On Tech & Vision With Dr. Cal Roberts

About On Tech & Vision With Dr. Cal Roberts

Dr. Cal Roberts, President and CEO of Lighthouse Guild, the leading provider of exceptional services that inspire people who are visually impaired to attain their goals, interviews inventors, developers and entrepreneurs who have innovative tech ideas and solutions to help improve the lives of people with vision loss.

Publisher

Lighthouse Guild

Category

news · technology

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

14 Jul 2020

Latest episode

4 Apr 2025

Latest episodes

36 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   4 Apr 2025

   We Are Living In the Future of Vision Tech

   This podcast is about big ideas on how technology is making life better for people with vision loss. Not long ago virtual assistants and VR gaming were the makings of science fiction. But today, as we see developers across the board incorporating these technologies into apps and other tech, including for people who are blind or have low vision, these breakthroughs aren’t just possible, they’re part of the fabric of everyday life. In this episode Dr. Cal talks with Steve Ewell, Executive Director of the Consumer Technology Association Foundation (CTAF). Together they discuss how rapid advances in tech have made previously unimaginable products like self-driving cars, smart homes and virtual reality gaming an attainable, everyday reality for millions of people, including for those who are aging or have low vision. They talk about CES, the CTAF’s annual trade show and the increasing number of consumer companies presenting accessible tech.  They also discuss Steve’s work with AARP, and how technology designed for older users is also accelerating… and how those users are keeping up with the pace of new tech. The episode also features an interview with Walt Hickey, the executive editor at Sherwood News and the author of “You Are What You Watch - How Movies and TV Affect Everything.” Walt discusses how scientists and engineers consume the same media as everyone else, and how the ideas from science and science fiction have fed back on one another for millennia to build our modern world. With technology for the blind and low vision community increasingly easy to build and access, companies like Amazon and  XBox are making accessibility more of a priority with every new development. In other words, when it comes to accessible technology, the future may have finally arrived. The Big Takeaways The Simplest Tech Can Make a Big Difference: Steve discusses the rise of smart homes, and how something simple like a voice-activated assistant can transform the living space of someone who’s blind or low vision. He talks about the natural evolution from there to doorbell cams, and the possibilities that has opened for people with low vision to maintain their privacy and security while at home. Are Self-Driving Cars Finally Here?: It can seem like self-driving cars have been on the horizon for decades. But with Waymo and other major technology companies recently unveiling breakthroughs, people who are blind or have low vision might finally be able to hop in a car by themselves and go wherever they want. Steve discusses what these breakthroughs mean, not just for activities like visiting the doctor, but for improved opportunities for social interaction. All Fun and Games: Steve talks about his work with AbleGamers and Oak Hill, two organizations dedicated to providing an accessible video game experience for people who are blind or have low vision. Gaming can combat social isolation, he says, but it can do more than that. When paired with wearables, Steve credits accessible gaming (and a healthy dose of competitiveness) with motivating people who are aging or have disabilities  to stay active. Old School: It might be surprising to see the words “technology” and “AARP” in the same sentence. But tooday, they are indeed connected.  Steve discusses the CTAF’s partnership with AARP, and how recent developments along with a savvier population of seniors has led to increased rates of development and adoption for accessible tech. Tweetables “One of the important things that I've seen that's changed over the last dozen years is the awareness on the company side of the needs of older adults and people with disabilities. That was one of the big challenges, companies recognizing this as a market to engage… and what we've seen is more and more companies are actively engaging this space.” — Steve Ewell, CTAF Executive Director “Technology and movies and pop culture are ways that we express our wants and goals” — Walt Hickey, Author, “You Are What You Watch” “I went to one senior center and a gentleman had come up to me and he said ‘I know you're going to assume I don't use technology, but I want to let you know I'm over a hundred years old and I built all the technology that your technology today is based on.’” — Steve Ewell, CTAF Executive Director Contact Us: Contact us at podcasts@lighthouseguild.org with your innovative new technology ideas for people with vision loss. Pertinent Links Lighthouse Guild CTA Foundation

2. 

   18 Feb 2025

   The Paradigm Shift in Innovation: Remixing Existing Tech to Advance Accessibility

