How I AI

How a visually impaired engineer builds personal software with Claude Code + Wispr Flow

Joe McCormick is a principal software engineer at Babylist who lost most of his central vision due to a rare genetic disorder right before starting college. He pivoted from mechanical engineering to computer science and now leads AI enablement at Babylist. Joe demonstrates how he uses AI to build micro Chrome extensions that make his everyday work and life more accessible, showing how personal software can address accessibility needs that mainstream products often overlook. *What you’ll learn:* 1. How to build custom Chrome extensions in under 25 minutes using Claude Code 2. A practical workflow for creating AI-powered accessibility tools 3. How to use Claude Skills to accelerate repetitive development tasks 4. Techniques for making Claude Code more screen reader accessible 5. Why personal software is becoming increasingly viable with AI assistance 6. How multimodal AI is transforming accessibility for visually impaired users *Brought to you by:* Tines—Start building intelligent workflows today: https://tines.com/howiai *In this episode, we cover:* (00:00) Introduction to Joe and his background (02:34) Joe’s journey into computer science after vision loss (04:50) The concept of personal software for accessibility (06:09) Demo of image description Chrome extension for Slack (10:40) Demo of AI-powered spell checker extension (13:12) The efficiency of keyboard shortcuts for accessibility (14:37) Live building a link summarization extension (20:28) Using Claude Skills to extract common patterns (25:30) Reviewing and modifying the development plan (27:45) Removing cognitive friction for users through repeating patterns (31:40) How to get fluent with AI tools (34:55) Loading the extension into Chrome in developer mode (36:19) Testing and debugging the extension (40:44) Quick recap (42:12) Lightning round and final thoughts *Detailed workflow walkthroughs from this episode:* • How I AI: Building Custom AI Accessibility Tools for Slack with Joe McCormick & Claude Code: https://www.chatprd.ai/how-i-ai/custom-ai-accessibility-tools-for-slack-claude-code • Build a Slack Link Summarizer from Scratch using Claude Code: https://www.chatprd.ai/how-i-ai/workflows/slack-link-summarizer-using-claude-code • Create a Fast, Accessible AI Spell Checker for Any Website: https://www.chatprd.ai/how-i-ai/workflows/accessible-ai-spell-checker-for-any-website • Build a Custom AI Tool to Describe Images in Slack: https://www.chatprd.ai/how-i-ai/workflows/ai-tool-to-describe-images-in-slack *Tools referenced:* • Claude Code: https://claude.ai/code • VS Code: https://code.visualstudio.com/ • Gemini: https://gemini.google.com/ • ChatGPT: https://chat.openai.com/ • Meta Ray-Ban Smart Glasses: https://www.meta.com/smart-glasses/ *Other references:* • Chrome Extensions Documentation: https://developer.chrome.com/docs/extensions/ • ARIA (Accessible Rich Internet Applications): https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/Accessibility/ARIA • Windows Subsystem for Linux: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/wsl/ • Screen Readers: https://www.afb.org/blindness-and-low-vision/using-technology/assistive-technology-products/screen-readers • Claude Skills explained: How to create reusable AI workflows:https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/claude-skills-explained *Where to find Joe McCormick:* LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joemccormickjr/ Company: https://www.babylist.com/ *Where to find Claire Vo:* ChatPRD: https://www.chatprd.ai/ Website: https://clairevo.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/clairevo/ X: https://x.com/clairevo _Production and marketing by https://penname.co/._ _For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email jordan@penname.co._

JMJoe McCormickguestCVClaire Vohost

Feb 16, 2026·49m·Watch on YouTube ↗

📖 CHAPTERS

1. 1

   Losing central vision—and how AI changed what’s possible

   Joe McCormick shares how he lost most of his central vision to Leber’s hereditary optic neuropathy right before college, and how today’s AI tools dramatically reduce the friction of daily life and work. He frames AI as a gap-closer between sighted and visually impaired software engineers and as a major accelerant for accessibility.

