This Company Tapped AI for Its Website--and Landed in Court

Last year, Anthony Murphy, a visually impaired man who lives in Erie, Pennsylvania, visited the website of eyewear retailer Eyebobs using screen reader software. Its synthesized voice attempted to read out the page's content, as well as navigation buttons and menus. Eyebobs used artificial intelligence software from Israeli startup AccessiBe that promised to make its site easier for people with disabilities to use. But Murphy found it made it harder. AccessiBe says it can simplify the work of making websites accessible to people with impaired vision or other challenges by "replacing a costly, manual process with an automated, state-of-the-art AI technology."