If assistive technology could think: how AI can support participation in everyday life

A smartphone describes the surrounding environment, identifies clear pathways, and helps users navigate unfamiliar spaces. This is no longer a vision of the future. Blind para athlete Verena Bentele recently had the opportunity to test such applications herself at the Google Accessibility Discovery Center in Munich. Reflecting on the experience, she emphasized that AI-powered technologies can create greater freedom and independence – provided they are intentionally designed to remove barriers rather than create new ones.

Artificial intelligence is already finding its way into a growing number of assistive devices, support systems, and digital applications. The focus is not on technology for its own sake, but on practical questions: How can people communicate, access information, or move through their environment as independently as possible?

Communication is one of the areas where AI is already opening up new possibilities today. This is particularly evident for people who cannot communicate through spoken language, or can do so only to a limited extent. AI-powered systems can help by suggesting words or entire sentences, speeding up text input, or adapting communication aids more flexibly to different situations.

In the field of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), for example, REHAVISTA is already exploring how AI can support people in expressing themselves. AI-powered features are designed to make communication easier and help users convey their thoughts more quickly and in a way that better reflects the situation at hand. One principle remains essential: AI does not replace a person's own message. Instead, it serves as a tool that supports self-expression.

Research is also demonstrating how closely AI can touch on deeply personal questions of identity and participation. At the University of Cologne, researchers are investigating how artificial intelligence can help recreate individual voices. For people who can no longer use their voice in the way they once could, this can mean far more than a technical function. It is about being able to speak again with a voice that feels personal, familiar, and recognizably their own.

The field of communication therefore highlights particularly well what AI can contribute in the context of assistive technology. It can reduce barriers, make interaction easier, and support people in expressing themselves more independently and with greater self-determination.

Accessing information, finding one’s way, and understanding the surrounding environment – AI-powered assistive systems can support blind and visually impaired people in many everyday situations. Modern applications can describe images, recognize objects, read text aloud, and help users navigate unfamiliar environments.

Assistive technologies based on this approach are already available today. Systems such as those developed by OrCam use artificial intelligence to recognize text, faces, and products, providing information through audio output. Other projects focus on improving access to digital content. For example, the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) is developing a platform designed to help visually impaired students access educational materials more easily.

While AI cannot replace vision itself, it can make information more accessible and help people navigate everyday life with greater confidence and independence.

Modern assistive technologies can respond to different situations and adapt their support accordingly. This is particularly evident in the field of prosthetics, where sensors and intelligent systems help detect movement patterns and adjust assistance to the user's current activity.

Manufacturers such as Ottobock have been working for years to tailor prosthetic devices as closely as possible to the individual needs of their users. AI can help improve the understanding of movement patterns and further refine device control. For users, however, the focus is not on the technology itself, but on greater safety, reduced effort, and movements that feel as natural as possible.

A more research-oriented perspective can be found in a project at the University of Utah. Researchers there are investigating how AI can improve the interaction between people and their prosthetic devices. The goal is to recognize intended movements more quickly and enable prostheses to respond more precisely. While these approaches are still far from everyday use, they offer a glimpse of how intelligent assistive technology may evolve in the future.

Communication, navigation, and mobility are just some of the areas where AI is already being used today. At the same time, numerous additional applications are being developed with the goal of making participation more accessible.

Researchers and companies, for example, are working on AI-powered solutions for plain language, helping to make information easier to understand and more accessible. Other projects focus on supporting neurodivergent people, including those on the autism spectrum or individuals who face challenges in social communication. In addition, new developments in robotics are exploring how AI can support people both in everyday life and during rehabilitation.

Artificial intelligence is already finding its way into assistive devices, support systems, and digital applications that can help people in their everyday lives. The goal is not to replace human abilities, but to reduce barriers and enable greater independence.

At the same time, many of these developments are still in their early stages. It will take time to see which solutions prove effective and sustainable in the long term. One factor will be particularly important: people with disabilities should not only be users of new technologies, but active participants in shaping their development.

Published on: June 23, 2026