Accessible digital solutions are always worth investing in. By building a more inclusive and usable website, you directly improve the experience of the end user, and ensure the legal compliance of your organisation. However, accessible solutions can also provide spillover benefits, helping your brand reach wider audiences across different platforms.
A great example of this is Atlas, OpenAI’s new browser tool. When Atlas was launched, OpenAI confirmed that accessible sites will be more easily accessed by the browser. Atlas uses “agentic search” to traverse the web, mimicking real user behaviour. These agents operate in a similar manner to screen readers and other assistive technologies, which gives accessible websites an immediate advantage in how their content is interpreted.
How Atlas interprets accessible websites
Atlas operates both as a crawler and as an agent that navigates pages, completes actions and interprets interface elements. These agents rely heavily on semantic cues within the codebase. Well structured and accessible HTML provides the clarity that agents require to understand how a site functions.
This means that Atlas navigates accessible websites more reliably because they are correctly structured for assistive technologies. As such, these websites feature higher in Atlas rankings, and will be expected to attract more traffic than otherwise possible.
Why AI powered discovery matters
AI sourced traffic is still emerging, but early user behaviour shows a strong level of intent. For instance, a study by superprompt found that traffic from ChatGPT was 5 times more likely to convert compared with Google traffic. Sessions from these platforms typically originate from goal-oriented interactions and result in decisive actions. As AI led browsing becomes more common, websites with strong semantic foundations will be easier for these systems to interpret, which supports long term visibility and discoverability.
Understanding ARIA and its role in accessibility
One particular area highlighted by OpenAI is the use of ARIA tags. Accessible Rich Internet Application (ARIA) provides additional semantic information for interactive components, particularly those that cannot be expressed through native HTML. It clarifies behaviours, relationships and states so that assistive technologies can interpret complex elements accurately. ARIA plays an important role in custom navigation items, dynamic content and bespoke widgets where HTML alone is insufficient.
However, ARIA does not replace native markup. Semantic HTML is always the first and most important layer of accessibility. Clear headings, strong document structure and accurate alt text provide the foundation on which ARIA builds. AccessPoint treats ARIA as one part of a broader accessibility system that includes interaction design, keyboard operability and consistent component behaviour.
A practical and responsible approach to AI visibility
Needless to say, accessibility updates should be used to add genuine usability, not just to drive AI visibility. Poorly implemented changes can mislead assistive technologies, disrupt navigation and reduce usability. AccessPoint recommend a measured approach that prioritises the end user, and is combined with validation through real assistive technology testing.
A responsible implementation prioritises:
- Native HTML elements wherever possible, since they provide accessibility support without additional attributes
- Accurate alt text for images and video
- ARIA attributes only when needed to support components that cannot be conveyed semantically through HTML
This approach avoids confusing assistive technology, and preserves accessibility quality across the interface. It provides significant benefits to the end user, and is worth pursuing in its own right, regardless of AI visibility.
The broader inclusion dividend
Organisations that have invested in accessibility will now benefit from stronger performance across multiple dimensions. Search engines reward semantic clarity, users benefit from predictable interactions and AI tools interpret accessible structures more effectively. These outcomes come from the full accessibility ecosystem, including technical performance, visual design, semantic markup and appropriate ARIA usage.
Building accessible and AI ready websites
AccessPoint view accessibility as a marker of digital quality. It strengthens usability, improves long term functionality and ensures that digital products remain legible to both human users and AI driven tools. Teams that invest in accessible design today create future ready experiences that adapt effectively to new browsing technologies.
If you want to understand how accessibility can improve performance for every user and prepare your organisation for the next generation of search experiences, the AccessPoint team would love to speak more about your specific needs.