As innovators, we can’t simply look for “easy” opportunities to improve accessibility and inclusion. We need to ask difficult questions and challenge what’s possible to have a great impact on people’s quality of life.
In 2022, we worked with Australian artist Asphyxia to co-design an application that could help D/deaf people enjoy music. We experimented with different audio formats, to devise new ways for people with auditory disabilities to engage with music, whether that’s through haptics, visuals, or by isolating and amplifying specific layers of the music that they can hear.
As part of the project, we also helped define exactly what producers and record companies need to do to make music more accessible. By identifying audio formats that can be easily altered to enable more accessible engagement, we helped define a new standard for accessible music.
Amplio is now in the process of building a pilot application and seeking funding and partnerships to secure the long-term success of the project. Thoughtworks hopes to be working on Amplio further.