December 2025 – 25th Edition (End of Year)
Welcome to the Paschall Power Newsletter, your top source for news and information for the blind community. We are passionate about keeping you up to date on the latest access technology, AI, cool new tech, and important news, all written with blind and low vision readers in mind. Thank you for lending us a moment of your time and blessings as we close out 2025 together.
IBM introduced its first personal computer, the IBM PC, in 1981
Accessibility Note
If you are reading this newsletter with a screen reader, consider using your “say all” feature to enjoy the full experience hands free, including accessible images and other described items. You can also move by headings to jump quickly between articles. Inspiration Corner – Maya Angelou Please take a moment to reflect on this quote from the great Maya Angelou:
“We may encounter many defeats, but we must not be defeated.”
Tech Spotlight: ElevenLabs AI Voices and Voice Cloning
ElevenLabs is making AI voices sound so natural that many people forget they are listening to a computer, which is a big deal for accessibility, not just convenience. For blind and low vision users who rely heavily on audio, more human-sounding speech means less fatigue, easier comprehension, and a better experience with everything from books to smart homes. Instead of the classic “robot voice,” ElevenLabs can read a novel, web page, or training manual in a way that feels closer to a friendly human narrator than a talking toaster. ElevenLabs offers a large library of lifelike AI voices in many languages, plus tools to design custom voices with traits like “calm,” “bright,” or “confident,” which can be tuned for clarity and pacing. For our community, the ability to pick voices that are slower, smoother, and less harsh on the ears can make long listening sessions—such as screen reader output, training content, or news briefings—far more comfortable and less tiring. This also supports better comprehension for people who process spoken information all day, turning audio into a true primary interface instead of an accessibility afterthought. Voice cloning lets you create a digital version of your own voice (or another voice you have the legal right to use) so it can read anything from emails to smart-home alerts.
ElevenLabs provides Instant Voice Cloning, which works from short samples, and Professional Voice Cloning, which uses longer recordings to capture more nuance; once created, your cloned voice appears alongside other voices and can read any text in the platform. For many, having important information read in a familiar, trusted voice can reduce cognitive load, make instructions easier to follow, and add a sense of comfort and control—imagine medication reminders or travel directions spoken in a voice you instantly recognize. In a recent demonstration, a tech user cloned his own voice with ElevenLabs and connected it to a Home Assistant setup so that Echo speakers could play his voice instead of Alexa’s default voice for custom announcements. By integrating the ElevenLabs API and selecting the cloned voice, Home Assistant sends text for things like door alerts, timers, or automation messages to ElevenLabs, which returns audio that the Echo plays back—so the house literally “talks” in the owner’s voice. For blind and low vision residents, this can be a game-changer: every alert can be tuned for maximum clarity, spoken in a familiar voice, and used to label events that normally rely on visual cues (doors opening, washer finishing, motion on a camera), turning the Echo network into a personalized audio control center for the whole home. When you combine natural-sounding AI voices, personal voice cloning, and Echo-based announcements, you get a smart-home setup where audio is first-class, not an afterthought. Our community can have their own voice (or a preferred clear voice) announcing doors, appliances, schedules, and safety alerts, while ElevenLabs handles longer tasks like reading documents, manuals, or web content in a way that is far easier to live with hour after hour. It is a rare win-win: tech that is fun and a little humorous—your house nagging you in your own voice—while genuinely increasing independence, safety, and comfort for people who navigate the world primarily through sound. Activate the link below for more about ElevenLabs and their premier AI voices💡How to replace
Alex’s voice with your own using Home Assistant.
AI and Privacy: Will You Let Google Gemini Summarize Your Gmail?
Google is rolling out new Gemini AI features inside Gmail, Docs, and other Workspace tools that can read, summarize, and help write your content to speed up everyday tasks. These tools are available first to Google Workspace customers and Google One AI Premium subscribers, while regular Gmail users mainly see upgraded “smart” features like Smart Reply, Smart Compose and Help Me Write when enabled. In practice, this means your inbox and documents can be automatically summarized, draft replies can be generated in your tone, and Docs can pull from linked decks and reports, so the AI writes with better context instead of guessing. Gemini can also help clean up your inbox by archiving or deleting groups of messages on command and can use your email and Drive history to surface details needed for scheduling or follow-up without digging through old threads. To turn these AI features on in personal Gmail on the web, open Gmail, go to Settings, choose “See all settings,” and enable options like Smart Compose, Smart Compose Personalization, and Smart Reply under the General tab. On mobile, open the Gmail app menu, go to Settings, select your account, and toggle the same features there.
