While 77% of disabled Britons use smart devices to streamline everyday tasks, 48% say interacting with these can be challenging (Amazon, 2022). This usability gap underlines digital engagement, from web browsers to smartphone interfaces. Astute brands are adopting the perspective that “disability is a mismatch between person and environment” and integrating accessible software into mainstream products.

Although tech-assisted remote work has enabled more people with disabilities to enter the workforce, they continue to be employed at lower rates than non-disabled individuals (see Key Stats). Across remote and in-person environments, tech can ensure workspaces better meet all employees’ needs, from literacy-supporting software to body-doubling services for productivity.

Barriers to education mean that disabled people globally are half as likely as the general population to have completed advanced education (Ilo, 2022). To address this divide, tech companies are entering the classroom – from early childhood to university level – with support for everything from social skills to visual literacy.

Research suggests many doctors are ill-equipped to serve people with disabilities, making the need for health-targeted assistive tools crucial for individual wellbeing. As consumers become more comfortable with tech-led interventions (thanks in part to the telehealth boom), companies are developing disability-specific remote monitoring tools for prevention, diagnosis and caregiving.