   This podcast is about big ideas on how technology is making life better for people with vision loss. Technology developed specifically for people with low vision has historically been bespoke, specific, and expensive, requiring the creation of new technology for a relatively small population of users. But recently we’re seeing a paradigm shift from building new vision tech from scratch to building on top of existing technology that most people use daily. In this episode, Dr. Cal talks with Karthik Mahadevan, the founder and CEO of Envision, about how his technology company builds on existing tech, like smartphones and smart glasses, to benefit users with low vision. Envision’s software uses AI to recognize important visual cues in a user’s environment and then relays that information to the user with computer-generated speech. Karthik’s breakthrough realization early on that he didn’t need to build hardware when he could just tap into the cameras of smartphones and smart glasses that people already owned, enabling Envision to reach a much wider audience. The episode also features an interview with Troy Otillio, the CEO of Aira. Aira’s platform links users to a human visual interpreter, who can access the camera on their device and guide the user through the task, whether reading a letter, navigating a grocery store, or finding their way around an unfamiliar city. Ultimately, the future of creating vision technology might not be in reinventing the wheel but in improving it and figuring out how to turn the tech people already use every day into easy and accessible solutions for people with low vision. The Big Takeaways Building on Existing Tech: Karthik stresses that for vision tech to be impactful, it has to be accessible. He describes his inspiration as building on top of existing consumer technology to create Envision and thus create a product that millions of people already have the hardware to operate. Later, Dr. Cal discusses the “Taco Bell Phenomenon”, which theorizes that while there may be no such thing as a new idea, the novel combinations of existing ideas are so infinite that they may be limitless. The Importance of a Visual Interpreter: Karthik discusses the limitations of communication formats such as braille and audio announcements in public places for people with vision impairment. While well-meaning, they can never really provide complete access to spaces that are meant to be navigated visually. That’s where Envision comes in, allowing access to the camera on a smartphone or smart glasses to give the user a complete and accurate sense of their environment. Would You Like a Human for That?: To AI or not to AI? Speech-to-text technology is advanced enough that it can excel at reading something simple like a gas bill or a chicken soup recipe. But what if you got a birthday card from your grandchildren? Troy Otillio discusses how Aira recently partnered with Envision to offer their human visual interpreters as part of Envision’s technology — providing camera access to a human agent who can fully understand the nuance of the user’s situation. We Don’t Make Hardware: A small market company like Envision doesn’t have the capacity to build smart glasses (or smartphones) from scratch. The cost would be too high for a company that necessarily has a limited user base. Instead, the future of vision technology is likely to be in creating apps or finding novel uses for hardware that already exists. This will provide accessibility to people with vision impairments via tools they’re already quite familiar with. Tweetables “In the future, these AI are going to interact with other AIs… You know, someone like a Walmart will have their own AI. Someone like a Target will have their own AI. And your AI can speak to that AI and ask for specific information. And that's when it becomes super, super exciting.” — Karthik Mahadevan, Envision Founder & CEO “So for many years, consumer electronics was evolving in one direction, and assistive technology was evolving in a different direction. But what I noticed recently is this merger of the two: that consumer electronics are becoming more accessible.” — Dr. Cal Roberts, Lighthouse Guild President & CEO “You can look at Aira as just a layer, an accessibility layer that exists for when an automated solution, a pure software solution, doesn't work or when there is no solution, right? We're like that, call it a backstop, a more general purpose layer that you can always fall back to.” — Troy Otillio, Aira CEO Contact Us: Contact us at podcasts@lighthouseguild.org with your innovative new technology ideas for people with vision loss. Pertinent Links Lighthouse Guild Envision Aira

3. 

   7 Jan 2025

   How Well Do You Really Need to See to Drive?

   This podcast is about big ideas on how technology is making life better for people with vision loss. Today, self-driving cars are all the buzz when it comes to cutting edge driving technology that could help people with vision impairmentdrive. But there are other, simpler technologies that are already helping people who are blind or visually impaired navigate behind the wheel - some of which draw on technology that’s been around for hundreds of years! In this episode, Dr. Cal talks with Dr. Henry Greene, co-founder and president of Ocutech about their bioptic driving telescopes. These simple devices fit on top of a pair of conventional eyeglasses, and provide a wider field of vision for drivers with vision impairments. This has been shown to increase driver safety and confidence. The episode also features an interview with Dr. Bill Seiple, Lighthouse Guild’s Chief Research Officer. He discusses how other technological advancements that are already in widespread use among all consumers - like GPS - are making it so everyone has to use their vision less while behind the wheel. Ultimately, the ability to pilot a car without relying on our vision isn’t there yet. But with these and other technologies discussed in this episode, the day where none of us need to see to drive may be just around the corner! The Big Takeaways Ancient Tech, Modern Design: Dr. Greene and his team succeeded in adapting telescopic technology that’s existed since Galileo’s time into a bioptic device that fits on top of a conventional pair of eyeglasses. Coupled with other innovations like an auto-focusing device, these bioptic driving assists can vision impaired drivers to see faraway objects with the clarity required for highway driving. Can Something You Use Only 1% of the Time Make You Safer?  Ocutech’s bioptic driving telescopes aren’t designed to be used all the time while driving. In fact, Dr. Greene estimates that his patients only use them between one and two percent of the time. This means that while they’re a useful tool for very specific tasks on the road, drivers still need to be competent behind the wheel without bioptics. Per Dr. Seiple, research has shown that drivers with vision impairment tend to be intentional about where and when they drive, adding another layer of safety. GPS Makes Everything Easier: Thanks to 5G technology that can place a user anywhere on Earth within a few feet, GPS is making it so that everyone has to use their vision less when they’re on the road . Is Driving a Visual Thing? As Dr. Seiple points out, visual acuity isn’t of greatest importance behind the wheel. More important is attentiveness, knowing where you’re going, and reaction time once something crosses your way, regardless of how sharply you can see it. This suggests that while cars may soon be able to pilot themselves, getting from one place to another may always require the competent guidance of a human. Tweetables “GPS doesn't tell you that there's a box on the road or a policeman or a pedestrian or an animal or a deviation for construction. GPS won't tell you that stuff. And that's the stuff that you need to be able to anticipate problems and take the appropriate action while you're driving.” — Dr. Henry Greene, Ocutech Co-Founder & President “So, in tongue and cheek, you can say that I don't think driving is a visual thing. Turns out field is much more important than acuity for driving safety.” — Dr. Bill Seiple, Lighthouse Guild Chief Research Officer “These bioptics, they are a game changer for people with low vision… All my life I've actually had to get a ride or wait for someone. And I'm very, very, very independent. I don't like to wait for people..” — Crystal Davis, Ocutech Employee & Bioptic Telescope User Contact Us: Contact us at podcasts@lighthouseguild.org with your innovative new technology ideas for people with vision loss. Pertinent Links Lighthouse Guild Ocutech (https://ocutech.com/)

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

YouTube views

293,969

Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

33 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

1 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 52 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

39

Social presence

0

YouTube

86

Engagement

77

Contact On Tech & Vision With Dr. Cal Roberts

Guest appearances

Does not typically book guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.