XR Access: Making Virtual and Augmented Reality Accessible to People with Disabilities

As augmented and virtual reality (XR) technologies gain traction, they remain almost completely inaccessible to people with disabilities. How can a blind person walk around a virtual bar in Horizon Worlds? How can a Deaf person have a conversation with a friend in VR Chat? It is critical to think about these challenges and address them proactively, before people with disabilities are left further behind. In this talk, I will present XR Access, which I co-founded to promote XR accessibility research and practice. For the last five years, XR Access has been bringing together practitioners, researchers, and advocates in conferences and seminars, developing resources, and supporting students in XR accessibility. I will present a taste of XR accessibility research, and outline ways in which you too can join this movement.