Knowledge Bot: Disability Rights Texas
The Arizona State University Artificial Intelligence Cloud Innovation Center, powered by Amazon Web Services (AWS), collaborated with Disability Rights Texas to design and develop an AI-powered Knowledge Bot that transforms how individuals access legal rights information. This fully accessible, bilingual chatbot streamlines support and education by delivering legal guidance directly from Disability Rights Texas resources—making information more available, inclusive, and easier to understand. By removing language and accessibility barriers, the tool increases the organization’s capacity to serve its community with speed, accuracy, and empathy.
Problem
Disability Rights Texas faced significant challenges to provide timely, accessible information to its diverse user base. Traditional support channels were strained by complex websites, long phone wait times, and inaccessible content that left users frustrated and inadequately supported. Spanish-speaking individuals faced additional language barriers, while complex legal jargon made information difficult to understand across all backgrounds and reading levels. The organization needed an innovative solution to reduce call volume, deliver instant access to legal information, and ensure full accessibility compliance—while preserving the quality and reliability its community relies on.
Student Spotlight
The AI CIC is powered by ASU Student Workers. The following students were assigned to this project to develop this open-source solution in partnership with the AWS and ASU mentor team.
Role: UI/UX Designer | Connect with Shristi
I had the privilege of shaping a conversational knowledge bot interface that truly puts people first. I led the creation of a clean, responsive chat window with an English / Español toggle and full Section 504 accessibility so every user, regardless of ability, can navigate with confidence. My work spanned mapping intuitive chat flows and information architecture, designing clear visual cues for keyboard and screen-reader interactions, and weaving DRTx’s brand palette and typography into a cohesive, welcoming experience. Above all, I loved collaborating on such an important initiative knowing that every design decision we made will help people with disabilities find the help they need, faster and more intuitively than ever before.
Role: Full Stack Cloud Developer | Connect with Hemanth
One of the crucial elements of this project was weaving Amazon Q Business into our solution, both as the core chatbot engine and as the driver for the feedback workflow. Leveraging Q Business allowed us to deliver an accessible, multilingual assistant that could engage clients, attorneys, and support staff in real time. Exploring the platform’s security model, prompt-tuning options, and knowledge indexing gave me a deep appreciation for how quickly we could build an enterprise-grade conversational interface. I was especially impressed by the seamless hand-off to Amazon QuickSight, which let us surface live analytics on chat volume, sentiment trends, and the most-requested topics. Contributing to a project with such direct social impact made every late-night debugging session feel worthwhile. From a personal standpoint, this was my first true end-to-end build that covered both the front-end experience and the back-end orchestration. Overall, the combination of cutting-edge technology, meaningful mission, and steep learning curve made the project both challenging and deeply rewarding.
Approach
The team developed an AI-powered chatbot and an accessible web interface that work together to deliver legal rights information efficiently and equitably.
- AI Chatbot: The chatbot leverages Amazon Q Business to provide intelligent, natural language responses based on a curated set of legal documents from Disability Rights Texas. It supports both English and Spanish, includes a "Simplify" toggle to improve comprehension, and cites sources for transparency.
- Web Interface: The chatbot is embedded within a WCAG AA-compliant, responsive frontend hosted via Amazon Amplify. The design ensures compatibility with screen readers, keyboard navigation, and contrast needs to support users of all abilities.
The solution was powered by several key AWS services:
- Amazon Q Business – for generating intelligent, conversational responses
- Amazon S3 – for secure document storage
- Amazon API Gateway + AWS Lambda – for managing secure and scalable API interactions
- Amazon Amplify – for deploying and hosting the frontend interface
Key features include inline clickable citations referencing original source material, a bilingual toggle, user feedback ratings for continuous improvement, and accessibility-focused design throughout.
Industry
The chatbot significantly enhances how individuals engage with disability rights resources. It reduces the volume of incoming calls and allows staff to concentrate on complex cases while users receive instant support on routine questions like, “What are my rights under the ADA?” or “How do I apply for Social Security?”. Accessibility features ensure equitable service, while bilingual support bridges language gaps and empowers more users to advocate for themselves. The solution reflects a scalable, user-focused model for inclusive digital services in the legal sector.
"I am profoundly impressed by the collaboration between Arizona State University students and the Cloud Innovation Center. Our intake workers are consistently engaged with clients via a toll-free line, providing crucial information regarding the rights of individuals with disabilities. This innovative chatbot solution will significantly alleviate their workload and grant our clients convenient access to information outside of standard operating hours. The final product successfully incorporates all requested features, and we are optimistic that its open-source availability will provide invaluable support to other non-profit organizations striving to improve client service."
Carlton Whitmore, IT Manager, Disability Rights Texas
Application
This framework can extend to legal aid organizations, social service agencies, healthcare providers, and educational institutions. Its architecture supports diverse content domains, languages, and accessibility needs. Government and nonprofit agencies alike can adopt similar chatbot solutions to expand their reach, improve service efficiency, and ensure equitable access to critical information.
Supporting Artifacts
Next Steps
The first phase of our chatbot initiative aimed to deliver readily available and accessible information to our website users. In the second phase, we will expand the chatbot's capabilities to simplify the online intake experience. Currently, prospective clients must navigate a cumbersome online form or contact our toll-free line to apply for services. Utilizing the chatbot to guide users through the intake form will improve accuracy and alleviate the burden on our intake staff.
Carlton Whitmore, IT Manager, Disability Rights Texas
About the ASU CIC
The ASU Artificial Intelligence Cloud Innovation Center (AI CIC), powered by AWS is a no-cost design thinking and rapid prototyping shop dedicated to bridging the digital divide and driving innovation in the nonprofit, healthcare, education, and government sectors.
Our expert team harnesses Amazon’s pioneering approach to dive deep into high-priority pain points, meticulously define challenges, and craft strategic solutions. We collaborate with AWS solutions architects and talented student workers to develop tailored prototypes showcasing how advanced technology can tackle a wide range of operational and mission-related challenges.
Discover how we use technology to drive innovation. Visit our website at ASU AI CIC or contact us directly at [email protected].
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