BeeLine Reader

Solution Pitch

The Problem

Literacy experts estimate that 800 million people around the world are functionally illiterate. Many millions of these people are affected by disabilities like dyslexia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism, or vision impairment, which together affect over 25 percent of the population. 

Reading ability is critically important in today's digital economy. In decades and centuries past, there were many jobs that didn't involve reading at all, and many of those born with neurodiversities were able to work in jobs where reading ability was not a factor. 

 But in the digital economy, many more jobs—including all of the highest-paid jobs—require the ability to read fluently. In order for all people to thrive in the digital economy, there needs to be a solution that ensures neurodiversity and reading-related disabilities are not impediments to success.

The Solution

BeeLine Reader developed a new way to display text that makes reading on screen more efficient and more accessible, with technology that is simple, intuitive, and easy for anyone to use. Instead of displaying text in black, BeeLine Reader uses a subtle color gradient, which helps pull the reader's eyes through the text. The color gradient wraps from the end of one line to the beginning of the next, improving visual tracking and making the reading process easier for people of all reading abilities. 

The technology can be implemented on any type of device, from feature phones to fully-loaded desktops, and can be implemented using widely-compatible technologies such as javascript, which allows us to support web browsers as far back as Internet Explorer. BeeLine Reader also works with PDF documents and ebooks so that our users can use our technology to read almost anything.  

Stats 

BeeLine Reader has helped 75,000 people with disabilities improve their reading proficiency. 

Market Opportunity

For educational and accessibility purposes, companies, schools, and governments are spending over $100 million annually to create and operate platforms and tools that can improve the accessibility for neurodiverse and vision-impaired people. BeeLine Reader is able to provide a significantly more effective solution, at a much lower cost than legacy tools.

Organization Highlights

• Partnered with Blackboard Inc., which has adopted BeeLine into their accessibility suite, Blackboard Ally.

• Platform adopted by Bookshare, Reading Is Fundamental, Libretexts, among other education platforms. 

Partnership Goals

BeeLine Reader seeks:

• Connections with education, digital media and digital publishing companies for opportunities to collaborate and increase platform accessibility and platform stickiness in those markets

• Connections with experts who are experienced with technology licensing, scaling for impact, and B2B licensing business models