by David Redmond

For years iPhone has been ahead of Android when it came to accessibility. Google had come a long way in recent years, but the reality was that Android users didn’t have access to some of the cool apps on the iOS side. Now though things are changing, as Seeing AI and Be My AI have both become available on the PlayStore.

On Monday, a post on the Microsoft blog announced that their popular See AI app supports 18 languages, with a plan to get to 36 in 2024. The Android release contains the AI features introduced in the 5.2 update to the iOS app, so now more people will have access to these detailed image descriptions and document chat features.

Be My AI comes to the Be My Eyes app on Android

In other news announced on Monday, Be My AI also made its long-anticipated move to Android. Between both apps, this international day for persons with disabilities became a great day for Android users with disabilities.

What will this mean?

This is absolutely huge news for Android users, who for years had been left to use options like Google Lookout or Envision.

We’re now at a point where more of the big-name tools are living on Android, and there’s probably an argument to be made that there is no big difference between Android and Apple iOS for accessibility at this point.

Earlier in the year we had discussions about switching to Android on our Talking Technology Podcast. Just a few short months later that would be quite a different conversation. Google launched their own Magnifier app, Seeing AI and Be My AI are now both available and of course you’ve got the cheaper cost depending on your device of choice.

While TalkBack might not match Apple’s VoiceOover yet, we’re now reaching a maturity point for accessibility on iPhones, and it’s epic to see. It is also a reason for Android users to stick with a system that is familiar to them and that is improving all the time.

Could you see yourself switching your Android with its increased accessibility? Let us know by emailing [email protected].