Steward Vision Assistant is an artificial intelligence powered assistive platform developed by Ghanaian innovator Emmanuel Quartey to help blind and visually impaired people live more independently. Inspired by his own temporary hearing loss and later interactions with visually impaired users, Quartey transformed what began as a university computer vision project into a practical solution. The platform enables users to recognise currency, identify objects, read printed text, describe their surroundings and navigate unfamiliar environments through spoken feedback.
Unlike many imported assistive technologies designed primarily for Western users, Steward was built with African realities in mind. Quartey observed that existing smart glasses often failed to recognise Ghanaian currency and struggled with African accents. To address these limitations, his team trained the system to recognise Ghanaian speech patterns and began expanding support for regional and local languages such as Hausa, Swahili, Twi and Ga. This localised approach aims to make the technology more practical, accessible and relevant for users across Africa.
The Steward platform consists of two main devices. The first is a pair of AI powered smart glasses that use computer vision and generative AI to read printed text, recognise currency, identify objects and describe the surrounding environment through audio responses. The second is a handheld device equipped with ultrasonic sensors that detects obstacles above ground level, complementing rather than replacing the traditional white cane. Extensive feedback from visually impaired users helped refine both devices, resulting in lighter, more comfortable and more user friendly designs.
Despite funding challenges, Quartey continued developing Steward by financing early prototypes through robotics and STEM teaching, later receiving support after winning Ghana’s Disability Inclusive Hackathon. Affordability remains central to the project’s mission, with the team deliberately balancing cost and performance to make the technology accessible to ordinary Africans. Looking ahead, Steward plans to expand language support, improve its AI capabilities, reach at least 1,500 users in Ghana and extend operations into other West African countries, beginning with Nigeria.