered research and learning assistant provided by Google. It can read PDFs, websites, YouTube videos, and documents, providing summaries, analyses, and Q&A based on their content. It helps reduce the "mental burden" of thinking on days when you're not feeling well by summarizing emails, news articles, and documents.

Reference: Google NotebookLM｜AI Research Tool & Thought Partner｜Google

2-6. [Internal Disabilities & Rare Diseases] Gather Information Efficiently to Reduce Burden

Individuals with internal disabilities or rare diseases often experience invisible fatigue. Additionally, there may be limited information about their conditions, making them complex and difficult to understand. In such cases, utilizing AI can help manage fatigue and efficiently gather information.

• Genspark

An AI tool that acts like a secretary, integrating with your email and calendar to schedule and coordinate plans, making it suitable for managing schedules while conserving energy for those prone to fatigue. It integrates with your calendar to schedule appointments, but you can customize rules to suit your health, such as "only two heavy tasks per day" or "no consecutive days of outings," ensuring peace of mind for those who tire easily.

Furthermore, when researching your condition, Genspark's search engine can handle it all. It summarizes based on sources available on the web, allowing you to use it with confidence and eliminating repetitive research steps for efficiency.

Reference: Genspark｜Your All-in-One AI Workspace

3. Important Points When Using AI Tools