Nexus Inclusion has secured €2m to fund the development of AI software to make the internet more accessible for people with disabilities.

The company was founded by CEO Kyran O'Mahoney, an award-winning tech entrepreneur who was born with 17% vision, ahead of the launch of the European Accessibility Act (EAA), which will require all businesses trading in Europe to have digitally accessible websites, apps and online products.

The legislation comes into effect on 28 June.

"I founded Nexus Inclusion to change the world so no one is excluded because they are different," said O'Mahoney.

"It is my firm belief that technology and, more importantly, the emergence of AI is the next thing to change the world for people excluded from digital products."

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), there are 1.3bn people with a disability worldwide. 

One in four people needs assistance to access online content, but less than 4% of the top 1m websites globally are accessible to people with disabilities.

The Nexus Inclusion tech is expected to exceed legislative standards, and will offer real-time solutions for people of all abilities to help them to use technology independently.

"If you look at the banking sector, it is still incredibly inaccessible, yet we have an inherent right to financial independence and financial freedom.

Some elderly, vision-impaired or people with learning difficulties can't read their own bank statements. Nexus Inclusion's solution will help with this issue," said O'Mahoney.

The Nexus AI tool can summarise the key information at a reading level appropriate to the user in a format they are comfortable with.

It automatically adds captions or transcripts and ensures that digital products work with assistive technologies. Every customer we onboard will make the world more digitally equal.

Nexus Inclusion employs seven people and has plans to increase its workforce to 30 by the end of 2026. Roles are currently available for developers, business development and marketing.

The company is positioned for significant growth in the digital accessibility market, estimated at $706m globally, growing to approximately $958m by 2029.

"We need to move beyond Digital Accessibility, which is about making accommodations for people with different abilities. As someone who has grown up with limited vision, I don't want to be accommodated. I want to be included in every aspect of life," said O'Mahoney.

O'Mahoney was formerly group chief technology officer of NCBI (now Vision Ireland) and he has held senior technical positions with Dunnes Stores, Ryanair and AIB.

"To me, this is inclusion. At Nexus Inclusion, our objective is to bridge the digital divide so no one is excluded because they are different. We are all different."