TouchTalk, an innovative braille-based communication system created by Joti Gokaraju, is making waves in the deafblind community. The device allows deafblind individuals to send and receive messages through braille, utilizing a computer app that translates text into braille for the device's physical display.
Gokaraju, inspired by his grandfather's hearing loss, developed TouchTalk to provide an affordable communication solution for the 160 million deafblind people worldwide. TouchTalk has been awarded the 2025 national Ingenious+ Award.
Priced under $100, TouchTalk is significantly more accessible than existing technologies that cost around $5,000. Gokaraju, a Loran Scholars Foundation scholarship recipient, credits researchers at the Canadian National Institute for the Blind for their invaluable support in the development of TouchTalk.