TikTok Enhances Accessibility with AI-Generated ALT Text and New Features

TikTok rolls out new accessibility tools, including AI-generated ALT text | TechCrunch

TikTok announced on Wednesday that it's expanding its suite of accessibility tools by rolling out AI-generated ALT text for photos, a high contrast mode, and support for device-level bold text preferences. TikTok introduced support for ALT text for photos a few weeks ago, allowing creators to provide descriptive text for photos to help users with screen readers understand the visual content through spoken descriptions. Now, the company is testing AI-generated ALT text to automatically describe photos out loud when creators don't add alt text manually. The company says AI-generated ALT text will make TikTok more accessible for people with visual impairments. The move comes as Instagram has been using AI for ALT text since 2018. As for the new high contrast mode, users will be able to switch it on with the new "color contrast" option in the app's accessibility section. Doing so will increase the foreground color of text, icons, and user interface elements. This change will make TikTok more usable for people with low vision or sensitivity to low contrast, the company says. TikTok now also adheres to a user's device's bold text setting, which means that it will automatically display all in-app text in bold when enabled. This enhances readability for users who prefer or rely on bolder fonts. "We know that when people feel seen, heard, and supported, they're empowered to share their stories, create and connect with others in meaningful ways," the company said in a blog post. "That's why we're focused on continuously building products that serve everyone." We see accessibility not just as a responsibility, but as an opportunity to innovate and foster a more inclusive platform for our global community." The new features join TikTok's existing suite of accessibility tools, which includes features like auto-generated captions for video content, dark mode, text-to-speech, and the ability to adjust text size across the app.

These New TikTok Features Aim to Make Text and Images More Accessible

Named a Tech Media Trailblazer by the Consumer Technology Association in 2019, a winner of SPJ NorCal's Excellence in Journalism Awards in 2022 and has three times been a finalist in the LA Press Club's National Arts & Entertainment Journalism Awards. TikTok is adding a batch of new accessibility features to make content more inclusive for people with visual and cognitive disabilities, the company said Wednesday. The updates aim to make alternative text easier to add and access, and to improve general text legibility. First, TikTok is testing a feature that uses AI to generate alternative text. Alt text is an image descriptor that can help blind or low-vision people who use a screen reader to better understand what's being shown in a photo. It can also be helpful to people who process information differently, or if an image doesn't load properly. Creators can add alt text when uploading photo posts or after publishing, but now AI can do that job, too. Secondly, people on TikTok can now go into the app's accessibility settings to increase color contrast. This will amplify the foreground color of text, icons and controls, which can be helpful to people with low vision or who are sensitive to low contrast. Lastly, TikTok will show all in-app text in bold font if that's the setting you've enabled on your device. This can enhance readability for people who prefer bold fonts. The launch comes ahead of Global Accessibility Awareness Day on May 15. TikTok's other accessibility features include auto-generated captions on videos, dark mode and text-to-speech. Other tech companies like Apple have announced their own slate of accessibility updates this week, too.

TikTok is using AI-generated alt text to describe photos

Jess Weatherbed is a news writer focused on creative industries, computing, and internet culture. Jess started her career at TechRadar, covering news and hardware reviews. TikTok is introducing new accessibility features that make it easier for people with visual impairments to see text and use screen readers on the platform. After adding alt text support for still images in April, TikTok is now testing a feature that automatically adds an AI-generated alt text description to photographs when a creator hasn't manually added it. Creators will still have the option to add their own alt text descriptions to images as they're uploaded or after publishing, providing a means to correct any information in the AI-generated versions. Even if the AI alt text is imperfect, however, users who rely on screen readers to process visual content may find that having it widely applied is preferable to images not having any alt text at all. TikTok is also launching a new color contrast toggle that can be used to increase the foreground color of text, icons, and UI elements. This should make descriptions and controls more distinct, helping people with low vision or contrast sensitivities to navigate the platform. Additionally, TikTok will now automatically display all text in bold across the app when it detects that users have enabled bold text support on their devices. All of these features are available now and can be found on TikTok's redesigned accessibility settings page, which is located on iOS and Android user profiles under the three-line menu, or the left-hand taskbar on desktop.

