MUNICH, GERMANY — Dot Pad is a winner in Fast Company’s 2023 World Changing Ideas Awards and praise from users at CSUN. The Fast Company recognition comes hot on the heels of success at the Clio Awards where the game-changing tablet for visually impaired people was awarded a Grand Clio.
Fast Company’s World Changing Ideas Awards honor projects that make the world more equitable, accessible, and sustainable. Dot Pad’s continued success in 2023 includes an award for Best Innovation in Accessibility at leading consumer electronics conference CES, and a great response at leading accessibility conference CSUN.
According to the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness, around 365 million people worldwide are blind or severely visually impaired. With communications becoming increasingly screen-based, 4.5% of the population is being left behind. Tactile books are expensive and limited, and audio descriptions, besides being indiscreet, fail to provide a lot of information.
Founded in Seoul in 2015, Dot, in partnership with creative agency Serviceplan Innovation, has developed technology that creates a tactile graphics display for people who are visually impaired. Dot Pad, its latest release, is a tablet that can display any visual content from any source using its Dot Image Processing and actuator technology.
This makes images tactile through 2,400 pins in a pixel-like grid that can be set up to form letters, shapes, and charts. Dot Pad is the winner of Fast Company’s World Changing Ideas Award in the Asia Pacific category. Launched in 2022, Dot Pad uses AI to analyze and segment digital images, and through a partnership with Apple, its technology integrates with iOS and iPadOS. The Dot Pad can be invoked with a gesture, showing whatever the highlighted item is on the screen
Dot Pad is the first smart tactile graphics display for visually impaired people. It combines the power of the patented Dot cell technology and an AI based image processor to create tactile graphics from visual input. Launched by Dot Inc. with creative direction by Serviceplan Innovation, Dot Pad makes the existing 2.2 million apps in the App Store accessible like never before. Through partnerships with major tech players and organizations like schools, universities, and museums, Dot Inc. is creating new opportunities for visually impaired people worldwide.
Ahrum Choi, Director of Social Impact at Dot Inc. commented, “We’re thrilled that Dot Pad’s value is being recognized, and we remain committed to achieving a seamless user experience by enhancing its intuitive functions.”
In terms of product and business development, Dot Pad has added a few more patents to the portfolio, adding up to over 130 patents now, and also increased refresh rate of Dot Pad to facilitate real-time display of drawing. Some partnerships with international companies are currently in development, but cannot be disclosed yet.
