In recent years, AI-powered web accessibility solutions, referred to as overlays, have become increasingly popular, marketed as quick and cost-effective ways to ensure compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). These AI-based overlay products offer quick fixes for making websites accessible by optimizing for screen readers, improving keyboard navigation, and automatically addressing other accessibility issues.
However, these tools often fall short of their promises, creating the potential for legal and financial repercussions for businesses that use them. The growing number of class action lawsuits over the effectiveness and reliability of these AI technology tools is a reminder of the importance of a human component to accessibility testing.
The Legal Landscape
Digital accessibility is not just a technical consideration but also a legal and ethical responsibility. Under the ADA, businesses and organizations are required to provide equal access to individuals with disabilities, which extends to digital platforms like websites and apps. Non-compliance can result in lawsuits, hefty fines, and damage to a company’s reputation.
The WCAG provide a comprehensive framework for making web content accessible. Although WCAG is not itself a law, it is often used as a benchmark for determining compliance in legal cases. The guidelines cover a broad range of recommendations, such as providing alt text for images, ensuring keyboard navigability, and making content easily readable. Courts frequently refer to WCAG when adjudicating digital accessibility cases.
Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act further mandates that federal agencies and private companies doing business with them ensure their digital platforms are accessible to people with disabilities. For businesses working with the government or any public service entities, compliance with Section 508 is a critical legal obligation.
The Illusion of Compliance
There is a perception that AI-powered overlays can detect and fix accessibility issues automatically, ensuring compliance with ADA and WCAG standards. However, these tools can typically only address a small percentage of accessibility barriers, leaving many issues unresolved. They also fail to detect more complex problems, such as improper semantic HTML, nuanced interactive elements, and multimedia content. For this reason, human testing is also crucial to ensure compliance.
The Limitations of AI Solutions
AI-based accessibility tools do offer certain benefits, such as enhancing user independence and improving basic navigation for individuals with disabilities. They can automate tasks like generating alt text for images or adjusting site elements for better accessibility. However, these solutions can struggle with accuracy, and their ability to meet the full range of accessibility standards is often limited.
For instance, AI can misinterpret images, provide insufficient alt text descriptions, or overlook interactive components crucial to the user experience. These oversights compromise the accessibility of the website and fail to meet the needs of individuals with disabilities. As a result, relying solely on AI-driven solutions is not a sustainable approach to web accessibility.
Why Human Expertise Is Essential
While AI tools can assist in identifying basic accessibility issues, they cannot replace the comprehensive understanding and problem-solving skills that human experts bring to the table. Manual testing and remediation are crucial for ensuring that a website is fully accessible to all users. AI’s limited capability to address nuanced and context-specific accessibility barriers means that human input is necessary to meet the full scope of accessibility standards.
Relying on shortcuts like AI overlays may seem cost-effective in the short term, but the long-term consequences can be far more expensive. Investing in human-led accessibility solutions on the other hand, helps ensure not only legal compliance but also a better, more inclusive user experience.
Conclusion
Businesses must recognize that achieving true accessibility requires more than just a quick, AI-powered fix. While AI-based overlays may offer some benefits, they are not substitutes for the in-depth, human-driven processes needed to create genuinely accessible websites. Investing in expert accessibility services will help avoid the pitfalls of inadequate AI solutions and save money in the long run.
By prioritizing comprehensive accessibility efforts, companies can create inclusive digital experiences for all their users, protect themselves from compliance risks, and build a reputation for social responsibility. True web accessibility is about more than checking boxes—it’s about making the digital world accessible for everyone.
Learn More
Maverick’s Accessibility Program helps publishers comply with legal requirements in Europe and North America while creating opportunities for greater discoverability and usability for all readers. Our unique structure allows us to assemble teams with the exact skills needed to support each project. Contact your Maverick representative or info@maverick-os.com for a free consultation.
By Will Awad, Affiliate Senior Associate
Will Awad is a digital accessibility expert and an experienced publishing professional with a background in the academic publishing information technology and publishing services industries. He has advised on digital accessibility compliance per W3C/WCAG guidelines – and overseen access audits and remediation of digital documents (i.e., EPUBs and PDFs) ensuring they meet the legal requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) as well as the European Accessibility Act (EAA) and PDF/UA. Will also holds a master’s degree focused on international law.
Further Reading
Accessible eBooks, intentional workflow
Maverick Accessibility Program service sheet