Summary
Many organizations struggle with justifying and prioritizing accessibility. One of the primary reasons is because they’re thinking about accessibility all wrong. Instead of a checklist, a list of legal requirements, or a set of shackles holding designers and developers back, it’s time to start thinking of accessibility as what it is: an opportunity to innovate! In this presentation, Fable will draw from our expertise helping organizations like yours start the accessibility journey, to change the way you think about disability, assistive technology, and accessibility. We will demonstrate that accessible products are more flexible, customizable, and useful for all users. We’ll also show you how accessibility is directly tied to the creation of many of the most exciting and innovative technologies of the last 50 years, and how it’s changed the entire world for everyone. This presentation will inspire you with the information and ideas you need to accelerate your accessibility journey.
Key Insights
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Features like dark mode, captions, and voice assistants started as accessibility tools but now benefit all users.
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One in five people live with long-term disabilities; everyone experiences temporary or situational disability.
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Accessibility should not be seen as simplifying designs but as building flexible, customizable products.
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Inclusive design benefits people with disabilities and creates better experiences for all users.
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Engaging diverse teams ensures accessibility solutions consider unseen needs and drive innovation.
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Retrofitting accessibility after development increases costs; it’s cheaper and better to design inclusively from the start.
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Accessible gaming innovations, like in The Last of Us 2, show how adding features rather than removing complexity boosts inclusivity and enjoyment.
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Accessible design is future-proofing: as users age, accessible designs serve their changing abilities.
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Data sonification and technologies like Apple’s APIs enable vision-impaired users to access graph-heavy content.
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Moving beyond compliance checklists to real user needs makes accessibility a journey integrated into continuous product development.
Notable Quotes
"Dark mode really started off as an accessibility feature for those who experienced visual challenges and eventually became mainstream."
"Voice assistance gave people with disabilities independence that they had never previously had before but also made the world better for everyone."
"Disability is the only identity that all of us will probably adopt at some point during our lives."
"Accessible designs mean designs that work for our future selves."
"Separate but equal is never equal when it comes to accessible design."
"The Last of Us 2 didn’t simplify the game for accessibility, they added audio cues and customizable controls, setting innovation standards."
"Every feature that started out for people with disabilities has in some way become mainstream."
"It is cheaper and easier to do accessibility right the first time than to go back and fix things."
"Accessibility is a journey, not something you do once every five years."
"Moving beyond checklists to understanding real user needs creates great experiences for people with disabilities and everyone else."
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