Workspace users usually need their organization’s admin to enable Gemini and other generative tools in the Admin Console by turning on the Generative AI/Gemini service; once enabled, users can access tools like Help Me Write directly in Gmail and Docs. When used carefully, these tools can improve productivity by drafting emails, summarizing long threads or documents, translating, or rewriting text, and helping people keep up with high-volume communication—especially helpful for screen reader users who benefit from short, clear summaries instead of reading long chains. If you want to limit this behavior and protect your privacy, you can disable most of the new actions by turning off Gmail “Smart features” in two places: first, in Gmail settings under General by unchecking Smart features for Gmail, Chat, and Meet, and second, under the separate Google Workspace smart features section that controls how Gmail data is reused across other Google products. Some recent updates also let Gemini scan Gmail content more deeply for summarization and Deep Research; while standard Gmail, Docs, and Sheets content is not used to train Gemini unless you explicitly provide it, the AI still processes very sensitive information such as financial documents and personal conversations to generate responses. Because this can expose more of your private life and work patterns than many people realize, it is often safer to limit or disable these features, especially in accounts that hold client, health, financial, or other confidential information. Activate the link below for more about the new Google/Gemini smart AI features💡Google Workspace adds new Gemini AI features for Gmail, Meet and more
https://blog.google/products/workspace/google-workspace-gemini-may-2025-updates/
Record and Remember: Just Press Record, Whisper Memos, and Transcribable
Three powerful “record and remember” tools are ready for Paschall Power readers: Just Press Record, Whisper Memos, and Transcribable.
Each of these amazing apps lets you capture speech from your smartwatch, send it to your phone, and turn it into searchable text that you can review, edit, and share for work, Bible study, shopping, and everyday life. All three run on platforms with strong accessibility support for blind and low vision users, including full screen reader access, large text, and compatibility with Braille displays. Just Press Record works across Apple Watch, iPhone, iPad, and Mac, with a simple one-button design that fits naturally into Voiceover workflows. On Apple Watch, Voiceover can announce the app name, record button, and status changes, and you can place a Just Press Record complication on your watch face, so recording is just a tap or double tap away. Recordings sync to the iPhone app, where speech can be transcribed into text that you can organize into folders and share via Messages, Mail, or cloud services, all with full Voiceover support and adjustable text size and contrast. Practical uses include capturing work instructions right after a meeting, logging sermon points, and scripture references during Bible study, and recording prices or product descriptions while shopping so you can quickly review them later without sorting through unlabeled audio files. Whisper Memos focuses on accurate speech-to-text using the Whisper engine and runs on Apple Watch and iPhone. On the watch, you can launch the app or complication, use Voiceover to locate the record button, and start or stop recordings with straightforward taps, with spoken feedback confirming the app’s status. Audio and transcripts sync to the iPhone, where you can read, edit, and share notes using Voiceover, larger fonts, and Braille displays, making it comfortable for detailed text work. Whisper Memos can be ideal for drafting work emails or reports by voice, capturing personal Bible reflections and questions you want to revisit, and building a “voice first” shopping list that includes brand names, flavors, and accessibility notes about different stores. Transcribable brings similar power to Android and Wear OS, pairing a Wear OS watch app with an Android phone app. On the watch, you can start and stop recordings while Talkback or the watch’s voice assistant announces buttons and status changes, helping you confirm that your note is being captured. Transcriptions are sent to the Android phone, where you can review, edit, and organize notes into collections using Talkback, high-contrast themes, large text, or connected Braille displays. For blind users, Transcribable can support quick work notes between appointments, structured Bible study notes during small-group sessions, and detailed shopping logs, such as which store layout works best, which staff were especially helpful, and what items you promised to pick up for family, clients, or church events. Activate the link below for more about record and transcribable smartwatch apps💡Just Press Record App Store
The following articles are hand-picked as the most informative of 2025👍.
