How do you know if a place is really accessible to people with disabilities? An Italian startup does it

If travel is a right, finding reliable information on the accessibility of hotels, restaurants, beaches, pharmacies , and everything related to daily life should not be a lottery. It is precisely from this frustration — transformed into an entrepreneurial vision — that World4All was born, the startup founded in 2022 by Marco Bottardi , an activist and entrepreneur from Brescia who decided to declare war on physical and cultural barriers. Today its digital platform, powered by AI and a network of certified technicians trained in the internal Academy, offers a “stamp” of verified accessibility that goes well beyond the window sticker: data measured in the field, traffic light ratings and personalized advice designed for people with motor and cognitive disabilities, parents with strollers, the elderly and anyone with specific mobility needs.

After the first successes starting from Lake Garda — where World4All has made the beaches, the Desenzano del Garda train station, the entire Navigarda fleet, Navicomo (boarding and ticket offices included) as well as numerous public services more inclusive — the startup has opened a direct dialogue with institutions and major players in tourism, healthcare and sports. Partnerships include the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, the Lombardy Region, the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure, Federfarma Nazionale, Consorzio Lago di Garda Lombardia and Federalberghi Brescia . Now, with the first round of equity crowdfunding on Mamacrowd, Bottardi aims to strengthen the algorithm, extend the network of certified facilities and cross national borders, transforming World4All into a true global accessibility infrastructure.

Doctor Bottardi, from the daily to the code: what accessibility “bug” have you encountered in your daily life? And why did you choose artificial intelligence as a lever to solve it?

“The biggest accessibility “bug” I have encountered in everyday life has been the lack of reliable and updated information on official portals or institutional sites. Unclear photos, unindicated measurements, non-existent or poorly described additional services: thus, a simple outing turns into an obstacle course. But this is not just a technical error. It is a “system error”: we live in a world that only works if there is a convenience, while everything related to accessibility is often relegated to the third sector or charity.

This is where the idea for World4All was born. Artificial intelligence was not a random choice, but a necessity. To truly bridge these gaps, a technology capable of understanding the context, processing large amounts of data and returning only what really matters was needed. Thanks to AI and machine learning, our platform collects, verifies and organizes useful and real information – accessible everywhere, from Brescia to New York – transforming need into response, and research into concrete action.

We didn't want to create a simple guide for a location. We wanted to build a universal system, capable of giving dignity and autonomy to those who live with reduced mobility - whether temporary, like an injured athlete, or permanent, like an elderly person or a person with a disability. AI is the technological bridge, but the difference is always made by the person. And it is precisely with people in mind that we decided to bring this project to life".

Sticker or revolution. Many “accessible” brands risk becoming green-washing in the form of inclusion. How does your certification work, step by step, to prevent it from remaining a simple window sticker? And how much weight does the Academy have in this rigorous verification process?

“For anyone, a negative review is a disappointing experience. But for those with reduced mobility, an unsatisfactory experience often means not being able to experience it at all. Arriving at a facility that promises accessibility and finding an unusable ramp is like being confined to the hotel lobby while others enjoy their vacation. This is why World4All has chosen a radically different approach. Our service is based on real checks, carried out in the field by technicians trained and certified in our Academy, the heart of the project. Our courses, taught by teachers with over twenty years of experience in the accessibility sector, prepare professionals – surveyors, architects, engineers – who follow rigorous technical protocols for timely measurements and assessments. Each facility is issued a relational sheet, which photographs the actual state of accessibility and proposes any solutions, including mobile and reversible ones, respecting regulations and constraints of cultural heritage. The World4All stamp (verified activity) is not just a sticker on the facade: it is a physical and digital certification, updated and objective, which helps people choose the facility that best suits their needs. needs, which are always different from person to person. We use a traffic light system: red for inaccessible structures, yellow for those potentially accessible if adequate, green for those fully accessible. Our model is hybrid: it combines the use of technology with a strong human and territorial component. This is because listing "presumably accessible" activities without direct verification risks generating real damage to the user. In a market that in Italy involves over 7.5 million people with reduced mobility and 13 million if we include caregivers, the risk is that accessibility becomes just an empty label attractive for poorly verified digital platforms. For this reason, in addition to technical certification, we have activated training courses in welcoming disability aimed at those who manage public and private places. From welcoming to correct communication, we train front desk staff, entrepreneurs and tourism operators so that they know how to communicate with sensitivity and awareness, also intervening within schools. Because increasing the number of customers with specific needs can generate economic growth, but only if accompanied by a truly inclusive experience”.

Algorithm with integrated empathy: with crowdfunding funds you want to evolve into a predictive engine. Let us experience the scene: what will change for a person in a wheelchair or for a father with a stroller who will open the app in two years?

