[NFBP-BlindParents] Fwd: [Tech-VI] National Federation of the Blind Partners with ElevenLabs to Transform Accessible Reading

Thu Nov 20 03:48:09 UTC 2025

FYi

Stacie

Stacie Leap
President, Greater Philadelphia Chapter &
President, Pennsylvania Organization of Blind Parents (POBP),
National Federation of the Blind of Pennsylvania

 stacie.leap at gmail.com | 215-776-6741

The National Federation of the Blind advances the lives of its members and
all blind people in the United States. We know that blindness is not the
characteristic that defines you or your future. Every day we raise the
expectations of blind people, because low expectations create obstacles
between blind people and our dreams. Our collective power, determination,
and diversity achieve the aspirations of all blind people.

---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: David Goldfield via groups.io <david.goldfield=outlook.com at groups.io>
Date: Wed, Nov 19, 2025 at 10:43 PM
Subject: [Tech-VI] National Federation of the Blind Partners with
ElevenLabs to Transform Accessible Reading
To: Tech-VI Announcement List <tech-vi at groups.io>

>From the Tech-VI list owner:

ElevenReader is now my reading app of choice due to its life-like AI
voices. While it does not provide direct access to Bookshare, files from
Bookshare can easily be imported into the app once you’ve saved the files
to a source that the app can access. For example, I save books to OneDrive,
which ElevenReader can access. Brf files currently cannot be directly read
and so back translation to text is necessary to read these files with
ElevenReader.

Original Source
<https://nfb.org/about-us/press-room/national-federation-blind-partners-elevenlabs-transform-accessible-reading>

*Release Date*

Tuesday, November 18, 2025

*Type*

Press Release <https://nfb.org/press-release-types/press-release>

*Category*

National <https://nfb.org/press-releases/national>

*FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE*
National Federation of the Blind Partners with ElevenLabs to Transform
Accessible Reading Empowering Choice in How Stories Are Heard

*Baltimore, MD (November 18, 2025):* The National Federation of the Blind
(NFB) is proud to announce a partnership with ElevenLabs, bringing the
innovative ElevenReader platform to blind readers across the United States.
This collaboration represents a major step forward in accessible
technology, offering emotionally rich narration that empowers choice in how
stories are heard.

Text-to-speech tools are not new for blind people; however, ElevenLabs
enhances the experience with options for the readers. By using advanced AI
technology to deliver natural, human-like voices—including celebrity
voices—for books, newsletters, and other content, users can select from a
wide range of voices and upload their own materials, creating a
personalized reading experience.

*"Access to information has always been at the heart of our movement, and
this partnership with ElevenLabs represents the kind of innovation that
happens when we prioritize the authentic needs and preferences of blind
people,” said Mark Riccobono, President of the National Federation of the
Blind. “ElevenReader gives blind readers real options in how they
experience content. The ability to choose from natural-sounding voices,
personalize the reading experience, and upload our own materials means we
are active participants shaping how we consume information."*

As part of this partnership, premium access to ElevenReader is available at
no cost to members of the National Federation of the Blind. This benefit
underscores NFB’s commitment to ensuring that blind individuals have access
to cutting-edge tools that enhance independence and inclusion.

*###*

*About the National Federation of the Blind*
The National Federation of the Blind, headquartered in Baltimore, defends
the rights of blind people of all ages and provides information and support
to families with blind children, older Americans who are losing vision, and
more.

Founded in 1940, the NFB is the transformative membership and advocacy
organization of blind Americans with affiliates, chapters, and divisions in
the fifty states, Washington DC, and Puerto Rico. We believe in the hopes
and dreams of blind people and work together to transform them into
reality. Learn more about our many programs and initiatives at nfb.org
<https://nfb.org/>.

*CONTACT*

Stephanie Cascone

Director of Communications

National Federation of the Blind

410-659-9314, extension 2244

communications at nfb.org

David Goldfield,

Blindness Assistive Technology Specialist

www.DavidGoldfield.com <http://www.davidgoldfield.com/>

Director of Marketing,

Blazie Technologies

www.BlazieTech.com <http://www.blazietech.com/>

Am Yisrael Chai

The Nation of Israel Lives!

[image: JAWS Certified, 2022]
<https://www.freedomscientific.com/Training/Certification>

NVDA Certified Expert <https://certification.nvaccess.org/>

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