Ally Product Pulse

# Ally

# Accessibility

December Edition

Katie Grennell, PhD.

Welcome to the Ally Product Pulse!

Issue #3: December Edition ❄️

Welcome back for this month’s edition to the Ally Product Pulse. Heading into the holiday season, I know your inbox is as full as your credit card transaction list (please tell me I’m not alone in this), so I’ll keep this short and sweet! Here are the latest updates on all things Ally to wrap up your year with a bow.

Inside this month’s issue:

Feature spotlight: AI Alt Text Assistant

Recently published content: AI, Accessibility, and the Risk of Easy Answers: Why Human Oversight Still Matters

Upcoming Events

Did you Know?

Feature Spotlight: AI Alt Text Assistant

Creating meaningful alternative text can be challenging, especially for complex images. That’s where Ally’s AI Alt Text Assistant comes in! This powerful tool automatically generates suggested alt text for standalone images and those embedded in WYSIWYG content, helping instructors make content more accessible with less effort.

With the July 2025 update, this feature became even smarter. It can now interpret and suggest alt text for more complex images, including STEM diagrams, graphs, and even handwritten notes. These enhancements mean more accurate, helpful suggestions right from the start.

Instructors are always in control. Suggestions are never automatically applied, leaving instructors to review, modify, or discard them as needed. This ensures that alt text remains relevant and contextually appropriate for your learners. If you haven’t used this feature yet, test it out before the new semester begins!

For administrators, the AI Alt Text Assistant, as listed in your Ally configuration, is turned off by default. To enable it for all instructors, you will need to manually do so. This aligns with Anthology’s Trustworthy AI framework and allows our users to make informed decisions surrounding AI-powered features.

Related resources:

Add Image Descriptions using Ally's AI Alt Text Assistant: help documentation, including instructions and screenshots, on how to use this feature.

AI Alt Text Assistant Transparency Note

Anthology's Trustworthy AI Approach

Recently Published Content

Hot off the press today is our new blog post, AI, Accessibility, and the Risk of Easy Answers: Why Human Oversight Still Matters, which explores three common issues that emerge when institutions lean too heavily on automation: increased barriers for students, an over-reliance on technology, and a false sense of compliance. Instead, the blog advocates for a balanced approach where AI assists but human oversight remains essential to ensure meaningful, sustainable accessibility.

Upcoming Events

Ally Office Hours: Thanks to the incredible engagement in our recent office hours, we’re planning on moving back to a monthly schedule instead of bi-monthly! Your participation and feedback have made these sessions so valuable, and we can’t wait to keep the momentum going. More details on the date, time, and registration page will be shared soon—stay tuned!

Western Region Ally User Group: to better accommodate our Ally users on the West Coast, we’re launching a new Ally User Group for the western region. This group will operate similarly to the current Ally User Group but will meet later in the day to better align with their time zones. More details will be shared in the new year.

Did You Know?

Preparing for the upcoming Title II update just got easier! Our new Title II Toolkit is coming soon, designed to guide administrators through every stage of readiness. The toolkit includes four key sections:

Learn – understanding and communication what Title II means for LMS content.

Plan – developing a strategic LMS accessibility approach.

Act – turning plans into tangible change in the LMS.

Sustain – embedding accessibility as culture and practice.

This resource will help you navigate the updates confidently and effectively. Stay tuned for more details!

Ally Resources

For additional resources and support, please explore the list below:

Ally User Group: community of Ally users who engage in an online discussion forum as well as meetings every other month.

Ally Communication and Adoption Toolkit: collection of resources for administrators and faculty to support their Ally adoption efforts.

Ally Help Site: help documentation for Ally for students, faculty, and administrators.

Accessibility and Ally: A Resource Roundup for Inclusive Learning Blog Post: collection of accessibility and Ally-related resources to peruse.

Wishing you all a safe and happy new year!

Comments (0)

Popular