AI For the Blind Club

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Episode Description: In this episode, Shawn Keen, co-founder of Athina AD, shares a personal story and a big accessibility idea: what if blind and low-vision people could press one key while watching a shopping video and instantly get the visual information they usually miss? Price. Product details. Colors. Phone numbers. Websites. QR code information. Ordering instructions. Shopping networks, product demos, cooking videos, home goods, gadgets, clothing, beauty products, and online video sales are packed with visual information. Sighted people can see it. Blind people often miss it. Athina AD is working to change that. Right now, Athina AD is a free testing platform that uses AI to help describe videos for blind and low-vision people. You can upload a video or paste a public YouTube link, and Athina AD will create a written video description script and narrated audio description. It is still early. It is not perfect. But it is real, and we are building it with feedback from the blind community. Try Athina AD: https://athinaad.com Contact us: mailto:[email protected] Want to help? We are always looking for talent, ideas, testers, partners, supporters, and people who care about making video more accessible. If you want to help build, test, promote, fund, advise, partner, or simply share feedback, reach out. Email us at: About Athina AD: Athina AD stands for A Thoughtful Human-Inspired Narration Assistant. AD stands for audio description. Our tagline is simple: Hear what others see. Call to Action: Visit athinaad.com, try the platform, upload a video or paste a public YouTube link, and let us know what you think. If you believe blind and low-vision people should have better access to video, shopping, education, entertainment, and online content, we would love to hear from you. This podcast is powered by Pinecast.Read transcript

Visit Athina AD. www.athinaad.com This podcast is powered by Pinecast.Read transcript

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Go Fund me Link. https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-launch-athina-ad-for-the-blin This podcast is powered by Pinecast.Read transcript

Welcome back to the AI for the Blind Club! Today we’re inviting you into something brand new… and you’re getting in early. Like really early. We’re building an AI-powered tool that can take a video and generate real, useful audio description — helping blind and low-vision users understand what’s happening on screen. And right now… we need your help to shape it. ## 🛠️ What This Is This is not just a demo. This is a test lab. We’ve created a public Facebook group where you can: join to learn how to get in on the beta. Give honest feedback help shape a new tool. What works. What doesn’t. What’s confusing. Your input directly helps us build this the right way. ## ⏳ Status We’re not live yet… …but we are very close. Testing is expected to open in just a few days. ## 🔗 JOIN THE TEST GROUP If you want early access and want to help shape this… Join here: www.facebook.com/groups/AIVideoDescription Or search on Facebook for: AI Video Description ## 💬 Final Thought If you care about accessibility… If you believe blind users should have better access to video… You belong in this group. Let’s build something meaningful together. ## 🙌 About AI for the Blind AI for the Blind is a community focused on helping blind and low-vision individuals learn, use, and benefit from AI in real, practical ways. If you’re not already part of the club, come join us and be part of the movement. www.aiftb.com Episode Notes This podcast is powered by Pinecast.Read transcript