35 Years of Progress: Celebrating the Americans with Disabilities Act
This past July marks the 35th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), a landmark civil rights law that has profoundly transformed the lives of millions of Americans with disabilities. Signed into law by President George H.W. Bush on July 26, 1990, the ADA was championed by a bipartisan coalition, including key figures like Senator Tom Harkin and Representative Tony Coelho, after years of advocacy by the disability community. The act sought to ensure equal opportunity, full participation, independent living, and economic self-sufficiency for individuals with disabilities by dismantling discriminatory barriers that had long existed. Its passage recognized that people with disabilities deserve the same rights and opportunities as all other citizens, prohibiting discrimination in employment, public services, public accommodations, transportation, and telecommunications. The ADA’s impact on the lives of Americans with disabilities, especially those who are blind or have low vision, has been revolutionary. In education, the ADA has mandated reasonable accommodations, such as textbooks in alternative formats, adaptive technology, and extended time for exams, allowing visually impaired students to access higher education and thrive academically. In careers, the law has opened doors to employment by requiring employers to provide reasonable accommodations like assistive technology, accessible websites, and modified training, enabling blind and low vision individuals to secure meaningful work and contribute their talents. Accessible technology like screen readers (JAWS, NVDA, Voiceover) and magnification software (ZoomText) has empowered blind individuals to excel in fields such as computer programming, software development, and IT support, where they can write and debug code as efficiently as their sighted counterparts. This technological revolution has also advanced independence for many, empowering them to navigate daily life with greater autonomy and pursue entrepreneurial ventures.
Blind business owners can now manage online stores, conduct banking, and communicate with clients using accessible digital platforms, nurturing a new generation of visually impaired entrepreneurs. A prime example is Paschall Access Solutions, a blind-owned and operated company that stands as a testament to the ADA’s success, providing services and information while advocating tirelessly for the blind community. Furthermore, the ADA has paved the way for blind individuals to assume leadership roles, from politicians like the late Senator Max Cleland, who represented Georgia in the U.S. Senate, to judges who use screen readers and accessible legal databases to preside over courtrooms with fairness and precision. As we celebrate these achievements, it is more critical than ever to actively support legislators who champion the ADA. Recent years have seen challenges to the ADA’s protections, including attempts to roll back voting accessibility and other fundamental rights, underscoring the ongoing need for vigilance and advocacy. To learn more about your rights under the ADA as a blind or low vision individual, resources like the U.S. Department of Justice ADA Information Line offer valuable information and advocacy tools, including detailed guidance on supporting the ADA. To make your voice heard and advocate for strengthening the ADA, reach out to your members of Congress and local legislators using their official government websites. A concise, personal message highlighting the ADA’s importance to you and your community can help shape policy and ensure that the promise of the ADA continues to flourish for generations to come. Activate the link below for essential advocacy information for the blind💡Advocacy & Resources for your life! – Paschall Community Services
https://paschallcommunityservices.org/advocacy/
Vision Without Sight: AI, Phones, and Smart Glasses Powering Blind Independence
The state of accessibility for blind independence is accelerating, with AI-infused computers, mainstream mobile platforms, and wearables transforming everyday tasks into seamless, self-directed experiences. Advocacy and design are converging on nonvisual-first features—smarter screen readers, reliable voice control, and high-quality image description—so tasks like navigating complex websites, handling documents, and transacting online are faster, more private, and more consistent. The result is a growing expectation that independence is not an edge case but a baseline: accessible by default, flexible across contexts, and responsive to personal preferences and pace. On computers, AI is now integral to accessibility: models summarize long texts, propose clear headings, enrich alt text, and improve context for screen readers, while dictation and voice automation reduce friction across productivity suites and browsers. Three representative “AI computer” advances show what is possible: context-aware screen reading that understands layout and intent; automated alt text and caption generation that speeds accessible authoring; and predictive voice and dictation that enable hands-free writing and UI control with fewer corrections. On mobile, the leap is just as consequential: camera-to-audio pipelines read mail, identify products, and describe scenes in seconds, and GPS plus auditory cues now stitch together safe, step-by-step movement through indoor and outdoor spaces. Wearables close the loop by keeping audio and capture always available—smart glasses and audio-first devices make heads-up interaction the norm, layering scene descriptions, reading, and recognition directly into daily routines. For accessible apps that drive blind independence on phones, three standouts show different strengths. Be My Eyes combines an AI scene describer with easy escalation to trained volunteers or company support, making it ideal for general visual tasks and quick labeling with minimal setup.
