# CAREER: AI-Augmented Creativity Support Tools in the Nonvisual Paradigm

> **NSF 01003031DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT** · Northeastern University (MA) · $699,911

## Abstract

Creativity has become one of the most essential skills in the modern workforce. Digital tools that support creative collaboration, such as digital whiteboards and collaborative document editors , are now central to how teams brainstorm, design, and write together. Yet these tools fall short for the millions of Americans who rely on nonvisual assistive technologies like text-to-speech screen readers. For example, a screen reader can read out sticky notes one by one from a whiteboard, but cannot convey which notes are grouped together, who is editing what, or where a user’s own contributions land on the shared canvas. Sighted users, in contrast, can easily track each other's color-coded cursors and draw inspiration from images and animations on the whiteboard. Blind individuals face a 47.7% unemployment rate, nearly double that of their sighted peers, and visually-oriented creative tools deepen that gap. This project will develop  AI-augmented, nonvisual creativity support tools that allow blind users to generate, express, and refine ideas alongside sighted colleagues on equal footing. The project utilizes AI to move  beyond visual-centric paradigms to augment nonvisual ideation. Making these tools work well for nonvisual interaction benefits a far broader population, including people with lower literacy levels and anyone who stands to gain from more flexible, audio-friendly design. By advancing nonvisual creativity support tools, this project will expand the US workforce in fields where creative problem-solving is increasingly central to economic competitiveness.

This project deepens empirical, technical, and conceptual knowledge of creativity support tools in the nonvisual paradigm through three interconnected research threads. First, interviews, field observations, and content analysis of user-generated artifacts will produce a taxonomy of barriers and facilitators of blind individuals' creative practices, along with design guidelines for appropriate creativity 

## Key facts

- **NSF award ID:** 2543250
- **Awardee organization:** Northeastern University (MA)
- **SAM.gov UEI:** HLTMVS2JZBS6
- **PI:** Maitraye Das
- **Primary program:** 01003031DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT
- **All programs:** Artificial Intelligence (AI), CAREER-Faculty Erly Career Dev, UNITED KINGDOM, SPAIN, Cyber-Human Systems
- **Estimated total:** $699,911
- **Funds obligated:** $410,869
- **Transaction type:** Continuing Grant
- **Period:** 06/01/2026 → 05/31/2031

## Primary source

NSF Award Search: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2543250

## Citation

> US National Science Foundation, Award 2543250, CAREER: AI-Augmented Creativity Support Tools in the Nonvisual Paradigm. Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-20 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nsf/2543250. Licensed CC0.

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