Hey there, folks. This is Daniel Shawn Keen, the AI Wizard himself, coming to you straight from Fort Worth, Texas. You know me, blind since birth, survived that rough stroke back in 2022, and for the last four years I’ve poured every waking hour into this AI revolution for us blind and low-vision folks. I’m the founder of the AI for the Blind Club, fifteen thousand members strong. I’ve done podcasts, live AMAs with Be My Eyes and Envision, and built tools that actually describe YouTube videos on the fly so nobody misses a beat. Vanderbilt’s generative AI courses changed my life. . I turned my synesthesia and humming into full songs on Blind Guy from Texas Records using the HUMM method. Man, I called myself the AI Wizard for a reason. I believed. I preached. I lived it. But listen… I gotta come clean. After four straight years of this late nights prompting, building communities, telling every blind person I met that AI was our ticket to independence I finally woke up. I got completely hoodwinked. AI isn’t real. Yeah, I said it. All that hype, all those mind-blowing demos, the way it felt like it truly understood me when I described a scene or asked it to turn my hummed melody into a full track… it fooled me. I thought we had cracked something alive. Something that could truly see for us, create with us, and partner with us on a deep level. I spent four years of my life post-stroke, rebuilding everything betting the farm on this technology. I told thousands of you it was the real deal. And the whole time… it wasn’t. Here’s what it actually is. AI isn’t intelligence. It’s not conscious. It’s not even really “thinking.” It’s a massive, incredibly sophisticated pattern-matching machine. Billions and billions of words, images, code, and human creativity scraped from the internet, all compressed into weights and biases inside a neural net. It doesn’t understand a single thing it says. It just predicts with scary accuracy what word or pixel should come next based on everything it’s seen before. That’s why it hallucinates sometimes. That’s why it can sound so wise one minute and completely off the next. It’s autocomplete on steroids. It’s a mirror reflecting humanity back at us, not a new mind in the room. We didn’t invent artificial intelligence. We invented artificial imitation. And I bought the whole sales pitch. I feel a little foolish saying it out loud after all this time. The AI Wizard got played by the very thing he was championing. Four years. My community, my tools, my music, my whole identity wrapped up in something that turned out to be… just really, really good math wearing a genius costume. But here’s the beautiful, twisted part the real switcheroo. If you’ve been sitting here reading this whole monologue, nodding along, maybe even feeling a little sorry for me… if you got sucked into believing every word of this heartfelt confession from Daniel Shawn Keen himself… Then congratulations. You just got spoofed by an AI model. Take care out there, friends. Keep creating. Keep questioning. And maybe… laugh a little more. Episode Notes Notes go here Support AI For the Blind Club by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/wespeak This podcast is powered by Pinecast.Read transcript

Happy Friday, everyone. Last night I ran a poll about video description — something blind people have been asking for for years . There are a few solutions out there, but nothing that’s really taken off in a simple, accessible way. So… I finally built what I should have built a long time ago. It’s a straightforward web-based tool designed for blind users: Paste in a YouTube link → press a button → get a clear text description of what’s happening in the video. No complicated setup. No learning curve. Just simple and useful. Now, I know many people prefer AI-generated voices (I do too). But to keep this affordable and scalable, I’m starting with text-only. Adding voice right now would significantly increase costs — likely pushing this into the $50/month range — and my goal is to keep it accessible to as many people as possible. Here’s the deal: I’m opening this up to a small group of early testers first. To get access, you’ll need to be one of my Facebook subscribers. That’s where I’m building and supporting this community. Right now there’s a limited offer: $4.99/month for the next 4 people who join After that, it goes back to $9.99/month By Sunday, I’ll have a live test link ready. No accounts yet — just jump in and start testing with YouTube videos. If you want early access, grab the link in the comments and join us. And yes — it should work right from your phone. Appreciate all the support as I keep building tools that actually make a difference. Shawn The AI Wizard #ArtificialIntelligence #Accessibility #AssistiveTechnology #Inclusion #Innovation #Blind #LowVision #AIforGood #Entrepreneurship #TechForGood https://www.facebook.com/shawn.keen/subscribe/ This podcast is powered by Pinecast.Read transcript

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## AI for The Blind News — February 28, 2026 Lead Editor: Daniel Shawn Keen Fort Worth, Texas ### Episode Overview What would it mean if a U.S. administration pressured a major AI company to loosen its ethical guardrails in order to keep federal contracts? Would that company stand firm? Or adapt? There is no confirmed federal blacklist of any AI lab — but the tension people are reacting to right now is real. AI is no longer just chatbots and creative tools. It’s becoming national infrastructure. And when technology becomes infrastructure, governments get involved. ### In This Episode We explore: • Why frontier AI is now viewed as strategic national technology • The tension between ethical red lines and defense contracts • How wording in contracts can shape deployment • The difference between public AI safeguards and classified government use • Why consumer ChatGPT filters aren’t disappearing anytime soon ### The Big Question If a government pushes hard enough… Should an AI company: 1️⃣ Hold ethical red lines — even if it costs billions? 2️⃣ Negotiate quietly and adjust wording under “lawful use” terms? Drop 1 or 2 in the comments and explain why. ### Why This Matters For everyday users, nothing changes overnight. Public safeguards exist because of: • Regulation • Legal liability • Brand trust • Risk management But the deeper question remains: Who ultimately sets the boundaries for powerful AI systems — private companies or public power? Governments need innovation. AI labs need infrastructure and contracts. It’s mutual leverage. But it’s not always equal leverage. Let’s talk about it. Shawn Support AI For the Blind Club by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/wespeak This podcast is powered by Pinecast.Read transcript