Seeing AI offers deep, modular tools that read documents, identify products, recognize currency and faces, and narrate scenes, with a familiar interface that continues to evolve alongside productivity ecosystems. Google Lookout prioritizes speed and clarity for Android with on-device modes like Quick Read, Food Labels, and Currency, delivering fast offline performance and low-light optimizations. For accessible smart glasses, three compelling options illustrate the landscape. Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses bring mainstream style plus open-ear audio and an AI assistant for hands-free capture and descriptions, making all-day wear practical and discreet. Envision Glasses center on blind-first functionality—instant text reading, scene and object description, face recognition, and simple audio interaction—purpose-built for reliable, eyes-up use. OrCam’s wearable camera focuses on instant reading and identification tasks with straightforward controls, offering a compact, task-focused approach that complements canes, phones, and PCs without overwhelming the workflow. Activate the link below for more about accessible computers, related devices, and software💡
Accessible Innovations in Technology – 2025 Updates | Cerebral Palsy Resource
https://cpresource.org/topic/accessible-design-technology/accessible-innovations-technology-2025-updates
The following articles are hand-picked as the coolest new accessible wearable tech of 2025👍.
The Silent Language: HapWare and the Unseen World of Communication
In an era defined by technological integration, a new wearable device, “HapWare,” is revolutionizing communication for the blind. These assistive glasses and a haptic wristband translate the intricate and often-missed world of non-verbal communication into tangible vibrations. Non-verbal cues—like lips tightening in distress, a furrowed brow signaling confusion, or the upward curve of a smile—are critical in human interaction, providing essential context and conveying emotions that words alone cannot. For centuries, visually impaired people have been excluded from this silent language, which is a serious disadvantage in social situations and personal safety. HapWare bridges this gap by recognizing more than 25 distinct facial expressions and gestures and using dynamic haptics to let the user feel a person’s emotional state, from the subtle vibrations of a casual nod to more complex patterns that might signify anger or fear. This technology’s significance extends beyond simple social pleasantries; it offers a new layer of security and self-possession. Nonverbal communication in ancient civilizations such as Nubia and Kemet treated the body as a conduit for profound information, where gestures and posture were seen as sacred, unspoken truth. HapWare taps into this understanding by allowing a blind person to perceive when someone’s body language shifts to a closed-off stance, such as crossing their arms, which may signal unease or hostility. This can be a crucial warning sign in a public space, allowing the user to de-escalate a situation or seek a safe exit. The device’s ability to transmit such nuanced information directly to the user’s wrist means blind individuals no longer have to rely solely on verbal cues, which can be deceptive. It restores a depth of understanding and autonomy, creating a more just and equitably informed reality for those who navigate the world without sight. Activate the link below for more about HapWare💡
Assistive Technology Device Communicates Facial Expressions to People who are Blind – Centre for Accessibility Australia
https://www.accessibility.org.au/assistive-technology-device-communicates-facial-expressions-to-people-who-are-blind/
Nike Powers Up Fitness: Project Amplify
Get ready to rethink what is possible, because Nike is launching “Project Amplify,” a powered footwear system being called an e-bike for your feet. These are not just sneakers; they are a high-tech boost for your stride. Using a lightweight motor, a drive belt, and a rechargeable battery cuff paired with a carbon fiber-plated shoe, Project Amplify gives you an extra push. The goal is simple: to help everyday athletes go a little farther and a little faster with less effort. It is like having a secret second set of calf muscles ready when you need them. For many in the disability community, including people who are blind or have low vision, the path to fitness is filled with unique hurdles that can contribute to health concerns such as obesity. Beyond motivation, exercising can raise real concerns about safety, cost of adaptive equipment, or the challenge of navigating unfamiliar gyms and parks. These barriers can make physical activity feel daunting and lead to a less active lifestyle. The issue is not a lack of desire to be healthy, but a lack of accessible tools designed to empower movement safely and confidently. Project Amplify steps in as a powerful solution to bridge this gap. By augmenting the natural motion of your lower leg and ankle, the system reduces the energy needed to walk or run, making movement feel less strenuous and more enjoyable. Imagine tackling a steep hill and feeling as if you are on flat ground or turning a 12-minute mile into a 10-minute mile with less effort. This technology is designed for everyone, helping to build confidence and make fitness more accessible. For someone with a disability, this powered boost could mean the freedom to enjoy a longer walk or a light jog with greater ease and less fatigue, opening new possibilities for getting active.
