Introduction

Did you know that there are more than 70 million deaf people in the world, according to the World Federation of the Deaf? That’s like the entire populations of France and Luxembourg combined, communicating every day through sign languages!

Despite progress in accessibility, deaf people still face significant barriers in everyday activities. Situations like attending a class at the high school without a sign language interpreter, shopping in a store, or explaining their symptoms during a medical emergency can become real challenges. These barriers limit their autonomy and full participation in the community.

Imagine that you and two friends, aware of this reality, decide to combine your skills and knowledge to launch a tech-based startup with a clear social goal: to develop an innovative solution that, thanks to the power of Artificial Intelligence (AI), makes communication between deaf and hearing people easier, breaking down barriers and promoting inclusion. This groundbreaking solution transforms sign language into sound and vice versa, allowing smooth real-time communication. By using AI, the tool can recognize and interpret hand gestures and automatically translate them into voice or text, creating a direct bridge between languages and people.

This WebQuest challenges you to dive into an exciting entrepreneurial adventure. Through a series of activities and resources, you will explore how technology and AI can be powerful allies for social change. Are you ready to design a business model that is not only viable and scalable, but also creates real impact and transforms lives?