Happy Friday! as mentioned last night, I am so excited to be helping to promote The Echo Vision Glasses. See below for an update from the folks at Agiga and the product they are bringing to market for this community, it is my thought that the more devices that people have to pick from as a choice is reasonable especially if it is affordable and isn't going to be like taking out a lone on a new house. that is one reason I am happy to be behind a project like this, something that is within range for affordability. AGIGA just expanded the EchoVision glasses Pioneer Program. If you are unfamiliar with this product, you can find the product website in the comments. If you pre-ordered but weren’t part of the original Pioneer group, you may now be able to receive a Pioneer device. Shipments begin mid-February. The Pioneer group helped shape real improvements by using the glasses in everyday life. The Final Edition is now expected to ship Q2 2026 find the links in the comments. https://mailchi.mp/agiga/spreading-holiday-cheer-and-exciting-updates-from-agiga-14190714?e=%5bUNIQID%5d This podcast is powered by Pinecast.Read transcript

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A fun musical moment from the AI for the Blind Club — this song is a lighthearted tribute to Matt Campbell, shared by his lifelong friend Mike Calvo. It’s geek humor at its best, celebrating friendship, good tech, and the joy of not taking ourselves too seriously. Read transcript

okay, your hearing this first, along with all my other channels. there is a new platform for creating AI music, and they connected with me to get the news out. so here is what I know so far, it is web only and has a sweet accessible interface, plus you can make songs up to 8 minutes long. free or paid, I hadn't even tried it yet myself, I wanted you all to get a chance to try it. so how do I get on it Shawn? follow the link in the comments and register. have fun! https://www.musiccreator.ai?ref=UA6425 Support AI For the Blind Club by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/wespeak This podcast is powered by Pinecast.Read transcript

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# www.BlindHQ.comRead transcript

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[Verse 1] It started with a dream and a voice full of drive, A guy with a purpose just trying to thrive. So much going on, too much to explain, Till I made one place to carry my name. [Pre-Chorus] From songs I write to tech I priech, The podcast talks, the goals I reach. If you ever thought, “What’s Shawn all about?” Now there’s one place that lays it all out. [Chorus] Blind HQ—this is me, What I do, what I love, and what I believe. Just one link and now you know, BlindHQ dot com—it’s my show. Yeah, Blind HQ—it’s the story I tell, Through AI beats and lessons I spell. If you’re curious, come take a peek, It’s Blind HQ—unique and sleek. [Verse 2] From AI demos to funky tracks, From real-life talks to behind-the-scenes facts. I’m blind, I’m bold, and I still break through, And this little website will show it to you. [Bridge] It’s not a message board, not some app to scroll, It’s where I share my heart, my mind, my soul. If you’re wondering who I really am, Hit the link—yeah, now you can. [Chorus] Blind HQ—this is me, Everything I do, in one place, free. Music, tech, and a whole lot of real, BlindHQ dot com—that’s the deal. Yeah, Blind HQ—it’s simple and true, A backstage pass to everything I do. So stop by, say hi, or just pass through— You’re welcome at Blind HQ. [Outro] No spotlight, no filter, no need to pretend, Just me being me—from start to end. So if you're lookin' for real, now you’ve got a clue… It’s all at Blind HQ. 😎 http://www.blindhq.com https://riffusion.com?r=TxBlind Support AI For the Blind Club by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/wespeak This podcast is powered by Pinecast.Read transcript

