Alexandra Bignell's Intervention from 9 June 2025 - Civil Society Round Table
10 June 2025
Good afternoon. My name is Alex and I represent People with Disability Australia.
As a neurodivergent woman with lived experience of disability, I want to speak about the importance of inclusive Artificial Intelligence.
Many neurodivergent people, including those with autism, dyslexia and cognitive disability rely on Assistive Technology (AI) to read, write, and communicate. AI can summarise long documents, explain complex text, help us remember things we'd otherwise forget and improve time management.
For many of us, these tools mean the difference between keeping up or falling behind. However, AI use is being increasingly restricted in classrooms and workplaces because it is seen as making life 'too easy'. We're told it's about preventing cheating or protecting data, but these policies ignore the people who depend on this technology. For neurodivergent people, it's not about gaining an unfair advantage, it's about having the tools we need to participate on an equal basis.
So how did we get here? AI is currently designed, regulated, and distributed based on dominant ways of thinking and communicating. If neurodivergent people were involved in AI governance decisions about who gets access, how tools are designed and whether organisations invest in making them accessible to everyone, things might look different. We need to embed inclusion from the start into AI governance, through lived experience leadership, co-design, and accessibility standards.
That's why Article 4(3) of the CRPD is essential. It requires the full participation of people with disability in decisions that affect us, including how AI is developed, procured and used in classrooms and workplaces. Afterall, Article 9 affirms our right to access technology and communication, Article 24 protects our right to inclusive education, and Article 27 affirms our right to work on an equal basis. In these modern times, this means a right for neurodivergent people to use AI at school, work and elsewhere.
AI is one of the biggest human advancements of our time, but if people with disability aren't included, existing inequality is perpetuated using new tools. This technology should open doors, not reinforce barriers. It's about rights, not privilege.
Thank you.
