As the compiler of the Weekly Reading List for Vispero, I get to wade through a lot of technical articles, blog posts and news items that touch on digital accessibility. At this time of year, that includes a lot of predictions for the coming year.
Having read so many of these – some very thoughtful, insightful and likely (take a bow, WebAIM) and others either hopelessly hopeful or charmlessly pessimistic – I decided to cobble together my own set of 10 predictions. Some are variations on other people’s opinions, some are my own work (or at least I haven’t seen anyone else make them).
I could, of course, be very wrong but, anyway, here goes.
1. WCAG 2.2 Becomes the Common Standard
2026 should see WCAG 2.2 Level AA become the applicable standard underpinning all digital accessibility legislation. Currently some laws cite WCAG 2.0 and others WCAG 2.1. It may take more than a year for this to happen – legislative change can be glacially slow. Significantly, Australia’s new Digital Inclusion Standard requires agencies to comply with the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (currently under review) and the “latest version of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines” – they’re not even quoting a version number any more. It feels like a bold move, but for now, in practice, it means WCAG 2.2.
2. There will be more accessibility focused jobs in companies and government departments
Companies, corporations, government departments, statutory authorities, and educational institutions will hire more individuals than ever before to focus on digital accessibility, in Australia and overseas. Many of those individuals will be expected to “solve” their employer’s accessibility issues while being under-resourced, under-skilled, poorly paid, lacking authority, and facing (at best) an uphill or (at worst) a losing battle to make real accessibility improvements.
3. AI will be recognised as a useful tool in improving digital accessibility while not replacing human expertise
Various types of artificial intelligence will make identifying, assessing, and remediating digital accessibility issues at scale and quickly easier, without ever becoming the one-click quick-fix that many hope for. AI in the hands of experienced, skilled digital accessibility professionals will be acknowledged as a useful tool in 2026, while in the hands of charlatans and snake oil salesmen it will be used to swindle a lot of money out of naive customers.
3. There will be some progress on improving Australia’s digital accessibility legislation, compliance requirements, and enforcement – but not enough
Improvements to national and state-based disability discrimination laws will continue to be discussed, everyone will agree those improvements would be a very good thing, and very little will actually happen. There will be much comparison with laws in the US (too litigious), UK (not specific enough) and EU (unclear how enforcement will work) and their application, and no single model will emerge that best suits Australia. Not this year, anyway.
4. Individual web creators will realise that using semantic HTML makes implementing digital accessibility a lot easier
Designers, developers, and content authors will for the most part advocate for and even implement shifting left to consider accessibility issues as early as possible and as a basic part of the web and app creation process, saving their companies time, money, and face. They will also be expected to continue using frameworks and to somehow inject accessibility into these.
5. WCAG 3 will start to take some kind of shape on the horizon
While not achieving clear definitions, this year will bring a greater understanding of just how different WCAG 3 will be. Smart web creators will start to apply those understandings in their current work, shifting the focus away from strict pass/fail criteria to acceptable outcomes, sufficient conformance, and a wider and deeper appreciation of how to meet a greater range of digital accessibility needs. Given that WCAG 3 is still at least 4-5 years away, it’s likely that in 2026 some people will advocate for an interim WCAG 2.3, to address perceived weaknesses in 2.2.
6. The lines between web and app accessibility will become less distinct
There will be less opportunity for native app developers to claim some kind of platform-based exception to the standards that underpin legislation. Nor will they be able to ignore the business case for accessibility. Accessible design and development will become more about common principles shared and applied across platforms, operating systems, devices, and software. It won’t all be solved in 2026, but there will be progress.
7. User choices will be better understood, accepted, and respected
As disabled people continue to use more assistive technologies, configure accessibility settings, and set personal user preferences, there will be greater calls for web and app creators to not get in their way or over-rule them. This will grow as people use agentive AI to control their digital experiences and expect content to obey the rules they set, and as people with disabilities and their families are recognised as a significant market force.
8. There will be an increased awareness that digital accessibility requires an ongoing process
This should be the year in which web owners come to understand that implementing digital accessibility is not a one-off, quick-fix, done-and-dusted procedure. Being assessed as WCAG-conformant is fine, but it’s very easy – almost inevitable – to fall off that pedestal. Just as security, performance, uptime, software updates, links, functionality, and search ranking require regular if not constant monitoring, accessibility will come to be regarded in the same way.
9. Assistive technologies will improve, expand, and become more widely adopted
Like many of the points raised here, this is an ongoing process but don’t be surprised if 2026 marks a turning point in how people think of and use assistive technology. On the one hand, AT like closed captions and voice control have already been increasingly adopted by people who don’t identify as disabled, to the extent that they don’t even think of them as assistive technologies, they’re just useful features. The same thing is likely to happen with, for example, screen readers, as they become used by more people who simply prefer to have their web content read out to them, and text size controls being used by people who have trouble reading small print on small screens (i.e. most of us). They’ve just become of form of user choice. On the other hand, this year will likely see new forms of AT become more widely used, such as smart glasses and sophisticated hearing aids built into earphones, as well as new ones emerge we haven’t even thought of yet.
10. Attention will turn to “the backlog”
Partly influenced by all of the above points, 2026 will mark a time when web owners acknowledge the need to clean up their backyards. It won’t be enough to promise to make new web properties and apps accessible, people will demand that existing inaccessible content is remediated or replaced. There are more than 2 billion PDF documents on the web and relatively few are accessible, or even accessible enough. Yet many of them are critical. Anyone who can accessibilise PDF content accurately and at scale is going to do very well this year. I also expect to see a sharp increase in the number of websites addressing the most common accessibility issues, the low hanging fruit.
And a final wish
Please, PLEASE, let 2026 be the year Adobe uses its AI Sensei technology to add Liquid Mode to the desktop Reader, so that all PDF content can be reflowed, especially when the content is resized.
I have no reason to think it’ll happen in 2026 but, hey, I can dream, can’t I?
Originally published: https://onsman.com/10-digital-accessibility-predictions-for-2026/.