{
  "id": 15875391,
  "title": "App to help diners with visual impairment at hawker centres among ideas at inaugural challenge",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/21/app-to-help-diners-with-visual-impairment-at-hawker-centres-among",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-10-21T10:45:26.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Straits Times",
    "slug": "straits-times",
    "url": "https://www.straitstimes.com/tech/app-to-help-diners-with-visual-impairment-at-hawker-centres-among-ideas-showcased-at-inaugural"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A new app called LetsGo aims to assist visually impaired individuals in navigating hawker centres in Singapore. The challenge of finding an empty table in busy hawker centres is compounded for those with visual impairments. The LetsGo app addresses this issue by providing audio guidance through a Bluetooth earpiece or smart glasses, informing users about occupied or empty tables when they point their phone camera at their surroundings. This is just one component of a broader effort to improve the overall experience for visually impaired individuals in hawker centres, as the app addresses challenges such as ordering food, making payments, and more. The app is the result of a two-month design process involving 17 teams of public officers and tertiary students, who worked with GovTech Singapore, industry experts, and users to develop prototypes aimed at addressing everyday accessibility barriers. The Minister for Digital Development and Information, Josephine Teo, emphasized the importance of digital inclusion and identified a need to go beyond basic digital access to better support disadvantaged communities. The Inclusive Design Week, organized by GovTech Singapore, aims to put users at the center of the design process, with the ultimate goal of creating better digital services for everyone.",
  "summary": "Named LetsGo, the app prototype will say “occupied table” or “empty table” when the user points their phone camera.",
  "key_points": [
    "LetsGo app helps visually impaired navigate Singapore hawker centres",
    "App provides audio guidance via Bluetooth earpiece or smart glasses",
    "Two-month design process involved 17 teams of public officers and students"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}