AI Is Failing People With Disability. A Blind Engineer Explains Why

Three buses passed Santiago “Santi” Velasquez because he could not see when to hail them. Instead of accepting that public transport was not designed for him, the blind electrical engineer decided to build a better system.In this episode of ListenABLE, Dylan Alcott and Angus O’Loughlin sit down with Santi to discuss the experience that inspired Halo, an accessibility-first public transport app that alerts drivers when a passenger needs assistance, where they are boarding and where they need to get off.Santi explains how he became one of the relatively few blind electrical engineers in the world, why his parents taught him that “the only thing you cannot do is see”, and how he learned advanced mathematics, coding and engineering through Braille, audio technology and problem-solving.The conversation also explores the risks and opportunities of artificial intelligence for people with disability. Santi argues that AI can be incredibly useful, but only when people with lived experience are included in the data, design and decision-making process.From accessible public transport and guide dog discrimination to Braille literacy, rideshare accountability and the danger of treating people with disability as charity cases, this is a powerful conversation about independence, expectations and designing a world that works better for everyone.As Santi says:“We’re not just charity cases. We have to have high expectations of ourselves because otherwise, who else is going to have them?”In this episode00:00 “I’ll be damned if I’m going to be a second-class citizen”01:00 Welcome to ListenABLE02:05 Meet Santiago “Santi” Velasquez03:24 Growing up blind in Colombia06:14 Becoming a blind electrical engineer09:12 Learning mathematics, coding and engineering through Braille10:28 The tactile display that lets people feel a screen15:22 Is artificial intelligence actually accessible?20:58 Why blind children still need to learn Braille24:07 High expectations instead of charity25:58 The three buses that inspired Halo28:44 Why disability-led inventions benefit everyone30:20 How passengers with disability become invisible to transport systems31:55 Santi’s global ambition for Halo34:39 How the Halo public transport app works36:25 Who should pay for accessible transport technology?38:14 Creating accountability across transport and rideshare services42:36 Why sharing lived experience matters44:04 The Bowl of Uncomfortable46:10 What people need to know about guide dogs48:07 Santi’s final messageLearn more about Santi and HailoRequest Hailo in your city:Download and use Halo if you are travelling on participating services in Victoria.Follow the ListenABLE hostsDylan Alcott:https://www.instagram.com/dylanalcott/Angus O’Loughlin:https://www.instagram.com/angus_oloughlin/ListenABLE:https://www.instagram.com/listenable_podcast/ProductionListenABLE is recorded and produced in partnership with SESSION in PROGRESS, Melbourne’s video podcast studio and production team.SESSION in PROGRESS:https://sessioninprogress.com.au/Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/session.in.progress/Subscribe to ListenABLE for honest, funny and educational conversations about disability, accessibility and the experiences that connect us.#Disability #Accessibility #PublicTransport