BE MY EYES | THE BEST AI TOOL EVER?

We employ a 5-star rating system for all of the AI tools we review to provide clear and concise evaluations of each based on standardized criteria. Below is an overview of the grading system:

• Five stars: Editor’s choice
• Four stars: An excellent choice
• Three stars: Meets some of our standards
• Two stars: Doesn’t meet our standards
• One star: Not recommended

This AI tool has been awarded an overall rating of four stars because it is easy to use and extremely helpful, but if you are looking for more long-term consistent support, Be My Eyes may fall short.

The concept of the Be My Eyes app is to help visually impaired people navigate daily tasks with a mix of AI and human support. Users can scan things with their phone and the AI will read to them or explain what it is seeing. Moreover, the app hosts sighted volunteers who connect with people who need vision support and provide remote assistance.

Through video calls, volunteers can visually assist blind people or low vision individuals, without them having to rely on friends or family members. Volunteers can read the expiry dates of food products, describe an image to app users, and help them to get a picture of the world around them.

Anyone who needs visual assistance can use Be My Eyes, and anyone who wants to volunteer their sight can also join the community.

As a low-vision person, you are offered 4 features - phone calls and support from volunteers, Specialized Help, access to the App’s global community, and Artificial Intelligence assistance.

As a volunteer or company representative, you assist by being on stand-by, waiting for a notification and a phone call through the app and you have access to the app’s community base.

Currently, the app provides assistance to more than 500k visually impaired users with the help of a whopping 6.9 million volunteers, so you can expect a quick connection with one.

Be My Eyes also offers extensive corporate volunteering programs that connect whole corporate teams with app users. If you register your company with Be My Eyes' corporate volunteering initiative, it will contribute to your company’s social responsibility, diversity and inclusion, and purpose-driven initiatives.

This means that it benefits you as a company, as well as benefiting the low-vision app users. Your employees will also learn about how others live and open their own eyes to the joy of helping others. Fees vary based on scope and organization size.

Now let’s review the app and how accessible and simple it is to use.

The app is available for download in both iOS and Android versions - simply download it from your App Store (for iOS) or Google Play Store (for Android). Register via email, your Google account, or your Facebook profile.

Then, select whether you need visual assistance or if you’d like to volunteer and go through the short registration process.

Here are some of the things users have said about Be My Eyes:

“Be My Eyes has made me feel so much more comfortable and secure knowing that if I should need sighted help, I’ll be able to get it.” - Diane

"I am a volunteer and it brightens up my day! I love answering calls because it humbles me that low vision or blind people go through a lot of extra work just to get through daily life. And to be able to make it easier for them means the world to me. It ALWAYS makes me smile even if I’m having a bad day by helping." - Devan Marie

"I love this app so much I love helping others and volunteering in my community. This app is nothing short of volunteering & helping out not just the permanently blind, but temporarily blind, and people who are experiencing vision loss either in one or both eyes." - Marissa

Here are some alternatives to the Be My Eye App.

AIRA

AIRA is based on a similar concept to Be My Eyes, however, AIRA provides visual assistance services at a fee. You pay a monthly fee for a set number of minutes. That being said, calls under five minutes are free for individuals and AIRA offers free access to small business owners, jobseekers, and patrons of various establishments like airports and chain stores.

Seeing AI

Seeing AI provides assistance for the visually impaired, however not with a live volunteer, but with computer software. You can send a picture or a video for the software to analyze, and the app can describe the scene, tell you what colors are present, identify currency, recognize faces, and even read handwriting. It also boasts a light detector feature to help you make sure the lights are on or off.

Google Maps

Google Maps can provide detailed instructions when walking a route. The helpful features include audio alerts and voice commands. It also provides an option of “Detailed voice guidance”.

VizWiz

VizWiz is an iPhone app for blind users who need quick answers about what is around them. It works by using automatic image processing and assistance from anonymous web helpers and friends in their social circle to get them fast and accurate responses to their questions.