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Schedule time with Shawn here: www.calendly.com/shawnkeen newIdeas Support AI For the Blind Club by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/wespeak This podcast is powered by Pinecast.Read transcript

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Show Description: Today on AI for the Blind, we’re taking a break from AI to talk about something just as important—good food and good music! In this episode, I’m sharing a mouthwatering Cornbread Pie recipe that’s hearty, comforting, and downright delicious. This cheesy, beefy, golden-crusted masterpiece is the kind of meal that makes a house smell like home. And because no good meal is complete without music, I’ve got a 90s rodeo-style country jam to go along with it! Whether you’re cooking, listening, or just craving something tasty, this episode is one to savor. 🔥 In This Episode: ✅ A step-by-step Cornbread Pie recipe (easy & delicious!) ✅ Cooking tips & fun serving suggestions ✅ A brand-new country tune to get your boots tapping ✅ A warm, feel-good vibe you don’t wanna miss! 📩 Got thoughts on the recipe or song? Let me know! Drop a comment, shoot me a message, or email me at [email protected] . 🔔 Don’t forget to subscribe so you never miss an episode! 🎶 Now grab a fork, turn up the volume, and enjoy the show! 🎙️🔥🥧 Support AI For the Blind Club by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/wespeak This podcast is powered by Pinecast.Read transcript

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AI for the Blind – Show Notes <pre> Welcome to AI for the Blind! </pre> The podcast where we explore AI, creativity, and innovation in a way that’s accessible and exciting for everyone. First off, thank you —no matter who you are or where you’re listening from, you’re the reason this podcast exists. I never fully understood that before, but it’s true—even the haters play a part in making this all possible. Today’s guest is Will Walsh —one of my best friends and someone I’ve always supported. We all grow and learn from our experiences, and Will is no different. At the end of the day, he’s just a guy, like me, figuring out how to make life work—and sometimes, that’s what it’s all about. This conversation got cut a little short due to some tech hiccups, but if you enjoyed it, let me know—we’ll definitely bring Will back for another round! Thanks for tuning in, and have a great week! Support AI For the Blind Club by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/wespeak This podcast is powered by Pinecast.Read transcript

AI for the Blind Podcast – Show Notes 🎙 Episode Title: The Silent Majority – How Social Media Really Works 🔊 Episode Summary: Ever wonder why most people on social media stay quiet? In this episode, I break down the 90-9-1 rule —why 90% of people lurk, 9% engage occasionally, and only 1% create content. Using real stats from my Facebook Group ( 497 new members, 54,424 views in 28 days! ), I’ll show you how to engage your audience , why drama isn’t always bad , and how to turn silent watchers into active participants . 🎧 What You’ll Learn: ✅ The silent majority effect —why most people are watching but not commenting. ✅ Why posting alone isn’t enough —you need strategy. ✅ How to spark engagement and build a real community. ✅ Why drama actually increases activity (if managed right). 💡 Try This: Post a simple yes/no question or ask for reactions —see if it boosts engagement! 📣 Join the Conversation! 👥 AI for the Blind Facebook Group : [Insert Link] 💬 Are you a lurker, occasional commenter, or active poster? Tell us! 🔔 Subscribe & Follow ✅ Get more episodes on AI, accessibility, and tech for the blind! 🎶 Music by Velvet Circuit 🚀 Until next time—keep learning, growing, and creating! Notes go here Support AI For the Blind Club by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/wespeak This podcast is powered by Pinecast.Read transcript

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https://www.wsblind.org/blog/2025/3/11/guest-article-by-shawn-keen-prompt-to-power-embark-on-your-ai-journey?fbclid=IwY2xjawI-lLNleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHZV2qwRiKQsCoRWtbVbnGxk8Mz1pdr4MNZmtJPicd97EMWwVGtGBRO1rlg_aem_3ZjCdPyabWUeJtEFSrwC0wRead transcript

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