Ahead of Google’s annual developer conference on Tuesday, Apple announced several new accessibility updates powered by Apple Intelligence to features like VoiceOver, voice control, live recognition and real-time captioning for videos. The company also said Vision Pro users will be able to control a compatible wheelchair with their eyes using this update.
The company said the Apple Intelligence image recognition feature in VoiceOver will better understand the image and describe it in greater detail. For example, he can look at a bill and read the details, such as the amount and due date. Apple said the updated feature can also better describe photos and personal files.
Users can now use an iPhone to activate Live Recognition, which uses a camera to recognize content in the frame, as well as ask questions to learn more. Users with low vision can also map a magnifying glass to the action button, which presents content in a high-contrast interface. Additionally, they can use voice commands such as “zoom” or “activate lens” to access features.
The voice command update isn’t limited to the Magnifier app. Apple said users can describe tasks in natural language to take action on what they see on the screen. For example, in Apple Maps, they might say “tap the best restaurant guide,” or in Archives, they might say “tap the purple folder.”
The company is also updating Reader, which can now handle documents like scientific papers with multiple columns, images and tables.
Users can get AI summaries or read the text in the native language with custom fonts and colors. The company added that the updated reader can accommodate different disabilities, such as dyslexia and low vision.
In addition, Apple adds AI-generated subtitles for videos that do not have pre-generated subtitles. This includes videos recorded on an iPhone or clips taken from friends or family. These generated subtitles will work on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV and Apple Vision Pro and users can control their appearance.
In addition, the company announced a new project where Vision Pro users can control their compatible wheelchairs with their eyes. Apple said the feature can work in different lighting conditions without recalibration. The feature will launch with alternative Tolt and LUCI drive systems in the US with accessory support for both Bluetooth and wired connections.
Apple noted its Name Recognition feature, which notifies hearing-impaired users when someone says their name, now supports 50 languages. Additionally, the company will be rolling out great text support on tvOS. Apple also said Made for iPhone hearing aids will better handle handoff between different devices.
The company said these features will be available to users later this year. It is likely to be part of Apple’s upcoming iOS 27 release.
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