CSUN 2025: Takeaways on the future of assistive technology and accessibility

Verbit once again was among the exhibitors at this year’s CSUN Assistive Technology Conference. Now in its 40th year, the conference connects more than 4,500 professionals, researchers, practitioners, educators, government representatives, end-users and others for dozens of collaborative, networking and information sessions.

We’d like to thank everyone who took the time to meet with us (and attend our two speaking sessions!) at CSUN. Our team had a great time on the show floor, sharing information about all our captioning, audio description and access services and learning about the newest innovations and advances in the assistive technology space.

Standing at the forefront of the assistive technology and accessibility community, CSUN always is a great way to catch up with friends, make new connections and chat with colleagues. Below are a few of our key takeaways and important topics from this year’s conference.

Artificial intelligence in assistive technology

Artificial Intelligence (AI) continues to transform assistive technologies, enhancing both user experience and accessibility. It was no surprise, then, that AI’s integration into assistive technologies was a key topic. Discussions included AI’s role in personalizing assistive solutions, improving navigation and boosting usability for individuals who are blind or low vision as well as its part in automating accessibility compliance checks.

The demand for AI-powered captions

Advances in technology and machine learning have boosted the quality, reliability and accuracy of AI-driven captions to the point that they often surpass traditional human-generated captions. Verbit’s Matt Schwartz and Lindsay Cisar tackled this topic in an education session that outlined some of the differences in captioning software on the market, including free applications and third-party vendor offerings; how professionals in the education sector view captions and use AI-captioning technologies; and the emerging trends in caption technology that enhance accessibility and comply with today’s regulations.

Verbit offers a variety of affordable and accurate captioning solutions that can be tailored to client-specific needs. Our AI-driven solution, Captivate™, combines our industry leading technology and captioning experience to provide high-accuracy captions at a fraction of the price of traditional human-generated captions. Developed by captioning, speech and machine-learning experts, Captivate is trained using diverse language models, enabling it to understand accents, languages and speech patterns better than generic ASR engines.

Our AI-powered captioning can be seen in a variety of industries, including television broadcasts, classroom settings and at sporting events, just to name a few.

Innovative assistive devices enhancing independence

Emerging technologies showcased at the conference demonstrated significant strides in promoting independence for individuals with disabilities. Some of the cooler tech on display included a hands-free guidance system aimed at redefining mobility for users who are blind or with low vision and a device that translates live sports action into vibrations, enabling users to experience games in real-time through haptic feedback.

User-centric design and corporate initiatives for product accessibility

CSUN 2025 reinforced the importance of incorporating real user perspectives into the design and development of assistive technologies. Engaging with end-users ensures that solutions are effective and tailored to actual needs, fostering a more inclusive approach to innovation.

To that end, a number of companies stressed their commitment to inclusive product design. For instance, Procter & Gamble noted it will integrate tactile markers and NaviLens technology – a colorful QR-like code that that provides information about a person’s surrounding, food labels, documents or wherever the code is located – into their products.

Audio description and inclusive learning

An important topic across the education sector, audio-described video content is among the requirements outlined in the Department of Justice’s ADA Title II revision, which updates the rules on web and mobile app accessibility. The rule clarifies the obligations of public education institutions to make their websites and mobile apps readily accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities, including via the addition of audio description on videos.

Verbit hosted a speaking session focused on how choosing the right tools, technology and audio description partners can provide students with more engaging, accessible content that satisfies Title II requirements.

Verbit’s standard and extended audio description services help educators create inclusive spaces across all learning environments. We provide clear, concise audio descriptions on all school videos to make them accessible to students and satisfy ADA and WCAG standards.

Inclusive education and professional development

The conference underscored the importance of incorporating accessibility into education and professional training. Sessions such as “Teaching Accessibility to Young Coders” emphasized the need to instill inclusive design principles early in the education of future developers. Additionally, the availability of Continuing Education Units (CEUs) for conference attendees highlighted an ongoing commitment to professional development in the field of assistive technology.

Networking and community engagement

Beyond the sessions and exhibits, the conference provided ample opportunities for networking and collaboration among attendees. Engaging with peers, sharing insights and discussing challenges and successes fostered a sense of community and collective advancement in the field of assistive technology.

Advancing access through cutting-edge technology

CSUN 2025 highlighted advancements in assistive technology and the collective commitment to fostering a more accessible and inclusive digital world. It not only celebrated four decades of progress in assistive technology but also set the stage for future innovations.

As a leader in accessibility solutions, Verbit remains dedicated to advancing inclusivity through cutting-edge captioning, transcription, audio description and other access services. CSUN 2025 provided a wonderful opportunity for us to connect with educators, accessibility advocates and industry professionals, sharing insights and learning about the latest in assistive technologies.

Reach out to our team today to continue the discussions or to learn more about our wide variety of services.