Four years ago, the We4Authors initiative united several content management tools (mostly open source) to identify and document accessibility best practices in preparation for the European Accessibility Act. It was the most coordinated effort to help content authors produce accessible digital content at scale. Yet, despite the groundwork, only the recommendations have not been widely adopted. The Web Almanac confirms what many suspected: web accessibility has not meaningfully improved in preparation for the Act’s introduction. https://events.drupal.org/europe2020/sessions/top-cms-tools-are-working-together-build-more-inclusive-world.html

Much of this was built on or extending ideas in Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines (ATAG) 2.0. https://www.w3.org/TR/ATAG20/

Today, the context has changed.

Artificial Intelligence—especially small, local language models—offers a new opportunity to deliver accessibility guidance where it’s needed most: at the moment of authoring. CMSs can leverage open source AI to suggest accessible alternatives, improve media descriptions, and identify structural issues in real time—without sending user data to third parties or compromising privacy.

This talk will explore how we can: • Revisit the ATAG 2.0 & We4Authors guidance and align it with today’s AI capabilities. https://www.w3.org/WAI/standards-guidelines/atag/ • Integrate small language models within CMS authoring environments. • Collaborate across open source communities building on the Open Web Alliance • Build shared datasets, APIs, and modules to improve author support and accessible defaults.

Accessibility progress requires shared effort, not just compliance checklists. Let’s use open collaboration and new tools to help every author publish content that works for everyone.