There are different types of people all around us. There is a predominant difference in class, upbringing, abilities, race, culture, society, economy, and more observed in our immediate surroundings and on a larger, more global scale as well. People face a number of challenges when it comes to accessibility and reaches and leaders, pioneers and innovators around the world want to come up with ways in which they can make the planet a more habitable place for its people to live in. They want to come up with creative solutions to fix the problems we face on a daily basis. They want to make the world a more accessible and easier place to exist.
The human race has evolved to the point where we all rely on virtual and technological sources of communication, collaboration, growth and prosperity. It may not seem that obvious because the inclusion of technology in our daily lives has been gradually increasing over the last few decades, but in today’s world, it becomes almost impossible to survive without being connected to technology in some form or the other. It could be as small as your microwave having pre-installed settings to cook poultry. Or, it could be using technology to solve world hunger.
The future of the world is heavily dependent on tech. This statement is true even for people today. We are all heavily reliant on technology to help us operate. The world where you could go completely off-grid and sustain yourself is now becoming a thing of the past – a long-forgotten dream. One of the biggest advancements in today’s technology is artificial intelligence.
The term AI used to sound scary at first because people would only picture dystopian scenarios where they were being attacked by self-aware and sentient machines who wanted to take over the planet and kill the entirety of the human race (the entire premise of movies like I, Robot and Terminator). But now we use AI to unlock our phones, track our deliveries, locate our food, even search for information online. Artificial intelligence has managed to impact our lives in small yet significant ways and now we cannot imagine our homes without Alexa, our phones without Siri, and our Facebook or Instagram feed without suggested posts or filters.
Artificial intelligence is way more than that. It has the power and capabilities to make our lives easier and help those who are in need. AI can be used to make the world a more inclusive place. Before understanding what AI can do to achieve this outcome, it is imperative to understand what inclusivity means, and how the world needs to adapt to accommodate the different people around us.
What do you mean by inclusivity?
Inclusivity is the process using which people, governments, organizations and institutions work together to make the space more accessible and available to those who might not have the right opportunities to get them there. It includes creating various solutions and opportunities for people who have been sidelined or marginalized by providing the right resources to help them progress.
Inclusivity can include those people who have special needs because they are differently-abled, have other mental and psychological disabilities, and various ethnically marginalized groups. Inclusivity as a concept helps the society at large operate in a way that helps embrace people from different backgrounds. It is a movement that aims at involving people coming from all walks of life to become active, participative members of society.
Institutions of all kinds can become more inclusive by gaining a thorough understanding of the needs and requirements of those who are different from them. After they have done the proper research of their requirements, they can work towards creating optimized solutions to help them and provide them with all the assistance they need. This could include creating a special needs programme for those who have learning disabilities, creating alterations to infrastructure to accommodate those with special physical needs, and providing resources and financial aid to those who have been marginalized over the ages.
How can Artificial Intelligence help with promoting inclusivity?
As of 2021, AI holds a total market share of nearly 93.5 billion USD. This number is expected to grow exponentially by the end of this decade, with artificial intelligence holding an expected market share worth over 997 billion USD (Grand View Research). Looking at the incredible growth of the industry, it is not unexpected for people to use AI in order to effect social change and empowerment of all.
Artificial intelligence is a great and powerful tool that can be used to solve the problems of today. AI can process Big Data effectively and help people conduct the necessary research required to come up with inclusive solutions for those who are different. AI can also be used as a solution-based tool in itself. It can be included with different technologies to enable faster learning, easier recognition and more to help all those with special needs.
The world at large has realized the need to create a safe space and environment for all those who are different from most in order for them to become high functioning members of society. Just because someone is different from us or does not have the same background as we do does not mean that they have to feel sidelined or rejected from society. All in all, people are becoming more aware and want to use the technological advancements that artificial intelligence can enable in order to propagate equality and growth.
What are some of the ways in which AI can promote inclusivity in society?
The marginalized population that has suffered the most and will greatly benefit from using AI for promoting inclusivity in the future is quite large. The list of marginalized groups includes the following:
- Members who belong to racial and cultural minorities
- People who are older in age
- People who have lower than average intelligence
- Those suffering from any hearing, visual or physical challenges
- Those with mental illnesses
- The LGBT community
- People who are neurodivergent
- People with cognitive impairments
- Underprivileged people, and more
These people are considered to be minority groups but in fact, they make up a large chunk of the population. AI tools can help them progress in a way that no other policies or methods have so far.
How is this possible?
Let’s find out.
Artificial intelligence for mental health
In the UK alone, it was observed that more than 16% (Mental Health Foundation) of the total population was suffering from some kind of common mental illness. These include anxiety disorders, depression, and other mood disorders. This means that one in every six individuals in the UK is going through some kind of mental health issue. Artificial intelligence tools can help make access to seeking professional help for this concern a lot easier.
AI-powered applications are becoming more intuitive and increasing their performance levels to help those with afflictions by providing basic psychotherapy solutions. They are acting as virtual therapists for all those who do not have access to mental health professionals. They are becoming more intuitive and advancing with time to provide more comprehensive helpful solutions and strategies to combat these mental health issues.
