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We aren't waiting for change, we are investing in it. Investing in Accessibility is dedicated to exploring the intersection of accessibility, entrepreneurship, and impact investing. Join hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher as they speak with entrepreneurs and thought leaders who are focused on empowering people with disabilities and creating a more accessible world.
Kelvin Crosby is CEO of Smart Guider Inc., which develops navigation technology enabling deafblind individuals to travel independently. Known as The DeafBlind Potter, he funded his first invention, the See Me Cane, through pottery sales. Kelvin lives with Usher Syndrome type 2 and is a staunch advocate for accessibility.
Chris Maher is the Founder & General Partner at Samaritan Partners, a public benefit venture fund that invests in the disability sector. Chris founded Samaritan after spending 25 years as an operator and multi-time CEO at a variety of venture capital-backed companies, and 20 years raising two daughters with disabilities.
23 Episodes
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In this episode of Investing in Accessibility, co-hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher kick off the holiday season with something special: a recorded panel from the RALLY Innovation Conference in Indianapolis. Moderated by Jennison Asuncion (Head of Accessibility Engineering Evangelism at LinkedIn and co-founder of Global Accessibility Awareness Day), this conversation brings together four leaders shaping the future of disability tech and digital accessibility: Chris Maher – Founder & Gene...
In this episode, co-hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher welcome a very special guest: Chris’s oldest daughter, Charlotte Maher—an EMT-turned-emergency management professional whose life with spastic hemiplegia has forged extraordinary resilience. Charlotte shares early memories (and family stories) of therapies, leg and back braces, and the infamous “constraint camp,” then traces how those experiences shaped her confidence, leadership, and service mindset. Charlotte takes us inside life...
Join hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher for an inspiring conversation with Cara Yar Khan, founder & CEO of The Purple Practice, former UNICEF humanitarian, filmmaker, and fierce disability advocate. Cara traces her multicultural roots and early activism, the winding journey to a rare diagnosis of hereditary inclusion body myopathy, and how she learned to lead, pitch, and live with radical authenticity. This episode dives into Cara’s multicultural upbringing and early passion for service,...
In this episode of Investing in Accessibility, hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher explore how The Accessibility Lab at The Schoolhouse Hotel in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia is transforming the travel and hospitality industry for people with disabilities. Chris shares how this innovative partnership between Samaritan Partners, The Schoolhouse Hotel, and TravelAbility is turning a boutique hotel into a living lab for testing cutting-edge accessibility solutions. From smart wayfinding t...
In this inspiring episode of Investing in Accessibility, hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher sit down with Chris Soukup, CEO of Communication Service for the Deaf (CSD), for a powerful conversation about advocacy, innovation, and the future of accessibility. Chris shares his family’s remarkable legacy—from his grandfather’s struggles with discrimination as a deaf farmer in South Dakota to his father founding CSD with a $15,000 grant and a vision for equal rights and access. Over the past 50 y...
In this episode of Investing in Accessibility, hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher welcome Mike May—entrepreneur, Paralympic athlete, navigation technology pioneer, and, as Chris calls him, “the most interesting man in the world.” Mike shares his remarkable journey, from losing his sight at age three to regaining partial vision decades later, working for the CIA, competing on the world stage in skiing, and founding companies like Sendero Group, which developed the first GPS products for blind...
In this episode of Investing in Accessibility, hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher dive into the evolution of accessibility tech with Josh Miller, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of 3Play Media—a leading media accessibility company that started at MIT and grew into an industry trailblazer. Together, they unpack how 3Play Media emerged from a real-world need to caption complex academic videos into a scalable tech-driven company that combines AI innovation with human precision. Josh shares his entreprene...
In this dynamic episode of Investing in Accessibility, Host Kelvin Crosby introduces a special panel session from the Wawability 2025 Summit, celebrating 35 years of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Titled “Design, Capital, and Impact: The Future of Disability Startups,” the panel is moderated by Co-Host Chris Maher and features three visionary disability tech entrepreneurs: Tomer Aharoni – Co-founder & CEO of Nagish, building accessible communication tools for the deaf and hard...
In this episode of Investing in Accessibility, hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher welcome Levin Sliker, co-founder and CEO of Point Designs, a pioneering company that creates durable, 3D-printed prosthetic fingers. Levin shares his inspiring journey from academia to entrepreneurship, detailing how a university project aimed at solving a real-world problem evolved into a mission-driven company reshaping prosthetic care for people with partial hand amputations. The conversation delves into the...
