Microsoft Ignite: AI Fuels Accessibility Innovations
Microsoft Ignite recently featured a series of sessions centered on the transformative potential of artificial intelligence in enhancing workplace accessibility for individuals with disabilities and neurodivergent conditions.
During the event, Nicole Dezen, Microsoft’s chief partner officer and corporate vice president of global partner solutions, and Jenny Lay-Flurrie, the company’s vice president and chief accessibility officer, hosted a session titled ‘Advancing Accessibility in the Era of AI.’ Lay-Flurrie emphasized the exciting possibilities that AI presents for disability and accessibility, noting, “We’ve been around for long enough to see lots of new eras of technology and this one is very exciting for the world of disability and accessibility.”
Dezen showcased examples of Microsoft partners actively improving work experiences for their employees. Vodafone, for instance, has adopted an ‘Inclusion for All’ strategy, providing all employees with the connectivity and digital skills needed to succeed. As part of this strategy, Vodafone’s deployment of Microsoft Copilot across its workforce has yielded tangible results, including improved performance for employees with dyslexia, who used Copilot to streamline meeting reviews and summaries.
Lay-Flurrie also highlighted Microsoft’s collaboration with Be My Eyes, an application connecting blind and low-vision individuals with sighted volunteers for assistance with daily tasks. Partnering with Be My Eyes since 2018 to enhance support for its visually impaired customers, Microsoft is now developing an AI chatbot to provide users with on-demand technical help. “We’re now able to resolve calls 50 per cent quicker without the need for a human agent,” Lay-Flurrie stated, “Not only does this save us money but the blind individuals using the service love that they’re getting quick resolution and independence.”
Following this session, Lay-Flurrie joined fellow Microsoft executives, including Tara Roth, corporate vice president of customer success engineering, and Angela Byers, senior director of product marketing, to further examine how Copilot can benefit neurodivergent employees. Byers described how Copilot assists neurodivergent individuals, such as “using Copilot to break down complex tasks into simpler, manageable steps, to keep up with meetings, so they can more fully engage in a conversation, to help with social scripts”.
Kayla Patterson, product marketing manager for Microsoft 365 Copilot, then demonstrated her use of Copilot to support her ADHD. She described Copilot as a “trusty sidekick,” using it to get meeting overviews, including positive reinforcement, notes for improvement, and explanations of uncomfortable interactions to support her with rejection-sensitive dysphoria. Patterson shared, “Hearing it from Copilot, it hits different than hearing it from another human… I’m not going to feel the same sting of rejection from generative AI, as if those same words were coming from an actual person that I work with. Now, I can move on to my next task without fixating on that discomfort all day.”
Another session, ‘Harnessing Copilots to empower accessibility in the workplace,’ delved into AI’s role in improving accessibility across various industries. Anna Cook, senior designer at Microsoft, discussed the long-term benefits of providing equitable workplace experiences. “Accessibility is key to workplace productivity,” Cook emphasized. “Companies that prioritise accessibility find that up to 70 per cent of employee productivity increases by offering experiences that let people work in their own way. Furthermore, companies that support accessibility through workplace accommodations tend to find that their turnover is lowered by up to 30 per cent.” Cook, who has dyslexia, uses Copilot to summarize chats and emails in Microsoft Teams and Outlook.
Hiren Shukla, global neurodiversity and inclusive value leader at EY, shared his personal experiences with neurodivergence and how Copilot adapts to his individual requirements. He also discussed EY’s collaboration with Microsoft to improve Copilot adoption for neurodivergent individuals, including a six-week workshop in 2023. The workshop helped EY and Microsoft assess technology’s effectiveness in meeting user needs and identify areas for improvement. “If you’re sitting here today and your intention is to lead and to drive some momentum towards the accessibility inclusion journey and the intersection with technology in your workforce, you have partners like Microsoft and EY who are willing to share our stories and information with you and your leadership,” Shukla stated. “So, please, let’s be on the journey together. I think together we’ll make a massive difference in the world.”