2. 2

   Why micro “personal software” matters for accessibility

   Claire and Joe discuss the underappreciated benefit of AI: enabling people to build highly customized tools for themselves when the market wouldn’t fund niche accessibility products. Joe positions micro-apps as fast-to-build, high-ROI solutions that match an individual’s specific workflow.

3. 3

   Chrome extensions vs AI-native browsers: the “drill” vs “Swiss Army knife”

   Joe explains why he prefers targeted Chrome extensions over all-in-one AI browsers for certain tasks. Purpose-built extensions can be faster and more reliable for specific workflows, especially when triggered by quick keyboard shortcuts.

4. 4

   Demo: Slack image-description shortcut with follow-up Q&A

   Joe demonstrates a Slack-focused tool that describes images on demand, avoiding tedious zooming and manual parsing. The extension not only generates an image description but also supports conversational follow-ups for deeper context.

5. 5

   Extending the idea to Figma: interpreting UI designs faster

   Joe previews a similar concept for Figma: describing selected nodes with prompts tailored to engineering needs. The goal is to reduce the click-heavy process of extracting design details and make design reviews more efficient and accessible.

6. 6

   Demo: universal spell-check shortcut optimized for screen readers

   Joe shows an extension that spell-checks text in any web input field using a single shortcut. Unlike many tools (e.g., Grammarly), it’s designed to be screen-reader accessible and to preserve the writer’s wording while fixing only typos.

7. 7

   From manual workflows to automation: collapsing the “payback period”

   Joe and Claire unpack why these micro-tools are worth building now: they save minutes daily and take minutes to create. Joe describes iterating from clunky workflows (copying into ChatGPT) to embedded, one-keystroke actions that keep him in flow.

8. 8

   Building a Slack link summarizer: defining the problem and desired UX

   Joe proposes a new extension: summarize external links posted in Slack so he can decide quickly whether to read or ignore. The design goal is a sub-10-second workflow that replaces “save for later” accumulation with immediate triage.

9. 9

   Drafting the PRD by voice in VS Code (and why it works)

   Joe dictates a lightweight PRD using VS Code’s Copilot audio, then reviews and refines it. The PRD emphasizes privacy, speed, and accessibility, illustrating how AI helps engineers produce solid product documentation quickly.

10. 10

    Scaffolding with Claude Code + a Chrome-extension “Skill”

    Joe uses Claude Code in planning mode and invokes a custom Claude Skill derived from prior extensions to standardize patterns. He also explains accessibility-oriented workflow tweaks, like editing prompts in an editor and using audible cues for required input.

11. 11

    Loading the extension in Chrome Developer Mode and first test run

    Joe loads the unpacked extension locally via Chrome Developer Mode and refreshes Slack to activate it. The first attempt works functionally but renders the output as raw JSON, prompting a quick iteration cycle.

12. 12

    Debugging fast: screenshot-to-Claude, response formatting fix, successful demo

    Joe captures a screenshot of the broken UI and sends it back to Claude Code using a custom slash command (bridging Windows clipboard to WSL). He adjusts the OpenAI response handling to return structured JSON correctly and re-tests successfully, producing clean takeaways in an accessible modal.

13. 13

    Lightning round: MCPs, accessibility, and the promise of multimodal AI

    Joe shares how MCPs can reduce tool-switching and improve accessibility by pulling content into simpler formats like markdown. He also highlights a deeply personal multimodal win: using Gemini’s live features to “read” kids’ books page-by-page, transforming a painful limitation into a shared family experience.

14. 14

    Prompting and iteration philosophy + where to find Joe

    Joe explains his pragmatic strategy when AI gets stuck: reset context and restart with distilled learnings rather than endlessly “massaging” a broken thread. The episode closes with Joe sharing how to connect with him and noting Babylist hiring for AI-forward engineering roles.