In this powerful episode of Investing in Accessibility, hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher welcome Ben Ogilvie, Head of Accessibility at ArcTouch and board member of the GAAD Foundation. Ben shares his deeply personal journey into accessibility—from adapting technology for his father after a life-changing accident to advocating for inclusive design following the birth of his son with a brain injury and epilepsy. The conversation explores how Ben turned lived experiences into a career mission...
In this episode of Investing in Accessibility, we sit down with Larry Goldberg—media pioneer, policy shaper, and trusted advisor to the next generation of accessibility innovators. Larry shares his remarkable four-decade journey, from launching closed captioning at WGBH to shaping landmark accessibility legislation, leading corporate accessibility at Yahoo, and now mentoring mission-driven startups and nonprofits. Hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher dig into Larry’s philosophy of “developed f...
In this powerful episode, hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher sit down with AnnMarie Killian, CEO of TDIforAccess, to explore her personal journey as a deaf woman and longtime advocate for accessibility and inclusion. AnnMarie shares her experience growing up in a hearing family, discovering American Sign Language later in life, and the challenges and triumphs that shaped her leadership. The conversation covers: The richness of Deaf culture and identityNavigating communication and relationshi...
In this episode of Investing in Accessibility, co-hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher dive deep into the investment process at Samaritan Partners, exploring how they evaluate businesses in the disability sector. The conversation covers the fund's unique structure as a public benefit fund, focusing on social good while achieving strong financial returns. Chris breaks down the key criteria Samaritan Partners uses when considering potential investments, including the importance of social impact,...
In this powerful episode of Investing in Accessibility, co-hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher sit down with digital accessibility pioneer Mike Paciello, Chief Accessibility Officer at AudioEye and founder of The Paciello Group. Mike shares his remarkable four-decade journey—from converting print documentation into Braille in the 1980s to shaping web accessibility standards and launching multiple successful ventures. Now at the forefront of scalable digital accessibility solutions, Mike...
In this episode of Investing in Accessibility, co-hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher dive into the difference between a Lifestyle business and Exit business. Kelvin shares his personal experience with his company, See Me Cane, explaining how he chose to build a Lifestyle business rather than pursue rapid growth through venture capital. He highlights the benefits of having more control, balancing social mission with financial goals, and the creative funding strategies that made his business s...
In this episode of Investing in Accessibility, co-hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher sit down with Mike Buckley, CEO of Be My Eyes, to explore how the company is blending cutting-edge technology with human kindness to empower the blind and low vision community. Mike shares his unconventional path from corporate consulting and angel investing to leading one of the most impactful accessibility tech companies in the world. Kelvin, a longtime user of Be My Eyes, offers firsthand insight into how...
In this episode of Investing in Accessibility, co-hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher sit down with two true leaders of the accessibility movement: Joe Devon and Jennison Asuncion, co-founders of Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD). Together, they share the incredible story of how a blog post, a tweet, and a Saturday night on Twitter sparked a global movement that now reaches over 200 million people annually. Joe and Jennison open up about their personal journeys—Joe’s path through tech...
In this episode of Investing in Accessibility, co-hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher welcome Hale Pulsifer, Vice President of Customer Insights, Inclusion, and Advocacy at Fidelity Investments, to explore the intersection of business, accessibility, and economic opportunity. Hale shares his transformative journey from corporate finance strategist to a leader in disability inclusion, revealing how companies that embrace accessibility aren’t just doing the right thing—they’re making a smart bu...
In this episode of Investing in Accessibility, co-hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher speak with Bob Ludke, co-founder of Value Inclusion and author of "Case Studies in Disability-Driven Innovation." Bob shares his background in disability policy with Senator Tom Harkin and his journey through public policy, sustainability, and ESG. Universal Design as a Business Strategy: The heart of Bob's message is that universal design isn't just good for society but also a strategic business imperative ...
In this episode of Investing in Accessibility, co-hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher speak with Alvaro Silberstein, co-founder and CEO of Wheel the World, an accessible travel platform revolutionizing the way people with disabilities experience the world. Alvaro shares his personal journey from Chile to the U.S., his experiences traveling as a quadriplegic, and how those challenges inspired him to create a company that ensures people with disabilities have the information and resources they ...
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