James Warnken used ChatGPT to build browser tools that turn text on hard-to-read websites black or white – with one click. Warnken is 29 and lives in Canton, Ohio. At nine years old, he was diagnosed with Stargardt disease , a genetic condition that progressively damages central vision. He describes it as being both near- and farsighted at the same time: e.g. a letter in his hands needs photographing or magnifying, but details also fade when objects are more than ten to twelve feet away. He can walk around without a cane, so people often miss his disability. But on a video call, he needs to lean so close to read his screen that you may only see his forehead. As his vision continues to deteriorate over time, the tools that once worked stop helping. Growing up, he was told to make the world accessible to himself. The work was on him. He entered digital marketing and web design before discovering the field of professional accessibility around 2021–22. That’s where he learned that businesses have responsibilities, too. He has spent nearly five years in accessibility, auditing websites for barriers and training teams to fix them. He wants those teams to be able to sustain the work themselves.
Warnken switches between magnification and a screen reader, which reads the screen aloud, as his needs change. On LinkedIn, he says, an article labeled a three-minute read can take him fifteen minutes when it does not magnify properly. Poor contrast can hide important content like the terms-of-service checkbox at checkout. The order fails: “I don't know what the heck is wrong. I just want to check out and place my order.” Sometimes he abandons it or asks someone else to finish. Inaccessible content and sites impose a high cost.
When high-contrast settings failed on gray-on-white text, he used ChatGPT to build bookmarklets : tiny programs saved in the browser’s bookmarks bar. Warnken knew web design but had no JavaScript background. With ChatGPT, Warnken described the change he wanted and specified the page elements to include, such as headings and buttons. Now “white text” and “black text” sit above the page, ready to change its text without opening a settings menu. He has kept these shortcuts in his browser for years. He also built an AI-assisted generator for keyboard focus indicators —the outline showing which link or button is selected as someone presses Tab. Designers sometimes remove that outline. For someone who cannot reliably track a mouse, removing it makes navigation harder. His tool lets people choose the outline’s thickness, color, and style, then produces the website styling code to copy and paste. Warnken says he put both tools on his website and made TikTok videos about them. He also shares accessibility videos on YouTube . He can make text readable without waiting for a website’s owner to change it, and other people can try the same adjustments. His advice to developers is to let pages enlarge, keep text distinguishable from its background, and leave keyboard navigation visible. Having the tools to adapt does not remove businesses’ responsibility to make their sites usable. “Just because people with disabilities can use AI to make websites accessible, doesn't mean they should have to.”
