LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Hundreds of tech companies are showcasing their products at the Computer Electronics Show held at the Las Vegas Convention Center. One of them is a local software development company, VisionAid, that is innovating the way the vision industry sees eye diseases.
“We’re able to effectively put you through the eyes of someone living with an eye disease like glaucoma or macular degeneration,” Co-Founder Taylor Speegle said. “We use that today for universities teaching the next generation of doctors, recently diagnosed patients so they can better understand their disease as well as loved ones and family members.”
Speegle said they have simulations for eye diseases including glaucoma, age-related macular degeneration, and diabetic retinopathy and are working on retinitis pigmentosa.
Roseman University uses its headset to show the impacts of diabetes in the community and within its simulator lab.
Speegle said they recently worked with MIT and their age lab to better design public spaces for people with visual impairment.
“We started this because our co-founder’s grandfather started suffering from macular degeneration, and so we saw firsthand the impact that that had on his life,” he said.
Melissa Renae, an accessibility professional, peered through the headset Wednesday.
“Working within the space in which we are designing products for people. The more awareness that we have, the more experiences we can tap into. I think products like this create that memorability so that we can act on it,” she said.
Speegle said they began selling internationally last year, and they are now commercially available.
The headset costs $4,000 and is geared toward optometrists, ophthalmologists and universities. The patent is pending and VisionAid is working to create more content for other eye diseases.
Lauren Negrete 