- On
World Sight Day, Haleon and Microsoft are launching a joint effort
to make health products more accessible for people who are blind or
have low vision, with artificial intelligence (AI) technology that
narrates product
labels.
-
New enhancements in the free Microsoft Seeing AI app will help
advance inclusivity and improve accessibility.
- Across
the U.S. and U.K., consumers will hear important label information
for over 1,500 everyday consumer health products such as Sensodyne,
Centrum, Emergen-C, ChapStick and Aquafresh.
REDMOND,
Wash., Oct. 12, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- On
Wednesday, Haleon, a global leader in consumer health, and
Microsoft Corp. announced a new collaboration to make everyday
health more accessible for people who are blind, have low vision or
have difficulty reading product labels due to low literacy.
Together, the companies are expanding functionality in the
Microsoft Seeing AI app to provide consumers with more detailed
labelling information for over 1,500 Haleon products across the
U.S. and U.K. Seeing AI is a free mobile app designed to help
people who have trouble seeing by narrating the world around them.
With today's launch on World Sight Day, people will hear
packaging information through Seeing AI by scanning the barcode of
Haleon products. This will provide an audio read-out of important
information, such as product name, ingredients and usage
instructions. Through Seeing AI's enhanced functionality, Haleon
will help empower people to care for their own health independently
by listening to label information narrated through the Seeing AI
application.
Haleon's inaugural Health Inclusivity Index, which sets a new
global standard for measuring health inclusivity, makes clear that
to improve health inclusivity, individuals and communities need to
be provided with the power and the tools to truly take their health
into their own hands. Haleon, driven by its purpose to deliver
better everyday health with humanity, is committed to helping make
healthcare more achievable, inclusive and sustainable. The Seeing
AI collaboration with Microsoft is one of Haleon's first new
initiatives to champion health inclusivity. The Microsoft Seeing AI
app can be a benefit to:
- The 1 million Americans who live with blindness (CDC, "Fast
Facts of Common Eye Disorders,
https://www.cdc.gov/visionhealth/basics/ced/fastfacts.htm)
- The 12 million U.S. adults over the age of 40 who are blind or
have low vision (CDC, "Fast Facts of Common Eye Disorders,
https://www.cdc.gov/visionhealth/basics/ced/fastfacts.htm)
The Seeing AI app was developed by a team of Microsoft engineers
spearheaded by project lead and engineering manager Saqib Shaikh, who lost his sight at the age of
seven and was driven to develop the app by his passion for using
technology to improve people's lives.
Saqib Shaikh, engineering manager
at Microsoft, said: "I'm really excited to see the launch of this
enhanced product recognition functionality, developed in
collaboration with Haleon. Seeing AI's intelligent barcode scanner
plays audio cues to help you find the barcode, and now the
information displayed for Haleon products is coming straight from
the manufacturer, providing richer information including usage
instructions and ingredients. This can be invaluable for someone
who cannot read the label, leading to greater independence."
Katie Williams, U.S. chief
marketing officer at Haleon said, "We believe everyone should have
access to self-care products, services and the information needed
to make informed, proactive choices about their health needs.
Haleon initiated this collaboration with Microsoft via its Seeing
AI app to make consumer health more accessible, achievable and
inclusive. We are proud to help make better everyday health more in
reach for the blind and those with low vision."
The Seeing AI app is free to download from the Apple
App Store and will be available on
Android in the future. To use Seeing AI on Haleon's products, users
should hold their phone camera over the packaging barcode. The app
will read out the product name and all text on the package. Users
can skip ahead or move back to the relevant section they want to
listen to, for example, which flavor or how to use the product. The
Haleon barcode functionality will launch today in the U.S. and U.K.
first, with plans to expand globally and add additional languages
in the future.
About Haleon U.S.
Haleon (NYSE: HLN) is a leading global consumer health company
with a portfolio of brands trusted daily by millions of people. In
the United States, the
organization employs more than 4,700 people who are united by
Haleon's powerful purpose to deliver better everyday health with
humanity. Haleon's products span five categories: Oral Health,
Pain Relief, Respiratory Health, Digestive Health, and Wellness.
Built on scientific expertise, innovation, and deep human
understanding, Haleon's brands include Abreva, Advil, Benefiber,
Centrum, ChapStick®, Emergen-C, Excedrin, Flonase,
Gas-X, Natean, Nexium, Nicorette, Parodontax, Polident, Preparation
H, Pronamel, Sensodyne, Robitussin, Theraflu, TUMS, Voltaren, and
more. For more information on Haleon and its brands, please visit
www.haleon.com or contact USMediaRelations@haleon.com.
About the Haleon Health Inclusivity Index
Today's announcement closely follows the launch of the Health
Inclusivity Index, developed by Economist Impact and supported by
Haleon. The world-first global study of 40 countries measures how
successful countries are in using policy to remove the personal,
social, cultural, and political barriers which could otherwise
prevent people and communities from achieving good physical and
mental health. The number of countries assessed in the study will
grow to over 80 over the next two years as part of a new three-year
partnership between Haleon and Economist Impact. The report has
been commissioned by Haleon as part of its commitment to making
better everyday health more achievable, inclusive and sustainable,
with the company aiming to create more opportunities for people to
be included in everyday health, reaching 50 million people a year
by 2025.
About Microsoft
Microsoft (Nasdaq "MSFT" @microsoft) enables digital
transformation for the era of an intelligent cloud and an
intelligent edge. Its mission is to empower every person and every
organization on the planet to achieve more.
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SOURCE Microsoft Corp.
