Seeing AI: Talking camera for the blind
There are tools to help the 15,000 people in Omaha who are significantly affected by vision loss. One is as easy as the smartphone so many carry with us.
Running errands has become easier for those who are blind or low vision.These two Omaha women contacted Lyft for a ride from work. A few minutes later – they arrive at the 96th and Q Hy-Vee for some grocery shopping and to show off an app to 6 News that makes it easier. The phone app – called Seeing AI – reads what they cannot see.
Marisa Beekman, who has low vision picks up a tuna pouch.
Seeing AI app: “Starkist. Starkist.”
“You can even go along the shelf,” said Marisa. “And it reads all of them.”
Seeing AI app: “Starkist. Starkist. Starkist,” the app reads.
The app offers as much detail as you want. One doesn’t have to be close to the item for it to work, either.
“It’s more freeing to know you can grab your wallet and phone and go. I don’t have to carry other devices or a big purse or rely on someone else to read. It’s nice. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have surviving living on my own when I first moved here,” said Marisa Beekman.
The idea is to bridge the gap. Outlook Nebraska offers training on the app if it interests you.
“It doesn’t have to be life ending if you’re losing your vision. There are lots of ways to still do the things that you love,” said Rachel Carver with Outlook Nebraska.
From checkout to grabbing a snack before heading back to work, Outlook Nebraska is eager to share what’s helping them get around better.
The app will also identify the correct bills if you’re paying in cash – as well as tell you what color your clothes are.
The Seeing AI app is free. Outlook Nebraska offers training on it. Find more information
or call 402-614-3331 to schedule an appointment.
Seeing AI was developed by Microsoft engineer, Saqib Shaikh, who is blind. In 2015, he teamed up with other employees to harness the power of computer vision to create the product. He simply was looking for something that could describe his surroundings at any moment.
