Have you ever stopped to think about how technology has been transforming the lives of millions of people, especially those with disabilities?
Every day, new digital tools break down barriers and make the world more accessible. From apps that describe the environment out loud for blind people to sign language translators, we are living in an era where innovation and inclusion go hand in hand. It sounds like science fiction, but it is very real: technological solutions are improving the lives of people with disabilities, bringing more autonomy and comfort to everyday tasks. After all, as the saying goes, technology only makes sense when it improves people’s lives.
The Guiaderodas app was born out of that wave of transformation. Since Guiaderodas was founded in 2016, the mission has always been clear: to make life more autonomous and inclusive for everyone. It all started as a collaborative mobile app, almost an “almanac” of accessibility. The idea came from the lived experience of founder Bruno Mahfuz, himself a wheelchair user, who had grown tired of running into nasty surprises caused by a lack of accessibility. So why not put technology to work? That is how the Guiaderodas app came about, initially available for Android and built on the Foursquare database, encouraging users to rate and share the accessibility of different venues (yes, pure crowdsourcing). The community embraced the idea right away. The app quickly evolved: it gained new features, became faster and, in response to requests, also gained an iPhone version. With a growing base of engaged users, Guiaderodas became a benchmark in accessibility. Thousands of people started using it to plan their outings, and contributions from the community only enriched the platform. The buzz was such that awards and recognition followed, both national and international. The app was recognized by the UN agency ITU as the Best Accessibility App in the world in 2018, and its founder received honors from MIT.
Even with all that success, technology does not stand still, and neither does Guiaderodas. After a few years in the spotlight, the app began to show its age. New times called for new approaches. Our digital habits have changed: today we want instant answers, simpler interfaces and integration with the tools we already use every day. And which platform does practically every Brazilian use daily? Bingo: WhatsApp. To give you an idea, around 98% of smartphone owners in Brazil use WhatsApp as a communication tool. So why not bring such valuable information into that environment? That is exactly what we did. And so “Gui” was born, the new Guiaderodas virtual assistant. Instead of a traditional app, you now have an intelligent assistant on your WhatsApp, ready to chat and help with whatever you need. With advances in artificial intelligence and the convenience of chatbots, Guiaderodas reinvented itself without abandoning its essence. The purpose remains the same, providing reliable information for a more autonomous and inclusive life, but in a far more modern and powerful form.
Imagine que agora você precisa encontrar um restaurante acessível para um jantar em família. Basta abrir o WhatsApp e perguntar para o Gui com as suas próprias palavras – nada de preencher filtros complicados ou Imagine you now need to find an accessible restaurant for a family dinner. Just open WhatsApp and ask Gui in your own words, with no complicated filters to fill in or confusing menus to navigate. You can send something like “Gui, do you know an Italian restaurant that’s accessible and has space for kids in Piracicaba?”. Within moments, the assistant replies with suggestions that match the request, already detailing important accessibility aspects: whether there is a ramp at the entrance, an adapted restroom, adequate internal space for a wheelchair, and so on. It is almost like having a friend who is an accessibility expert available 24 hours a day to advise you.
What makes Gui (the virtual assistant) such a big step up from the old app? Essentially, the convergence of several cutting-edge technologies working together to make your life easier. Below we highlight some of the advantages of this new format that are making a difference in the community’s daily life:
- Quick and practical access: Gui works directly in your WhatsApp, which means it is in the palm of your hand, whenever and wherever you need it. No need to install anything new, no complications: just open a conversation and ask. That speed reduces the anxiety of someone who is out and about and needs information right away, making everything more agile and convenient.
- Smart planning: You know that saga of calling several places to ask about ramps or adapted restrooms? With Gui, that is a thing of the past. It integrates data from various sources (from public databases to information provided by the venues and users themselves) to help you plan your outings efficiently. Want to know whether a hotel has an accessible room, or whether a particular beach has a beach mat for wheelchair users? Just ask, and the assistant will find that information, organized, for you.
- Simplified search in natural language: No technical terms, no rigid options: you talk to Gui your own way. You can write as if you were talking to a friend, with slang, emoji and everything. Thanks to artificial intelligence, Gui understands what you mean and gives you clear, objective answers. This simplified search makes the experience far more inclusive even for those who are not comfortable with technology, because it simply “speaks the user’s language”.
- Community contribution: Remember how the old app lived off user reviews? That is still alive. Gui lets you rate venues too and share your experiences. That way, the knowledge base keeps growing and everyone helps each other, exactly as a community should. Every time you give feedback (“Oh, café X has just installed a new ramp!”), you are helping the people who come after you.
- Natural conversation and human interaction: There is AI behind Gui, yes, but it feels like a person-to-person chat. The tone of the answers is friendly and human, not robotic at all. You can ask “Recommend me a hotel with an adapted room near Avenida Paulista?” or even simple questions like “Gui, what is an adapted restroom?”. In both cases, it will help you quickly and clearly, with no jargon and without dumping you into a generic FAQ. That naturalness in conversation makes all the difference: it gives you the confidence to ask anything, without fear of getting it wrong.
When purpose and technology come together, society is the winner. Back in 2016, it was “just” a collaborative app. Today, with the evolution of technology, we have a virtual assistant powered by AI, talking in real time with thousands of people and drawing on multiple APIs and external databases to deliver tailored answers. All within the country’s most popular messaging environment (WhatsApp). Isn’t that remarkable? And it is worth stressing: all these advances, from natural language processing to integration with external services, were only possible thanks to the powerful convergence of artificial intelligence, messaging platforms and cloud data. If the Guiaderodas mission has always been to use information to deliver autonomy and inclusion, that mission is now being fulfilled at an even higher level.
Make accessibility a decision, not a detail
Technology helps people find accessible spaces. Certification is what makes those spaces exist.
The Guiaderodas Certification goes beyond a technical checklist. Its methodology combines a detailed assessment of the physical space, the lived experience of people with disabilities, staff training for an accessible attitude and a leadership commitment to continuous improvement.
Learn about the Guiaderodas Certification →
