Innocean Berlin and RSBC turn bedtime stories into audiobook for blind children

The Royal Society for Blind Children (RSBC) in London and Innocean Berlin have launched Bedtime Donations, an app that transforms bedtime stories into free audiobooks for children with vision impairment.

The initiative addresses the limited access blind and partially sighted children have to audiobooks, which are often expensive and time-consuming to produce. By recording stories read aloud by parents, caretakers, volunteers, or celebrities, the app uses AI to turn them into accessible audiobooks.

The app library offers hundreds of copyright-free stories across 15 categories, sourced from Project Gutenberg. Parents can read aloud using Reader mode, and once the narration passes quality checks, it becomes available for children in Listener mode.

Julie Davis, CEO, RSBC: "Every child deserves to enjoy the magic of a bedtime story – but for blind and partially sighted children, the choice of accessible audiobooks is still far too limited. The Bedtime Donations campaign is about changing that. By encouraging parents, caretakers, volunteers, and well-known voices to share their bedtime stories, we're building a library of free, accessible books that will help children feel included, inspired and connected to the magic of storytelling."

Prominent UK actors and comedians including Jon Richardson, Ralf Little, Jon Culshaw and Mathew Baynton have already contributed their voices to the growing library of stories.

The app’s design was developed with accessibility experts to meet WCAG Level AAA standards. It features a minimum contrast ratio of 7:1 for visibility, carefully chosen fonts, and voice recognition on both iOS and Android for ease of use. AI-powered voice cleaning improves audio quality by removing background noise, ensuring a smoother listening experience.

Jens Brater, Managing Director and Lead Developer, BuzzWoo: "The app is designed to make reading and listening as smooth as possible. AI-powered voice cleaning removes background noise for a clearer, more enjoyable experience. Features like coverage scoring and built-in guardrails ensure the narration stays true to the original text, promoting better reading engagement."

Gabriel Mattar, CCO, Innocean Berlin: "At Innocean Berlin, we believe in alleviating a brand's pain. To do so requires going far beyond the brief, and that's what we did with RSBC. Bedtime Donations is a powerful platform that takes an important step towards making stories more accessible to children with vision impairment and their families, through sheer dedication, technology and inclusive design."

The app is designed to expand over time, hosting stories across languages and genres. By focusing on human narration enhanced by technology, it provides an inclusive storytelling experience for blind and sighted children alike.