There are also mindfulness applications that have been released into the market which help with maintaining a calm, peaceful headspace for those who are prone to anxiety. Also, there are many AI-powered tools that help with providing structured CBT therapies that can be personalized based on individual needs.
Access to mental healthcare can become quite expensive for most people which is why they do not reach out for help when they need it the most. AI can provide a great solution to this problem by making help more affordable and accessible to all.
Artificial intelligence for the underprivileged
People who belong to low-income economies around the world do not even have access to enough food and water supply to sustain themselves. They often suffer from droughts in their region which can have a great impact on their yearly produce. Agriculture suffers, the water supply suffers, and fixing the shortage of food and drinking water becomes a priority over advancement.
Machine learning and big data can be optimized to help create a solution to this problem. A thorough analysis of the climate conditions, meteorological forecasts, geographical location, soil, and more can be used to optimize farming and agriculture in these lands. Artificial intelligence can provide valuable insight on what the ideal crops would be to plant and harvest in these regions in order to obtain the best yield. Agriculture is a big part of the economy in many developing countries, and once that has been optimized with the use of market research services and AI, they can focus on building a better and more technologically advanced region for themselves.
AI for those with visual and hearing impairments
People who suffer from visual and hearing impairments find it extremely difficult to participate in regular society. They feel alienated and sidelined solely because of the lack of tools that would help them become more a part of the society around them.
There are a total of 253 million (NCBI) individuals around the world who suffer from visual impairments, out of which more than 36 million are blind. Over 5% (Down To Earth) of the global population currently suffers from hearing impairments to the point where it is considered to be a disability. This number includes over 432 million adults and more than 34 million children who suffer from loss of hearing.
Artificial intelligence already provides help with some applications and tools to help those with impairments. For those with visual impairments, their smartphones can double as visual aids to help them see better. The facial and spatial recognition software available on the phone along with some handy applications that can be downloaded can help those with visual impairments identify and place objects in their surroundings. They can also read their emails by connecting to Alexa and putting their camera out to the mail. For those with hearing impairments, there are lip-reading and recognition tools powered by artificial intelligence as well as real-time captioning, transcribing and translation services to help them understand the language better.
AI for healthcare
Healthcare systems have greatly benefited from machine learning and artificial intelligence. One of the most commonly used benefits of AI in healthcare is optimizing all process-related work. All the billing requirements, application and form processing, categorizing and logging of inventory can all be managed with AI-powered applications. It simplifies the entire process and enables healthcare professionals to focus more on helping people instead of doing backend and repetitive operational work.
AI can also enhance medical screenings of images to help with research, identification and treatment of diseases. This thorough assessment of medical images will help reduce the burden on those who perform MRIs, radiologists, and oncologists because they will have to spend a significantly lesser amount of time with image processing to deliver results. Tools like these also help speed up the innovation process in the medical and healthcare field and help doctors provide the best healthcare solutions they can offer today. It helps save lives and resources for the healthcare service providers as well and reduces the burden on the professionals.
Read Also: Top 4 Skills That AI Won’t Replace
Artificial intelligence for more inclusive education
There are many learning disabilities that children face in today’s day. This can include lower IQ performance, neurodivergent afflictions and other learning disabilities that hamper the children’s growth in school. Up until recently, those who faced problems with learning were sidelined and had to go to ‘special needs’ schools or classes to help them learn with people who learn at the same pace and in the same manner as they do. But AI is here to change the way these children learn for the better.
It will help children at a young age feel like they are included with the rest, and are not being singled out for being different. This will have a positive influence on them as adults as well because they will grow up with peers who might be different from them but they are all participating in shared activities together. Those with learning disabilities who grow up alongside those children without any disabilities grow up to be more well-adjusted and adept at participating in society.
Artificial intelligence provides various smart learning solutions for kids to offer more holistic and inclusive education and learning experience. There is access to learning material that is more suited to individual needs, there are already various language development tools to provide assistance, and there is an abundant supply of assistive technology available to foster growth, learning and development in children.
AI to help make homes more accessible
Those with physical disabilities and ailments don’t always have an easily accessible way of getting around the house. They feel confined to a space because it requires too much effort to get simple tasks done. This can make those with physical deformities and disabilities feel dejected and incapable of performing simple daily tasks in their own home simply because it is inaccessible to them.
Smart home gadgets like Alexa and more can help solve this problem. There are smart locks, smart keys, smart lighting, and smart sound solutions available that people can install in their homes to make their house more friendly and accepting towards them. Everything can be controlled through their smartphones and everything is connected to make access to various appliances and tools a whole lot easier.
After all, when one is at home, one deserves to be at their most comfortable, don’t they?
Conclusion
The entire purpose of using AI and technology to improve inclusivity in the world is to help people fare better in their lives. AI should be more than just a gimmick or a tech-powered machine source for analysis. AI can also be used to change people’s lives for the better. Improving social settings and environments for those all around us with the technology should be a forerunner when it comes to the implementation of AI and other advanced technologies.