Activate the link below for more about Nike’s Project Amplify💡
Nike Unveils Project Amplify, the World’s First Powered Footwear System for Running and Walking — NIKE, Inc.
https://about.nike.com/en/newsroom/releases/nike-project-amplify-official-images
Paschall Power Star of the Month: Malala Yousafzai
We have reached the end of our 25th edition—and the final Paschall Power Newsletter of 2025—and you know what that means. It is time to honor the Paschall Power Star for December 2025. This month, the spotlight shines on Ms. Malala Yousafzai. We are proud to highlight her courage, conviction, and continuous leadership in advocating for the education of young women and underserved women globally; her journey is truly remarkable.
Malala’s journey begins in the Swat Valley of Pakistan, where she grew up loving school even as extremists tried to erase that joy. As a young girl, she watched militants destroy schools and declare that girls did not belong in classrooms, yet she raised her voice through speeches and anonymous blogging to insist that learning is a basic human right. When a gunman boarded her school bus in 2012 and shot her for daring to learn, the world saw both the cruelty of fear and the fierce inner fire of a teenager who refused to be silenced. Her survival, surgeries, and long rehabilitation were not the end of her story but the turning of a page, as she chose not bitterness but a larger mission to protect every child’s right to learn. From that tragedy, Malala stepped onto a global stage not as a celebrity, but as a determined advocate who speaks for students who have never been handed a microphone. She addressed the United Nations as a teenager, calling for books instead of bullets and schools instead of fear, helping inspire new commitments to laws and policies that keep classrooms open for children in low-income communities and conflict zones. Her words helped energize movements pressing governments to recognize education as a legal right and to expand access so that poverty, gender, or geography would no longer dictate whether a child could sit at a desk and dream.
The same spirit that carried her from a hospital bed to a UN podium mirrors the daily bravery of blind readers who step into workplaces, classrooms, and city streets built for sight, yet still show up, learn, and lead with unwavering resolve. Today, Malala continues her mission through Malala Fund, investing in local leaders who know their communities and are ready to transform them from within. The fund supports education advocates and grassroots organizations in countries such as Pakistan, Nigeria, Brazil, Ethiopia, and Tanzania, helping them tackle barriers like unsafe routes to school, the cost of uniforms and books, child marriage, and discrimination that keeps girls at home instead of in class. By channeling resources directly to young women leaders and community partners, she turns global attention into concrete projects—new schools, stronger policies, and better budgets—that open doors for girls who might otherwise be left behind. That same pattern echoes in the lives of blind community members who turn daily problem-solving—navigating transit, learning technology, advocating for accessibility—into a powerful testimony that barriers can be dismantled step by step. Malala’s story shines because it is not only about what happened to her, but about what she chose to do next and how she continues to make that choice every day. She shows that courage is not the absence of fear; it is moving forward with purpose even when the world feels dangerous, unfair, or unprepared to welcome you. For blind community members reading this, that same courage appears every time a cane taps forward on a crowded sidewalk, a screen reader launches on an inaccessible website, or a new dream is pursued in a world that still has much to learn about inclusion. Like Malala, you are proving that identity is not a limitation but a source of strength, and that when determination, community, and hope walk together, they can reshape classrooms, cities, and the future for everyone. Activate the link below for more about Malala Yousafzai💡
Malala Yousafzai | Research Starters | EBSCO Research
https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/women-s-studies-and-feminism/malala-yousafzai
Stay Connected, Share, and Support
On behalf of the Paschall Power Newsletter team, thank you for reading. Do you have questions, suggestions for future content, or interest in submitting an article for a future release? Drop us a line at the contact link below:
Contact us – accessiblepass.net
https://accessiblepass.net/contact-us/
Consider Donating
Paschall Power sincerely thanks and appreciates all donations that help keep this work moving forward. “Growth occurs through individual effort, community support, and the generosity of those with integrity and power.” Please activate the link below for our donation page:
Consider Donating – accessiblepass.net
https://accessiblepass.net/donation/