Technology is playing an increasingly important role in improving the lives of people with intellectual disabilities. Advances in digital tools, artificial intelligence, and assistive technology are creating new opportunities for communication, education, and independence. These innovations aim to remove barriers that people with intellectual disabilities face and provide practical support to help them live more independently. Artificial Intelligence One of...

Inclusive education in South Africa is no longer just policy, it’s practice. And in 2026, assistive technology (AT) is becoming one of the most powerful tools helping learners with disabilities access education with dignity and independence. From under-resourced public schools to private learning environments, technology is reshaping what participation looks like. For special needs educators, keeping up with these developments...

Retina South Africa invites you to help shape the future of assistive technologies across Africa. On 12 June 2025, the World Health Organization (WHO) is hosting an online stakeholder session focused on updating its Priority Assistive Products List (APL)—a vital guide that recommends essential assistive devices, such as hearing aids, wheelchairs, and communication tools, for governments to prioritize. By Retina...

A new prosthetic hand powered by breathing has been developed for children and teenagers. The BBC News Oxford Researchers at the University of Oxford say the new air-powered hand is "lightweight, low maintenance and easy to use". The device uses breathing to power a small purpose-built Tesla turbine and controls prosthetic finger movements. The findings have been published in the...

In the suburbs of Kikuyu in Kenya’s Kiambu County, 29-year-old Moses Kiuna and his cousin David Gathu are fiddling with wires and electric cables in their workshop, their grandmothers’ former granary. By Sheila Mwalili/ Images: Sheila Mwalili and Anadolu Agency They have been doing this since they were children — dismantling toys, radios and TV sets, despite the spankings their...

What if everything you said was immediately subtitled and shared with deaf people around you? That seems to be the idea behind XRAI Glass, a new software solution being paired with Nreal’s AR glasses. The software allows users to connect the glasses directly to their Android phone and then have conversations around them subtitled directly in their field of view....