Creatives have had a mixed reaction to the artificial intelligence age – on one hand, AI can save a lot of time, but on the other hand AI threatens authenticity and even jobs. But, one AI camera by a Hong Kong startup is a wholesome and inclusive take on the technology. Seekr is a wearable camera that uses AI to describe the surroundings to the visually impaired.
Designed by Vidi Labs, Seekr was recently honored as a CES Innovation Awards nominee for 2025. The wearable camera clips to clothing and then, using AI, it voices what it sees in the surroundings to the wearer’s Bluetooth earpiece. A button on the camera allows the wearer to ask for a description with a quick press, or change modes.
In a video demonstration, Vidi Labs shared how the device voices descriptions such as “two people sitting on a bench.” The camera’s depth perception also means that the Seekr can voice descriptions like “stairs in one meter.” The device is also capable of reading text on signs.
According to New Atlas, the idea came during Covid lockdowns when social distancing meant that the visually impaired couldn’t rely on a friend to help describe the world around them. Vidi Labs, which was founded in 2021, describes itself as an accessibility technology company.
Vidi Labs isn’t the only company to recognize the impact that AI’s ability to describe images could have on people with limited vision. For example, Envision started as a smartphone app that could describe surroundings and later expanded to Google Glass.
Other apps have existed well before the age of AI. Be My Eyes, a mobile app that launched in 2015, originally used volunteers and video calls, later adding AI-assisted options in addition to the volunteer-based service.
While Seekr hasn’t yet launched, the company’s website has a waiting list to alert those interested in the device when the camera becomes available.
