Harnessing the Power of AI to Maximize Efficiency: Introducing Alternative Text Suggestions in Anthology Ally’s Instructor Feedback

Images without descriptions are one of the most common accessibility issues that we see today when looking at online course content. In fact, in the US alone, we’ve found that upwards of one-third of all images identified by Anthology® Ally are fixed by setting the image as decorative without writing an image description. Not only is this a challenge for instructors who are looking to make their course content more accessible (and may not know where to start), but it represents a major hurdle for learners who may depend on those image descriptions as part of their studies. 

As part of Anthology’s ongoing dedication to maximizing instructor efficiency through state-of-the-art technology and improving overall learner success, Anthology® Ally has incorporated new AI capabilities to help instructors create more accessible digital content in less time. The AI Alternative Text Assistant is a new feature that leverages AI capabilities within the Instructor Feedback Panel to automatically generate suggestions for alternative text for images. Upon simply selecting the new “Auto-generate description” button, Ally’s AI Alternative Text Assistant (powered by Microsoft® Azure AI Vision) analyzes images and proposes possible image descriptions to help inspire the instructor as part of their efforts to improve the content for learners.
With this new feature, instructors get inspiration while still maintaining full control over the suggested description and can check it for accuracy, all of which remains crucial to Anthology’s “humans in control” approach to AI-driven solutions. This allows them the option to modify and/or approve the suggestion before saving to add it to the related image.

It is important for administrators to note that the AI Alternative Text Assistant is an opt-in feature and is off by default. You can enable this feature for your instructors from your Ally Configuration settings.

Ally’s AI Alternative Text Assistant was announced with great excitement at Anthology Together 2024, and it is now available for all Ally LMS integrations. We look forward to seeing instructors and administrators take advantage of its many benefits, including:

• Helping instructors save significant time by streamlining the image description process and making it faster and more efficient
• Enabling institutions to tackle the challenge of inaccessible images by reducing the number of images marked as decorative when alternative text would provide a more accessible experience for learners
• Providing usage data around the use of the AI Alternative Text Assistant so that administrators have full transparency and tracking capabilities

As part of Anthology’s Trustworthy AI Approach, this feature and underlying service do not utilize any data or information for training or regenerating models in order to ensure privacy and data integrity to maintain user trust.

This feature represents a significant step forward in empowering instructors to build inclusive learning environments and make digital content more accessible. Turn on the AI Alternative Text Assistant and make the most of Ally today. Check out these FAQs.


Rosario Bruzón
Product Marketing Manager
Anthology