Learn the fundamentals of sign language with Snapchat’s creative tools.
In honor of International Week of the Deaf, Snapchat has launched a suite of creative tools, including Stickers and three AR enabled Lenses. Snap hopes to further its inclusivity efforts and raise awareness by encouraging Snapchatters to fingerspell.
The lenses were created with the development company SignAll, who create AI technology that assists with language recognition, translation, and education to enable the Deaf community to connect with hearing people.
Through the use of SignAll’s AI and computer vision technology that recognises Sign Language, Snapchatters will be inspired to fingerspell their name and other common words like ‘love’, ‘hug’, and ‘smile’.
The initiative by SnapChat is largely inclusive as Sign Language is something many people are aware of, but aren’t necessarily directly exposed to. By encouraging users to fingerspell and communicate with one another via ASL, Snapchat could raise the much deserved awareness around the topic and highlight the need for more inclusive communication.
As said by Snapchat:
“Our North Star is building products that are fully inclusive of all Snapchatters. No matter where you live, what your background is, what you look like, or how you communicate, we want all members of our community to feel as though our products are made for them — and that includes native signers. We look forward to learning more from our community as we strive to continuously improve the experience for everyone on Snapchat.”