Assistive Technology Market Watch

According to the Assistive Technology Industry Association, "Assistive Technology, or AT, is any item, piece of equipment, product or system, whether acquired commercially off the shelf, modified, or customized, that is used to increase, maintain, or improve the functional capabilities of persons with disabilities." For the purpose of this article, however, we are limiting the AT discussion to only those products or services that employ speech technologies

To put it mildly, the market for AT is growing. Estimates for the number of people requiring it vary by group. For example, according to the National Eye Institute, there were 3.3 million adults over 40 with blindness or low vision in the US. In the latest US Census data (the 2003 American Community Survey), there were 77 million people with some form of disability, including 10.7 million with sensory disabilities, and 23.5 million with some form of physical disability.
 
The need for AT is increasing as people don’t have to be totally blind or in a wheelchair to benefit from some form of assistance. Sadly, the number of people that are currently using AT is only a small fraction of those who could benefit from it, but the amount of people using AT is sure to grow. In addition to those who have classically been labelled as having disabilities due to birth defects, injury or illness, the baby boomer generation and those who follow, who grew up using technology and would be loathe to lose it, represent a growing market for all types of AT as even minor versions of “disabilities” set in. As this generation ages and starts to suffer from declining vision, hearing or sense of touch, stiff joints, arthritis, and memory loss, mainstream technology products will have to be adapted to accommodate those who want to maintain the functionality and efficiency to which they are accustomed.
 
Read full story on Speech Technology Magazine