Live Transcribe

Overview

Google's accessibility help center describes Live Transcribe as a tool that can capture speech and sound and show them as text on screen, enabling real-time conversation access on Android. Core steps are to enable Live Transcribe via Accessibility settings, grant permissions, and use it during in-person conversations. Benefit: reduced dependence on a hearing intermediary in everyday interactions. Lesson: ship real-time text as a first-class system capability, not an optional third-party add-on.

Why it matters

Without real-time text, Deaf and hard-of-hearing people can be excluded from informal conversations where decisions and relationships form. When platforms make captioning native, access becomes more reliable and less stigmatizing. Call to action: treat speech-as-text as core infrastructure and design for accuracy, correction, privacy, and low-friction launch.