Anna Wright’s BindiMaps mobile app has unlocked a whole new world for people with vision impairment by removing the barriers to mobility.
BindiMaps transforms the way people with vision impairment navigate complex indoor spaces. The mobile app employs Bluetooth technology to locate a network of Bluetooth beacons combined with mapping and a route-guidance system to ensure people with vision impairment can move around safely.
In the past 12 months, Anna has not only secured $1million in seed capital and support from Guide Dogs, but she has also been nominated for Australian of the Year.
“In running BindiMaps I have successfully highlighted a problem that many visual people have never thought of – how does a person who is blind know where the Braille sign is?”
Anna said that the BindiMaps technology gives people with vision impairment more confidence and independence as they navigate through complex indoor spaces such as shopping centres and airports. The app also provides vision-impaired people with real-time information on hazard warnings and evacuation procedures.
“We empower people with vision impairment to navigate their world.”
Dynamic Business had a chat with Anna about being named in the Top10, her top tips and what is new and exciting about BindiMaps.
How does it feel to be named one of Dynamic Business’s Top10 Entrepreneurs?
Thank you – what an honour. I am so grateful to get the acknowledgement, and it feels a little weird – I’m just an ordinary person doing my thing and hoping to make a difference in other people’s lives!
What are the top three lessons you’ve learnt so far?
- Don’t be afraid to ask for help!
- Raising capital is hard, but if you don’t ask you wont get – so just dive on in
- Most people don’t realise how unfair our world is, but once they know about it they want to do something. Imagine if I told you that there is a city in Australia, that because of race or gender or cultural background, that there are only certain buses that someone can catch? There would be immediate outrage. But this is what happens for ordinary Australians every day – ordinary Australians with a disability are excluded from so many activities that we all take for granted.
What is new and exciting about BindiMaps?
BindiMaps is making the world more accessible for everyone, especially for people who find it hard to use standard visual signage. To be there at a product test where someone with a visual impairment is able to independently navigate an unknown internal space, for the first time in their life, is such an honour, and such an amazing feeling.
What are you currently up to in your business?
At BindiMaps we have launched our product, and are currently negotiating with large businesses all over Australia to have it installed. We have just closed a large seed round, and have built an awesome team of staff to continue to make BindiMaps a reality around Australia.
