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Sensory augmentation

Also known as: Sensory substitution system, Sensory augmentation technology

Technology that provides information from one sensory channel through an alternative modality accessible to the user, such as converting visual scenes to audio descriptions for blind users or translating sounds to visual or haptic alerts for deaf users. AI-powered sensory augmentation raises unique fairness challenges because the system mediates the user's perception of the world, embedding design choices about what information to include, how to label it, and what to prioritize.

Category: assistive technology · artificial intelligence

Related: Sensory substitution · Object recognition · Visual assistance technology · Camera-based assistive technology

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