Apple celebrates 30th anniversary of Americans with Disabilities Act

Showcasing its history of providing accessibility features, Apple is marking the anniversary with a series of profiles of disabled Americans, including the leader of its VoiceOver team.

Just as it did with the 25th anniversary in 2015, Apple is now marking the 30th year of the Americans with Disabilities Act. This time, the company has presented interviews with rights activists, artists and its own staff as they reflect on the three decades since the act was introduced.

"When my team started working on VoiceOver for iPhone, there was a lot of exploration around things like what happens when you touch items on your iPhone screen," says Dean Hudson, Apple accessibility technical evangelist, in the Apple feature.

"A sighted user can see it and decide where to touch," he continues. "I have to touch in order to see it. Several iterations led to Safe Explore, where if you want to activate something on your iPhone, you can double-tap anywhere on the screen."

"When iPhone 3GS launched with VoiceOver in 2009, little by little, people really started getting into it, and now it's amazing to see people who are blind and all sorts of people with disabilities using the device," he says.

Apple is championing the act but also highlighting how its own work in accessibility started long before the law was introduced. "Since its founding, Apple has been a pioneer in democratizing powerful technology through products and services designed for everyone," it says.

"From VoiceOver and Text to Speech to Voice Control, Switch Control, and even Siri, every product and service in the Apple ecosystem is designed with accessibility built in," concludes Apple.