2025: Developments
DAISY leads several open-source development initiatives that deliver practical solutions to Members and the wider community.
Accessible Publishing Knowledge Base
Widely known as the definitive EPUB accessibility reference resource, the Knowledge Base is regularly maintained to ensure it reflects the latest best practices. Significant updates were made to the metadata materials to improve ONIX code list data and guidance on how to use the schema.org metadata.
https://kb.daisy.org/publishing
Ace by DAISY
Ace is the Accessibility Checker for EPUB, a tool widely used in both mainstream and specialist publishing. Updates were made to improve translations, including the addition of Japanese, and to update the underlying technology.
https://inclusivepublishing.org/ace
Ace SMART
The Simple Manual Accessibility Reporting Tool (SMART) is designed to aid people in reviewing an EPUB publication to perform manual accessibility tests. Updates included improvements to metadata presentation and review to support the accessibility metadata crosswalk.
https://inclusivepublishing.org/smart
InclusivePublishing.org
The leading resource on accessible publishing, the Inclusive Publishing website supports publishing professionals with the latest news and guidance, conveying international developments and relevant DAISY developments with the sector.
https://inclusivepublishing.org
Obi
Obi, is a leading audiobook creation tool, relied upon by many specialist organizations globally. The tool was updated with further improvements and bug fixes, adding new features that allow the use of AI voices from leading cloud services.
https://daisy.org/obi/
Pipeline
DAISY Pipeline is a powerful framework of conversion and analysis tools that deliver the core of many library services around the world. Provided in a user-friendly desktop App, and a mass-production ready command line, both flavors of Pipeline were updated throughout the year. In addition to addressing known issues, new features were added including eBraille support, and improvements to AI voice services.
https://daisy.org/pipeline/
Reading System Testing
EPUBTest.org is the reading system accessibility comparison resource used by developers and consumers to celebrate successes and identify issues in accessible reading. Throughout the year over 50 unique tests were logged, including different combinations of assistive technology and reading apps. Feedback on any issues were reported to the respective app developers enabling them to take action.
https://epubtest.org
WordToEPUB Tool
The widely used converter tool to create accessible EPUB files from Word documents received minor work to improve language support.
https://daisy.org/wordtoepub/
W3C Publishing
The DAISY team are active members of the W3C Publishing Groups and more broadly the W3C leadership, ensuring the focus of accessibility is maintained throughout. Contributions were made to the EPUB 3 family of specifications, including EPUB 3.3 and 3.4, EPUB Accessibility, EPUB Reading Systems, and Web publications.
The Accessibility metadata display guide for digital publication 2.0 was released to further improve how vendors share publication accessibility data.
DAISY staff contribute to the W3C advisory board and the Publishing Steering Committee to positively influencing strategic direction.
https://www.w3.org/publishing/
Special Projects
Accessible EPUB from Adobe InDesign
Facilitated by the DAISY Consortium, this group brings together technical experts from Fondazione LIA, Accessibility Library Celia, and DAISY Consortium Canada to drive improvements in accessible publishing. Through monthly consultations with Adobe’s engineers, the group provides the vital expertise needed to prioritize fixes, advise on solutions, and validate implementations. This partnership has successfully strengthened the EPUB export pipeline, allowing the publishing industry to produce high-quality, inclusive content more efficiently. By embedding accessibility directly into industry-standard software, the group continues to remove long-standing barriers for readers worldwide.
AI Special Interest Group
Following broad interest indicated by DAISY Members in the potential application of artificial intelligence in the creation of accessible formats, a special interest group was created to support member organizations as they learn, explore and deal with AI related challenges together. The topics addressed in the monthly meetings included benchmarking text-to-speech engines, PDF conversion tools, and automated image description workflows. Discussions also prioritized practical implementation, covering the development of prototypes and strategies for managing data privacy and AI service costs.
eBraille Project
The eBraille specification 1.0 was published in August 2025 and formally approved by the DAISY Consortium board in November. Support for eBraille was added to the DAISY Pipeline and many other popular braille tools are working to adopt the new standard, as are makers of refreshable braille displays.
https://daisy.org/ebraille/
EPUBCheck
The EPUBCheck tool is a conformance checker for EPUB, maintained under contract to W3C. A maintenance release was delivered to address identified bugs and add small enhancements.
https://www.w3.org/publishing/epubcheck/
European Inclusive Publishing Forum
We celebrated the European Accessibility Act coming into force in June 2025, being mindful that this is a milestone in a continuing journey of working across the publishing spectrum to encourage the adoption of accessible publishing practices. The Forum continues to provide a space for sharing best practices, news on regional challenges, and a place to find support in working with the publishing sector.
https://daisy.org/euipf/
Fido
Launched in April 2025, Fido began as a sandbox for DAISY members to explore the frontier of artificial intelligence. Throughout the year, it evolved into a versatile tool, facilitating rigorous evaluations in document conversion, image description, automated metadata, and advanced text-to-speech.
By the end of 2025, Fido moved beyond experimentation to become a component of accessible production workflows across Africa, Asia, and Latin America, streamlining the creation of inclusive content for diverse communities.
https://daisy.org/fido
MathCAT
MathCAT (Math Capable Assistive Technology) is an open-source library that transforms mathematical content into accessible formats through high-quality speech and braille output, while providing intuitive navigation within mathematical expressions. In November 2025 the board of the DAISY Consortium approved a 12-month pilot project to coordinate MathCAT development and evaluate long-term stewardship opportunities.
Music Braille
Now in the implementation phase, the music braille project continues to widen the global network of practitioners, support the adoption of the tools, promote accessible music to mainstream publishers and share teaching resources.
https://daisy.org/music-braille/
https://daisy.org/accessiblemusicpublishing
User Requirements for DAISY Reading Apps
The DAISY Reading Apps User Requirements establishes comprehensive user requirements for accessible digital reading applications. This project was a close collaboration between DAISY Consortium members, people with print disabilities, accessibility experts, and developers of specialized reading apps. The requirements were developed over ten months of working group meetings, workshops, and discussions with developers and formally approved by the DAISY Consortium board in November 2025.
The development of this specification was proposed and financially supported by DAISY member Dedicon.
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2025 Annual Report Index: