The Alan Turing Institute ‘AI and Inclusion’ pilot project based at the University of Southampton and led by Professor Mike Wald (A Turing Fellow) seeks to understand the design and deployment of AI to benefit all members of society, including traditionally underserved communities.
The global assistive technology market is set to exceed $26 billion by 2024 but in many low and middle-income countries, there is limited access to these technologies. However, the growing use of AI in mobile, free and open source applications and knowledge sharing of expertise could help to achieve World Health Organisation’s goal for Universal Health Coverage which “can be advanced inclusively only if people are able to access quality assistive products when and where they need them”.
The impact that AI will have on education and employment in the future is undeniable, but AI research could be a force for good for the more than a billion people who live with some form of disability as long as they are not marginalised.
The impact of this work could become part of the WHO drive to address the “unmet need of assistive products [that] is crucial to achieve the SDGs, to provide Universal Health Coverage (UHC), and to implement the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities”
The aim is to:
● Provide a Turing Institute roadmap for an AI and Inclusion Challenge to help the Turing Institute fulfil its mission.
● Create a network of interdisciplinary researchers in partner universities working with organisations and companies in the area of AI and inclusion
● Share exemplars of digital applications using AI for inclusion and accessibility to encourage innovation.
● Seek research funding in collaboration with partners.