The Future Is for Everyone: Meta and CNIB Partner to Support Canadians Who Are Blind, Deafblind or Have Low Vision

We believe the future is for everyone. That's why Meta is partnering with CNIB - a non-profit founded in 1918 that empowers Canadians impacted by blindness to live their dreams - to help bring the benefit of AI glasses to more Canadians who are blind, Deafblind or have low vision. The goal of the partnership is to help people who are blind, Deafblind or have low vision explore the possibilities of AI wearable technology, and draw on the knowledge, expertise and lived experience of the community to shape a more accessible future.

Funding from Meta will support CNIB in four areas:

• Listening to the community: Engaging people across Canada to understand their experiences, and how AI glasses can support greater independence in everyday life.
• Supporting community champions: Supporting Canadians who are blind, Deafblind or have low vision to lead in-person peer training and demonstrations, and gather candid product feedback in their communities.
• Informing product development: Sharing community insights with Meta's accessibility and product teams to help improve future technology.
• Making learning accessible: Providing accessible guides, training materials and resources that people can use wherever they are.

Along with funding to help advance inclusive innovation, Meta is donating AI glasses through CNIB Come to Work program, which will put tools into the hands of people exploring employment opportunities and building their careers. The program provides training and practical resources to help participants assess how wearable technology can assist them in securing employment, succeeding at work and pursuing their goals.

People use Meta's AI glasses for everything from listening to music, to live translation and hands-free calls. But for people who are blind or have low vision, the difference they make can be life-changing - helping with everyday tasks like reading text, identifying objects and describing the world around them, and helping people live more independently.

This partnership builds on our work with blind and low vision communities around the world, including donating Ray-Ban Meta glasses to every blind veteran in America in partnership with the Blinded Veterans Association, and our work with Vision Ireland .

"The best technology is shaped with the people who will use it," said Angela Bonfanti, President and CEO of CNIB. "People who are blind, Deafblind or have low vision bring valuable expertise about where barriers remain and how tools like AI glasses can offer greater choice, freedom and independence in everyday life. This partnership creates a direct path for that expertise to inform Meta's work and help shape what comes next."

"We believe the future is for everyone. Partnerships like this one get Meta's AI glasses to more blind, Deafblind and low-vision Canadians at work and in their daily lives. Working directly with CNIB and its community-the people who use the glasses every day-helps us build better products for everyone," said Maxine Williams, VP of Accessibility, Meta.

Learn more about Meta's accessibility work and the features built into Meta's AI glasses here .