The compliance question
"The Federal Trade Commission will require software provider accessiBe to pay $1 million to settle allegations that it misrepresented the ability of its AI-powered web accessibility tool to make any website compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) for people with disabilities."
"[D]espite the company's claims, accessWidget did not make all user websites WCAG-compliant and these claims were therefore false, misleading, or unsubstantiated, in violation of the FTC Act."
Source: FTC press release, January 3, 2025
The FTC's final order, approved in April 2025, bars accessiBe from claiming its automated product "can make any website WCAG-compliant or can ensure continued compliance with WCAG over time, unless it has the evidence to support such claims." (FTC final order, April 2025)
The National Federation of the Blind reached a similar conclusion years earlier. In Resolution 2021-17, the NFB stated that accessiBe "overstates the effectiveness of automated testing" and "promotes the false claims of attaining Web Content Accessibility Guidelines compliance through the integration of one line of code."
AltText.ai does not claim to make websites WCAG-compliant. We generate accurate alt text, which is one piece of WCAG 1.1.1 — text alternatives for non-text content.
The technical question
Where the alt text actually lives changes everything.
accessiBe: JavaScript overlay
accessiBe loads alt text via a JavaScript overlay. Overlay alt text never enters your HTML source code. Google indexes HTML, not overlay output — so that alt text is invisible to search engines and AI crawlers.
AltText.ai: real HTML alt text
AltText.ai writes alt text directly into your CMS via integration — WordPress, Shopify, Magento, or direct API. Real <img alt="..."> attributes that ship in your HTML, get indexed by Google, and get read by screen readers without depending on overlay JavaScript loading correctly.
The independent evidence on overlays is direct. Accessibility engineer Karl Groves produced a 1,000-page expert report for the federal court case Murphy v. Eyebobs, analyzing 50 overlay-equipped sites. The result: a median of 2,300 WCAG violations per site, despite overlay deployment. (Murphy v. Eyebobs expert report)
Legal exposure
Overlays are sometimes sold as legal protection. The data does not support that. According to the UsableNet 2024 Year-End ADA Lawsuit Report, more than 25% of the 4,000+ ADA web accessibility lawsuits filed in 2024 named defendants that had overlay widgets installed.
Overlays do not provide legal protection. They are frequently cited as evidence of a bad-faith compliance attempt rather than a defense against one.
Expert consensus
The Overlay Fact Sheet, maintained by Karl Groves, has been signed by 1,001+ accessibility professionals opposing overlay widgets. It is the single most cited consensus document on this topic. (overlayfactsheet.com)
"Beware of companies claiming to use AI-based solutions to make websites accessible. Avoid these companies."
"AI will not magically make websites accessible."
"If I'm finding barriers on their own website, how can I trust them to make other websites accessible?"
— Haben Girma, deafblind disability rights lawyer. Source: Haben Girma on LinkedIn
accessiBe "currently engages in behavior that is harmful to the advancement of blind people in society" … "peremptorily and scornfully dismisses the concerns blind people have about its products" … treats "blind access technology experts shabbily and disrespectfully in private meetings."
— National Federation of the Blind Board statement, June 22, 2021, revoking accessiBe's convention sponsorship. Source: NFB Board statement
Side-by-side
Two different products solving two different problems.
| accessiBe | AltText.ai | |
|---|---|---|
| Approach | JavaScript overlay widget | Real HTML alt text written to CMS |
| Indexed by Google? | No (JS overlay, not HTML) | Yes (alt attribute in source) |
| Works when JS fails? | No | Yes (alt is in HTML) |
| FTC action? | $1M settlement, Jan 2025 | None |
| NFB position? | Sponsorship revoked 2021 | N/A |
| WCAG claim? | Barred from claiming compliance | We do not claim to make sites compliant — we write alt text |
| Pricing | From $490/yr | From $5/mo |
When accessiBe might be the right choice
Not every site needs real alt text. If you are explicitly looking for a one-line install that displays a UI affordance for users to adjust contrast, font size, or text spacing, an overlay widget does that. AltText.ai does not. We do one thing: generate accurate alt text and write it into your HTML.
What we actually promise
- We write accurate alt text using GPT-4-class models tuned on 30M+ accessibility-graded images.
- We integrate with WordPress, Shopify, Magento, and direct API.
- We do not claim to make your website WCAG-compliant. We help with WCAG 1.1.1 — text alternatives for non-text content. The other 49 success criteria are your responsibility.
- We charge $5/mo to start. Cancel any time. No $490/yr minimum. See pricing.
Frequently asked questions
- Did the FTC actually fine accessiBe?
- Yes. In January 2025 the Federal Trade Commission announced an order requiring accessiBe to pay $1 million to settle allegations that it misrepresented the ability of its AI-powered tool to make any website WCAG-compliant. The FTC approved the final order in April 2025. See the FTC press release.
- Does AltText.ai have a legal action against it?
- No. AltText.ai has no FTC action, settlement, or order against it. We generate alt text and write it into your HTML — we do not claim to make websites WCAG-compliant.
- Will AltText.ai make my site WCAG-compliant?
- No. Alt text is one of more than fifty WCAG success criteria. AltText.ai helps with WCAG 1.1.1, text alternatives for non-text content. The remaining criteria are your responsibility. We do not claim to make your website compliant.
- Can I use both accessiBe and AltText.ai?
- Yes. They solve different problems. accessiBe is a JavaScript overlay widget that displays a UI affordance for users to adjust contrast, font size, or spacing. AltText.ai writes real alt text into your HTML so it is indexed by search engines and read by screen readers regardless of whether overlay JavaScript loads.
- Why does it matter that alt text is in HTML and not in an overlay?
- Google indexes HTML, not overlay output, so alt text injected by a JavaScript overlay does not get indexed. Screen readers parse the DOM before overlay JavaScript executes, so HTML alt attributes are reliably available. Alt text written directly into your CMS works even when JavaScript fails.
Real alt text, written into your HTML
Install the WordPress plugin, drop in the Shopify app, or use the API. AltText.ai writes accurate alt text into your CMS — no overlay required.
25 free credits. No credit card. No expiry.