TikTok Is Adding Three New Accessibility Features

Accessibility features built into devices and apps are essential for making tech easier to use. Apple recently announced a suite of new and expanded accessibility updates -- like Accessibility Reader and improved Braille support -- coming to its devices later this year. TikTok is now rolling out a handful of new features to make its platform and content more accessible for everyone. Here's what's coming. TikTok already has an alternative text feature that allows creators to manually add alt text -- a brief description that can be accessed by screen readers -- to photo posts when uploading or even after content has been published. (This can be found under More options > Add alternative text.) The platform is now testing an AI feature that will automatically describe content aloud if creators don't include alt text, improving usability for those who are blind or low vision. TikTok users can now enable a high-contrast mode, which increases the foreground color of text, icons, and other app elements. Color contrast ups the distinction between text and objects on a page and their background, improving readability. This joins the existing text size feature, which allows users to increase or decrease the size of text in the TikTok app specifically (independent of device settings). Both features can be turned on or off under Accessibility > Appearance. TikTok will now match device-level bold text settings, so all text in the app will appear bold if that display feature has been enabled. Bold text can be turned on or off under Settings > Display & Brightness on iOS or Settings > Accessibility > Display size and text > Bold text on Android. Other accessibility settings already available on TikTok include toggles to remove photosensitive videos, add auto-generated captions to content, and animate thumbnails, as well as dark mode and compatibility with device-level screen readers.

TikTok is implementing AI-generated ALT texts for better accesibility

TikTok is expanding its accessibility features with the rollout of AI-generated ALT text for photos, a high-contrast mode, and support for device-level bold text preferences, the company announced on Wednesday. The new AI-generated ALT text feature automatically describes photos out loud when creators don't manually add alt text, making it easier for users with visual impairments to understand visual content through spoken descriptions. This development comes as Instagram has been utilizing AI for ALT text since 2018. TikTok initially introduced support for ALT text for photos a few weeks ago, allowing creators to provide descriptive text for images. The company states that the AI-generated ALT text will further enhance the app's accessibility for people with visual impairments. The high-contrast mode, accessible via the "color contrast" option in the app's accessibility section, increases the foreground color of text, icons, and user interface elements. This change aims to improve usability for people with low vision or sensitivity to low contrast. TikTok is also now adhering to users' device-level bold text settings, automatically displaying in-app text in bold when enabled. This feature enhances readability for users who prefer or rely on bolder fonts. The company emphasized its commitment to building inclusive products, stating, "We know that when people feel seen, heard, and supported, they're empowered to share their stories, create and connect with others in meaningful ways." The new features join TikTok's existing accessibility tools, including auto-generated captions for video content, dark mode, text-to-speech, and adjustable text size across the app.

TikTok Adds AI-Generated Alt Text for Photos and New Accessibility Tools

AI can now automatically add a descriptive alt text to images on TikTok TikTok announced three new accessibility-focused features on Thursday. The new features were announced on the occasion of the Global Accessibility Awareness Day, which falls on the third Thursday in May (this year, it is on May 15). One of the new features is an update to the alternative text (alt text) support, which now uses artificial intelligence (AI) to generate automatic descriptive captions. Other accessibility features include a new high contrast mode and support for bold text. Notably, earlier this week, the company introduced a new image-to-video generation tool. In a newsroom post, the video-focused social media platform detailed the three new accessibility features it was introducing for users. These features will join the platform's existing accessibility tools, such as auto-generated captions for videos, dark mode, text-to-speech, and thumbnail animation. The first new feature is AI-generated alt text. TikTok added alt text for photo posts several weeks ago. Users could manually add a caption describing the image, and it could be read out loud by screen readers. Now, it is building on the feature by using AI to generate descriptive captions for photos that do not have alt text. The company says this will improve usability for people who are blind, have low vision, or process content differently. Next is an option to increase colour contrast on the platform. TikTok is introducing a high contrast mode that increases the foreground colour of text, icons, and user interface elements. This feature can be found in the Accessibility option within Settings, marked as Increase colour contrast. TikTok says this will make the platform more user-friendly for individuals with low vision or those sensitive to low contrast. Finally, the platform is also adding support for the bold text setting in devices. If a device has set the text setting to bold, they will now see all in-app text, including names, comments, captions, and messages in bold as well. This will increase readability for users who prefer bolder text or have vision issues. All of these new features are now available for all users with the latest update.