Voice Interface Considerations
Speech recognition struggles with diverse accents, speech differences, disability-related variations. Users with ALS, stuttering, deafblindness need alternative paths. Voice-only interfaces exclude them.
Chat Interface Considerations
Screen readers must parse AI responses correctly. Streaming responses need careful ARIA live-region handling. Visual confidence indicators need text alternatives. Dynamic UI changes need announcement.
Multimodal Support
Users who can’t see images need alt text on generated images. Users who can’t hear audio need transcripts on voice responses. AI systems must be designed from the start for multiple interaction modes, not single-channel.
Legal Posture
EU AI Act requires accessibility for high-risk AI systems. ADA, WCAG compliance for US orgs. Beyond legal — inclusive design serves more users. Accessibility invested in during design is cheap; retrofitted is expensive.