Microsoft is working to deliver a better customer service experience powered by OpenAI’s ChatGPT-4 for its visually impaired users through a partnership with Be My Eyes, a company that helps visually impaired people tackle everyday tasks. with the help of sighted volunteers.
Microsoft is integrating a digital visual assistant tool created by Be My Eyes: Be my AI – at its Microsoft Disability Answer Desk, allowing visually impaired Microsoft users to resolve technical issues or perform tasks such as updating software without needing the help of a call center agent. After testing the tool earlier this year with Microsoft users, Be My Eyes said the tool resolved queries in an average of four minutes, which is less than half the average call time with human agents. Additionally, only 10 percent chose to speak with a human customer service representative after interacting with the AI tool.
Be My AI uses OpenAI’s GPT-4 vision model to generate descriptions of a photo the person has taken, such as instructions for setting up a new computer or a product label. Through AI-powered natural language conversations, the tool also provides tip-based contextual guidance to help users overcome various problems.
“Microsoft is proud to be the first company to integrate Be My AI into our customer service with Disability Answer Desk. The integration of Be My AI creates an innovative, fast and efficient way for disabled customers to receive assistance from Microsoft,” said Jenny Lay-Flurrie, director of accessibility at Microsoft. “By combining Microsoft’s expertise and Be My AI™’s innovative solutions, we are empowering the independence of people with disabilities.”
Bloomberg reports Be My Eyes CEO Mike Buckley said he is also beta testing his AI tool with other corporations, including Sony, Procter & Gamble and Hilton.
Be My Eyes was also briefly mentioned. “OpenAI is proud to work with Be My Eyes,” said Brad Lightcap, COO of OpenAI. “They have used our AI models to significantly improve the daily lives of people with low vision or blindness.”
Microsoft’s partnership with Be My Eyes is the company’s latest step in making its products more accessible. Earlier this year, at its annual Microsoft Skill Summit, the company presented “>> 0; if (typeof e != "function") { throw new TypeError } var n = []; var r = arguments[1]; for (var i = 0; i < t; i++) { if (i in this) { var a = this[i]; if (e.call(r, a, i, this)) { n.push(a) } } } return n } } function injectWidgetByXpath(e) { var t = getElementByXPath(e); if (t == null) { t = document.getElementById("tbdefault") } innerInject(t) } function injectWidgetByMarker(e) { var t = document.getElementById(e); innerInject(t.parentNode) } function innerInject(e) { var t = document.createElement("span"); var n = document.createElement("script"); var r = "if JS crashes here, the first innerHTML value should be enclosed with single quotes instead of double, go to the minified version and change it"; t.innerHTML = ""; n.innerHTML = "window._taboola = window._taboola || [];_taboola.push({mode:'thumbnails-a', container:'taboola-below-article-thumbnails', placement:'Below Article Thumbnails', target_type: 'mix'});"; insertAfter(t, e); insertAfter(n, t) }injectWidgetByMarker('tbmarker');