Developers Compete for $100,000 to Create Apps for Individuals with Disabilities

New York University’s ABILITY Lab and AT&T are launching the Connect Ability Challenge which will allow developers to compete for more than $100,000 in prizes to design software, wearable and other technology solutions aimed at enhancing the lives of individuals with disabilities.

The submission deadline is June 24,2015 and the challenge will be held over the next three months leading up to the announcement of the winners on the July 26th anniversary of the enactment of the ADA. The Connect Ability Challenge will leverage the expertise of NYU’s ABILITY Lab, an interdisciplinary research center dedicated to the development of adaptive and assistive technologies for people with disabilities. 

The challenge provides five submission category requirements which directs developers to solve for four functional categories and one category addressing public policy for the disabled community which include:

- People with sensory disabilities

- People in need of mobility solutions

- Social and emotional solutions

- Solutions for people with communicative and cognitive disabilities

- Solutions impacting policy and society

Submitted solutions must leverage familiar, cost-efficient technologies to create ready-to-use solutions that “solve” a problem for people with disabilities, based on the five submission category requirements. Solutions must include a software component such as: 

- Native smartphone or tablet solution (iOS, Android, Blackberry, Windows Mobile)

- Web solution (mobile or desktop)

- Desktop solution (Windows PC, Mac Desktop)

- Software running on other hardware (including, but not exclusive to, wearable technology, open source hardware, etc.)

Developers will need to submit a demo video (hosted on YouTube, Vimeo, or Youku) that showcases the main functionality of the solution via screencast or video and explains how the solution addresses a problem based on the five submission category requirements. They also need to submit at least one image/screenshot of the working solution. The contest organizers advise the inclusion of end user feedback in the submission video and make sure the video is accessible to those with sensory disabilities.

Solutions may be newly created or pre-existing. If submitting an existing solution (developed prior to this competition), it must include new features/functionality added after April 6, which specifically aim to “solve” a problem for people with disabilities, based on the five submission category requirements. Participants entering existing solutions will be required to explain their solution’s new features on the submission form.