Origins & Early Life

Chieko Asakawa (浅川 智恵子, Asakawa Chieko) is a blind Japanese computer scientist, known for her work at IBM Research – Tokyo in accessibility. A Netscape browser plug-in she developed, the IBM Home Page Reader, became the most widely used web-to-speech system available. She is the recipient of numerous industry and government awards. Asakawa was born with normal sight.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

When she was eleven years old, while swimming, she struck her left eye on the side of the pool, injuring her optic nerve. She began losing her sight, and by the age of fourteen was completely blind. She earned a bachelor's degree in English literature at Otemon Gakuin University in Osaka in 1982, followed by a two-year computer programming course designed for the visually impaired; students used Optacons to translate print to tactile sensation. She joined IBM Research in a temporary position in 1984, and became a permanent staff researcher one year later. In 2004 she earned a Ph.D.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

in engineering from the University of Tokyo. Asakawa's research projects have included developing a word processor for Braille documents, developing a digital library for Braille documents, developing...

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