Updated as of December 26, 2023.
What is Seeing AI?
Seeing AI is a free tool to access visual information that is available only on iOS devices.. It is an artificial intelligence application that can identify text, objects, and colors for people who are blind or low vision. Seeing AI can also use facial recognition to help with identifying friends and family.
Seeing AI is available for free from the Apple App Store. However, at this time, Seeing AI is not available for use on Android devices.
Short Text Mode
This mode is extremely useful because it recognizes text without requiring the user to take a photograph. Simply open the app, make sure the “short text” mode is selected at the bottom of the screen, and point the camera where you think the text appears. As soon as the application detects text, it will begin reading. Are you too far down the page? No problem. You can move the camera to a different orientation until you get the information from the document that you need. This mode is great for reading mail, school assignments, notes, menus, and receipts.
Other Modes of Seeing AI
Seeing AI has many other modes, including:
- Product: A barcode scanner that can identify products, including audio feedback to guide you to the placement of the barcode
- Color: Announces the color detected at the location where the camera is pointing
- Document: Allows you to scan in multi-page documents
- Light: provides higher-pitched tones in more lighted areas, and lower-pitched tones where less light is detected
- Currency: Can identify the amounts of a variety of currencies used in different countries
- Person: Can be used to identify faces, assist in taking selfies or photos of other individuals, and can even recognize individuals that you specify in the app
- Scene: provides a descriptive overview of the pictures you take when in this mode
Contact the Bridges Helpdesk for More Information
- Our Accessible web form
- Email: Helpdesk@imagemd.org
- Text: Send to: (410) 357-1546
- Voice mail: Call (410) 357-1546, leave a voice mail message, and we will return your call
This unique project is being coordinated through The IMAGE Center of Maryland, a center for independent living in Towson, and it is funded by a grant from the Maryland Department of Education Division of Special Education/Early Intervention Services.