Thread by @wolfejosh

1/ Here is the quick story of Aira––a truly mission-driven company & a HUGE HIRE.

Mike Randall joins after years of leadership at Yahoo, Facebook, and Snap....
aira.io/welcome-ceo

2/ Aira was founded in January 2015 with a simple mission:

provide blind + low vision people with instant access to information.

3/ Using a pair of smart glasses, a smartphone app, + human AI-powered platform—

they create audio AR experiences by interpreting the world in real time to users––who they call Explorers—& empower them to make their own decisions w/the same info that sighted peers have at hand..

4/ The PRODUCT––

is built in partnership with blind and low-vision people, thanks to the many trials and experiments we’ve conducted with hundreds of people who are blind or have low vision around the country.

5/ The BRAND—

is built in partnership with consumer organizations who are deeply-rooted in a philosophy that strives for the enhanced independence of those who are blind or have low-vision.

6/ The TEAM—

is built in recognition of diversity, inclusion, empathy, passion for customers, and an attitude to make it happen.

7/ Our late partner + Aira co-founder with Suman––Larry Bock

always talked about the importance of assembling the right TEAM and stressed how TIMING was critical to bringing in the right talent at the right time & stage of a startup...

8/ TODAY
Aira works 24/7 w/deep community roots in national blind consumer orgs & agencies
-National Federation of the Blind
-American Council of the Blind
-American Foundation for the Blind

to make the world more accessible for ~ 300 MILLION blind +low vision people globally...

9/ We’re starting the year w/ >25,000 locations (!) where Aira is free to use

thanks to the ever-growing Aira Access Network
+ partnerships we’ve created with respected brands like AT&T, Walgreens + Bank of America...

...to our NEW + NEXT chapter of leadership + GROWTH!