Kartik Sawhney and Accessibility Technologies

Study Notes

Mr. Kartik Sawhney is a National Geographic Explorer and computer expert.
He utilizes artificial intelligence and human-computer interaction to help people of determination, particularly those with visual impairments.

He develops applications that convert visual content to audio formats for blind and visually impaired individuals.
His application converts graphs into audio frequencies, allowing listeners to hear the differences in information within the graph.

I-Stem provides software transforming digital texts into accessible formats for blind and visually impaired individuals.
Users upload texts to the website.
The software converts the file into a Word document.
Users receive the converted document and can listen to the text using a screen reader, which reads the text aloud.

Offers mentorship and employment opportunities for people of determination.
This is achieved through partnerships with governments, technical universities, and corporations.

Volunteers assist people of determination with:
- Resume writing
- Job interview preparation
- Career-related questions

The Taha Hussein Library at the New Bibliotheca Alexandrina provides scanners with specialized software to convert text into audio for the visually impaired.
Scholarships and special opportunities are provided to gifted individuals, like Rania Saleh, a computer programmer with Down Syndrome.
In 2022, Egypt launched initiatives to empower people of determination.
These initiatives guide organizations to integrate employees of determination into the workforce and create job opportunities.
The Ministry of Manpower is developing programs to educate and train people of determination for the job market.

Mobile phone use can be challenging for individuals with hearing impairments.
Speech-to-text technology apps make communication easier by converting speech to text in real time.
These apps utilize voice recognition technology for real-time text conversion.