Yēli
Generative Artificial Intelligence Serving the Visually Impaired October 2024
Our start-up is dedicated to the creation of an innovative and affordable device, specially designed for blind and visually impaired people, with a strong focus on the African market. The device helps users to navigate their environment, access information about that environment and improve communication skills. It captures and analyzes the surroundings using sensors and cameras connected to the platform.
The prototype uses a miniature, low-cost, single-board computer designed for accessibility and versatility. It was originally developed to promote computer science and programming education, but its capabilities and affordability have made it popular in many fields, including robotics, electronics, the Internet of Things ( IoT), and do-it-yourself (DIY) projects.
This versatile hardware platform is combined with an advanced artificial intelligence system, enabling it to perform a variety of analysis and interaction tasks.
What’s the name of our AI solution?
Yēli
It means “act of seeing, sight, vision” in Bambara.
Description of our innovation
In developing countries, access to affordable technology is a major obstacle for many people, particularly the blind and partially sighted. The high cost of assistive devices – often several thousand dollars in developed countries – makes them inaccessible to a large proportion of the population in these regions.
The lack of affordable assistive technologies exacerbates the difficulties faced by the visually impaired, a group already vulnerable because of their disability. What’s more, as the world rapidly advances thanks to technological breakthroughs, particularly in the fields of artificial intelligence (AI) and digital technologies, visually impaired people in developing countries risk being left behind.
Our start-up focuses on developing an innovative and affordable device designed specifically for blind and visually impaired people, with a particular emphasis on accessibility for the African market. The prototype is based on the versatile Raspberry PI platform, generative AI, vision-specific tools and a suite of open source technologies.
The device helps users navigate their environment, access information and improve their communication skills. Using sensors and cameras connected to the Raspberry platform, it captures and analyzes the environment.
Vision-specific tools process visual data and convert it into audio or tactile feedback, helping users to perceive obstacles, read text and identify objects.
The project involves close collaboration with the visually impaired community to refine and adapt the device to their specific needs and preferences.
How do we use Artificial Intelligence (AI)??
Generative AI acts as an intelligent natural language interface, enabling users to interact with the device via voice commands. This AI-powered assistant will provide real-time information, answer questions and facilitate communication by translating text or speech into accessible formats.
What will the price be ?
One of the fundamental principles of our platform is the use of open source tools to keep development costs low. Our aim is to make the device very affordable, guaranteeing accessibility to a wider audience, especially in the African market, where a low price is crucial.
The ultimate goal is to provide a cost-effective, user-friendly and efficient solution that significantly improves the independence and quality of life of blind and partially-sighted people.