“After a life-changing event, like an accident, you often find yourself immersed in a new reality without tools, without references, and – even more complex – without even knowing what questions to ask. It is from this personal experience that our vision was born: to create an app capable not only of informing, but of understanding, even when the user does not know where to start, one place at a time.

We chose artificial intelligence not as a trend, but as a necessity. The data that enters our platform every day is huge and must be processed in real time, based on the user's profile, emotional state and real conditions. Our app is a transformative non-place, a digital space tailor-made for those with reduced mobility. It is not just a search engine, but an empathetic assistant, ready to return certain answers, measured in the field by our team, and accompanied by targeted photos and truly useful information.

In practice, what already happens to those without limitations – with two taps you find what you are looking for – is finally possible for those who live with a disability. Do you want to know if there are comfortable seats in the pharmacy? If the restrooms in a restaurant have a changing table? If a museum has audio guide services or services for people with cochlear implants, tactile paths or other services for people with any visual disability, the app will tell you, without surprises.

But let’s go further: our AI-powered search system is multimodal and emotionally intelligent. It interprets voice input, eye movements, typing errors due to tremors, and even turns an “I fell!” into a geolocation alarm. The tone of voice, the way information is requested, the pace… everything contributes to modulating a tailored response.

We are integrating advanced voice commands and voice-overs, designed for people with tetraplegia, hemiplegia or other motor limitations, so that the technology adapts to the person, and not the other way around. The system anticipates questions, corrects, suggests, and lightens cognitive effort.

All this, thanks to artificial intelligence, becomes possible. And what was once a barrier, today can become an opportunity to restore autonomy, dignity and daily life to millions of people. This is our way of responding to a question that, until yesterday, no one seemed to listen to”.

Architectural barriers… and mental ones: when you sit down at the table with the Government, Regions or Federalberghi, which is the hardest resistance to dismantle: the concrete walls or the cultural ones? And what is the most effective lever to make them collapse?

“Institutions are increasingly sensitive to the issue of accessibility, but the real challenge is cultural. Changing your point of view is not easy, especially when you have to overcome years of technical-bureaucratic inertia and the idea, still widespread, that accessibility is just a cost with no return. For this reason, from the beginning, we have chosen a different approach: not to oppose each other, but to collaborate. Working operationally, bringing solutions, concrete cases and objective data.

World4All is a company, and as such we have adopted a code of ethics that guides every choice and that we require to be shared by all our stakeholders. Institutional logics are different, often slower and more complex, but we believe in dialogue and in building alliances. For this reason, institutional initiatives are developed through Zero Barriere, our Volunteer Organization, a recognized and suitable entity to interface with the public sector.

Today we actively collaborate with the Ministry for Disabilities, led by Minister Alessandra Locatelli, who has participated in several occasions promoted by us. One of the initiatives where she will be most involved will be the challenge that we set ourselves together with Marco Cossolo, president of Federfarma Nazionale, born from our proposal and today potentially the subject of an operational memorandum of understanding that will contribute to promoting the Disability Card.

Among the objectives we set ourselves, an "uncomfortable subject" and expensive for us, we wanted to introduce the topic of technical verification trying to demonstrate that making a place welcoming for everyone is not only possible, but often it is simply not very expensive.

When this is explained with data in hand, institutions begin to see us not only as certifiers, but as proactive partners who bring concrete value and real inclusion. After all, change is made of actions, not proclamations. And on this, perhaps, we are really far from politics. But we are always ready to walk together, to share initiatives, without asking for anything in return, respecting roles, to build a more accessible world”.

If you had 30 seconds to convince a skeptical investor, what data, insight, or personal anecdote would you bring up to demonstrate that accessibility is not philanthropy, but business with impact?

“Let's start from a fundamental principle: restoring dignity to people is not a business, it is a duty. But precisely for this reason, we have chosen to transform this mission into a sustainable model, capable of growing, creating impact and generating value. Business, if well oriented, is faster than philanthropy in producing change. And today we need speed, concreteness and courage to navigate a vast market that, if faced together, can lead more quickly to the common goal: a truly accessible world.

The numbers speak for themselves. In 2017, thanks to the collaboration with Navigarda, only 600 people with disabilities and their companions traveled for free. Today, after eight years, in just five months of operation during the season, we have reached 36,000 tickets. Another important figure concerns the railway stations, which are currently 351, and let's say that my battle - which took place in 2013 - to make the one in Desenzano del Garda accessible, has paved the way for the creation of others, and I am truly proud of this, because we are not just talking about a statistic, but about real inclusion, movement, an economy that is activated. It is the concrete demonstration that investing in accessibility is not charity, but an intelligent and sustainable business.

Those who welcome a customer well not only improve their reputation, but build lasting relationships, generate word of mouth and enhance the territory. Because a person who feels welcomed comes back, recommends and becomes an active part of a more equitable, inclusive and human economy”.