ReadClear: restoring reading for those with visual impairment

Problem to be solved

There are around 4 million people globally living with dementia and brain-related visual impairment; 30% of stroke survivors live the rest of their lives with some kind of visual impairment. For many years these people have been struggling to follow lines of text, getting lost on the page and seeing words as a cluster.

Solution

ReadClear is an app which minimises visual distractions on screens, highlighting one section of text at a time to improve readability. Co-produced with people with specific neurological reading challenges, it was designed by Dr. Aida Suárez-González from the UCL Dementia Research Centre, keeping lived experience at the heart of the technology.

How UCL Ventures helped

UCL Ventures supported ReadClear to successfully apply for a UKRI Accelerator Award and guided the social venture throughout its journey to bring the technology to market. The support helped turn a clear clinical and user need into an accessible digital solution with the potential to improve everyday independence.

Where is ReadClear now?

People made about 70-80% fewer reading errors with ReadClear than with a standard e-reader. As Roberta Mckee Jackson of The Rare Dementia Support Team notes: “Investing in technology like ReadClear, and making it freely available, would pay back tremendous amounts, giving these people something back of their lives so they can live as well as they possibly can, for as long as they possibly can.” 

Dr. Aida Suárez-González, Founder of ReadClear, says: “ReadClear can improve reading in people with brain-related visual difficulties resulting from neurological conditions, such as stroke or dementia. I would like this app to be everywhere… in every phone, tablet and browser… to be accessible for anyone who may need it.”