TACIT
Inclusive technologies for Access and Social Participation
From “one size fits all” to socially inclusive design – Research project led by TU Delft aims to remove barriers for 1 in 4 Dutch people with a disability
At least 87 million Europeans – almost one in five people – have a disability 1 , in the Netherlands this is a quarter of the population. These are visual, auditory, cognitive and social disabilities.
From deaf or hard of hearing people who do not have access to a sign language interpreter at a medical appointment, to people with a visual impairment who cannot enjoy the offerings in museums and libraries. Although disabilities are relatively common, many people with disabilities still regularly experience problems when trying to access or share information. This can lead to social inequality and exclusion. In response to the European Union Accessibility Act that comes into force in June 2025, a new and unique research project aims to change this.
TACIT: borderless access
TACIT is a five-year NWO research programme of 3.2 million euros. It focuses on inclusive technologies for access and societal participation. The project is led by TU Delft and involves researchers from six academic institutions and public-private stakeholders with expertise in accessibility.
This consortium will develop new technologies, such as artificial intelligence, virtual reality and augmented reality, that make digital services more accessible for people with disabilities.
Access for everyone
Previous attempts at designing for inclusivity have often failed to deliver the desired results. Himanshu Verma, Assistant Professor of Human-Centered AI at the Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering at TU Delft, explains: “Unfortunately, accessibility is often an afterthought when designing technologies and services. Accessibility is sometimes designed in a “one-size-fits-all” manner, which either does not inspire trust or is not socially acceptable for the target group.”
The TACIT research program takes a different approach. It will address five different use cases, each focusing on one of the four impairments under investigation (visual, auditory, cognitive, social). Each of these use cases will explore technologies that are suited to their specific users, while all cases will be aligned around design decisions to account for the broad spectrum of impairments.
Unfortunately, accessibility is often an afterthought when designing technologies and services. Accessibility is sometimes designed “one-size-fits-all”, which does not inspire confidence, or the solution is not socially acceptable for the target group.
Designed by and for the user
The TACIT research project leaves behind the classical, well-intentioned research paths and takes a pioneering role with inclusive co-design methods.
The project includes several researchers with their own experience with disabilities. And by working together with user groups from organizations such as Koninklijke Auris Groep , Nederlands Gebarencentrum , Stichting Accessibility and Berengroep , the accessibility gap can be better understood and ultimately reduced.
Human-computer interaction breaks down digital barriers
This project brings together for the first time Dutch experts in the field of Human Computer Interaction (HCI), an established interdisciplinary field that combines a deep understanding of people with the development of new digital technologies.
Professor Alessandro Bozzon from TU Delft says: “In the Netherlands, we have a growing group of experts in the field of Human Computer Interaction. In TACIT, by combining and introducing HCI and co-design methodologies, we will gather the nuanced insights needed to develop technology that is open to all, and does not exclude people with disabilities.”
In the Netherlands, we have a growing group of experts in the field of Human Computer Interaction. In TACIT, by combining and introducing HCI and co-design methodologies, we will gather the nuanced insights needed to develop technology that is open to everyone, and does not exclude people with disabilities.
Combined expertise
The team of researchers from TU Delft consists of members from the faculty of Industrial Design Engineering (Alessandro Bozzon, Stella Boess and Himanshu Verma) and the faculty of Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science (Jie Yang and Pablo Cesar). They combine expertise in the fields of human-centered AI, generative AI, human-computer interaction, augmented reality (XR), co-design and inclusive design.
Jie Yang, a researcher at EWI, oversees the technical aspects of the AI technologies, focusing on improving accessibility through Generative AI. His goal is to improve information conversion techniques such as image description, text simplification, and summarization. Given that many AI systems are underutilized and human-centered design is rarely implemented technologically, Yang aims to develop technologies that are directly usable and useful for people with disabilities. To achieve this, Yang will adopt a human-centered computing approach and collaborate with researchers in the fields of human-computer interaction (HCI) and design. This collaboration will establish metrics to capture user needs, optimize generative AI technologies, and validate these solutions with the involvement of people with disabilities.
The potential to help many people with disabilities motivates me greatly to work on this project. My goal is to develop AI techniques that actively involve end users, to ensure that the systems we create truly serve humans.
About the TACIT Consortium
- Project leader: prof. dr. ir. Alessandro Bozzon (TU Delft)
- Knowledge institutions: Centre for Mathematics and Computer Science, Eindhoven University of Technology, University of Amsterdam, Utrecht University of Applied Sciences, Utrecht University
- Companies: Berengroep, Envision Technologies, SeysCentra, TKH Artificial Intelligence
- Other social partners : Royal Library, Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision, Kickstart.AI Foundation, Royal Auris Group, Netherlands Sign Language Centre, Accessibility Foundation
About Perspective
Perspective is an NWO programme funded by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and implemented by the NWO domain Applied and Technical Sciences. The aim of Perspective is to (further) develop innovative technologies that strengthen the (international) positioning of the Dutch knowledge and innovation system. These technologies contribute to solutions for societal challenges and can simultaneously contribute to our economy.
The Perspective programme ties in with the five societal themes and the use of key technologies and digitalisation from the mission-driven innovation policy of the Dutch government.
