AppleVis Extra 107: Exploring Apple’s Latest Accessibility Innovations with Sarah Herrlinger

In this AppleVis Extra episode, David Nason and Thomas Domville (AnonyMouse) interview Sarah Herrlinger, senior director of Global Accessibility Policy and Initiatives at Apple. They explore Apple’s ongoing dedication to accessibility, spotlighting exciting new features designed to better support users with disabilities. The conversation covers several highlights, including Accessibility Nutrition Labels, Braille Access Mode, Magnifier for Mac, and the role of AI in accessibility enhancements.

Key Highlights:

1. Accessibility Nutrition Label

   • A new initiative that provides standardized accessibility info for apps.
   • Developers will showcase features like VoiceOver and captions.
   • Designed to increase awareness and help users easily find accessibility details.

2. Braille Access Mode

   • Available on iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Vision Pro.
   • Enables quick note-taking, calculations, and BRF file access with Braille displays.
   • Supports live captioning for DeafBlind users to improve communication.

3. Magnifier for Mac

   • Turns your iPhone into a magnifier for Mac users.
   • Uses a secondary camera to enlarge physical objects.
   • Includes zoom, color filters, brightness controls, and OCR with text-to-speech via Accessibility Reader.

4. AI and Accessibility

   • AI remains a vital tool in accessibility advancements.
   • Enhances image recognition and descriptive capabilities.
   • Continues to be integrated to improve experiences for visually impaired users.

5. User Engagement and Feedback

   • Highlights the value of user feedback in shaping accessibility features.
   • Encourages users to send suggestions to [e-mail].

6. Share Accessibility Settings

   • A new feature lets users temporarily transfer their accessibility settings to another device.
   • Makes it easier for family members to help with troubleshooting and tech support.

Listeners are invited to share their thoughts on these features and suggest any other accessibility needs they’d like Apple to consider.

Transcript

Disclaimer: This transcript was generated by AI Note Taker – VoicePen, an AI-powered transcription app. It is not edited or formatted, and it may not accurately capture the speakers’ names, voices, or content.

Dave: Hello there, and welcome to another episode of the AppleVis Extra. My name is David Mason, and I am delighted to be joined once again by Thomas Domville, also known as AnonyMouse, of course. And this is an exciting episode that we, I want to say, annually, semi-annually do, and that is an interview with Apple's Global Head of Accessibility, Sarah Herrlinger. So, looking forward to this one, Thomas.

Thomas: Right. I mean, you're right. That is a mouthful. What is your, I had to look that up. Director of Global Accessibility Policy and Initiatives. I'm like, wow. I wonder if that actually fits on her business card in one line. There's no way. They only respond so small.…