Good defaults beat good intentions
Jul 27th, 2026
Accessibility improves when teams have clear defaults that make the right choice easier during everyday product work.
This is an archive of the short emails I've sent since March 12th, 2024 about accessibility rework, product quality and the messy bits of delivery. Enjoy!
Jul 27th, 2026
Accessibility improves when teams have clear defaults that make the right choice easier during everyday product work.
Jul 26th, 2026
In Issue 108 of Access Denied, Gary moves fast and thinks that justifies ignoring accessibility.
Jul 25th, 2026
Accessibility gets easier when teams focus on repeat problems and shared decisions instead of trying to fix every issue one by one.
Jul 24th, 2026
Accessibility problems often point to deeper product delivery habits, like unclear ownership, late checks and weak definitions of done.
Jul 23rd, 2026
Accessibility improves when you build it into existing product process.
Jul 22nd, 2026
Accessibility problems often reveal delivery problems.
Jul 21st, 2026
AI can help with accessibility work. It can't take responsibility for it.
Jul 20th, 2026
Accessibility is everyone's responsibility, but the decisions still need a person resposible.
Jul 19th, 2026
In Issue 107 of Access Denied, Gary misreads that accessibility is ongoing and decides not to ship anything.
Short practical answers to common questions about leading accessibility work.
Jul 17th, 2026
Say what you're doing first, then explain what moves later and why.
Jul 16th, 2026
A target date is risky only when teams treat it like a promise instead of a tool for making tradeoffs.
Jul 15th, 2026
Accessibility work needs outcomes, dates, scope and demos. Awareness does not replace delivery.
Jul 14th, 2026
Why accessibility work gets damaged when teams call it minor.
Jul 13th, 2026
AI can help teams learn accessibility faster, but it becomes risky when nobody knows enough to question its answers.
Jul 12th, 2026
In Issue 105 of Access Denied, Gary discovers one more step before fixing accessibility.
Jul 11th, 2026
Your backlog is full of new features but empty of accessibility fixes.
Jul 10th, 2026
AI should not give accessibility a single score. It should help teams find risk, sort issues and decide what needs human review.
Jul 9th, 2026
A single accessibility score feels useful, but it can hide the failures that block real people.
Jul 8th, 2026
AI accessibility audits are useful only when their suggested fixes work in the product, for real users.
Jul 7th, 2026
AI can help with accessibility audits, but issue counts are weak metrics.
Jul 6th, 2026
AI can help make product language clearer today, starting with error messages, forms and legal copy.
Jul 5th, 2026
In Issue 105 of Access Denied, Gary uses AI to write about inclusion instead of fixing accessibility issues.
Jul 4th, 2026
Accessibility needs boring, repeatable help. AI craves applause.
Jul 3rd, 2026
AI can help with accessibility work, but it cannot own decisions, judgment or user impact.
Jul 2nd, 2026
AI can find some accessibility issues, but it cannot replace human judgment, testing or disabled users.
Jul 1st, 2026
Fixing accessibility has always been slow and expensive. AI is changing that equation, but only if someone decides to prioritise it.
Jun 30th, 2026
Happy birthday to my son. One year old today!
Jun 29th, 2026
Every company is doing something with AI, but most can't tell you what.
Jun 28th, 2026
In Issue 104 of Access Denied, Gary thinks innovation needs more budget than accessibility.
I send one short email every day for product leaders who want to kill accessibility rework before it slows delivery. Expect accessibility debt, better metrics, clearer ownership, product quality and decisions teams can use.