OTP26 Day 1 Session 2: Amos Miller — Beyond the Road: Building Spatial Intelligence for Human Spaces

Speaker: Amos Miller — Beyond the Road: Building Spatial Intelligence for Human Spaces Subtitle: Why pedestrian data is the foundation of independent mobility Description: In this keynote, Amos Miller grounds the conversation in lived experience, showing how gaps in pedestrian infrastructure and data constrain independence for blind travelers. He challenges assumptions about mobility access and highlights how unreliable or missing pedestrian data directly impacts freedom of movement. He introduces “spatial intelligence for human spaces,” calling for navigation systems that move beyond static maps to dynamic, continuously updated representations of the pedestrian environment. The talk connects emerging technologies in AI and robotics to a foundational requirement: a high-quality, maintained pedestrian data layer. Connection to theme Freedom to reach is independence. Connecting people and places requires systems that represent the world as people actually experience it. Chapters 00:00 Lived experience framing 02:30 Limits of current systems 10:51 Data gaps and consequences 12:53 Spatial intelligence concept 18:00 Technology + data dependency 23:44 What must change 25:22 Q&A What is this: The Taskar Center’s OpenThePaths convening is an annual two-day gathering focused on nondrivers’ freedom to move through the world, and on how shared stewardship of pedestrian and transit data enables communities and helps practitioners realize better more accessible built environments. learn more: https://tcat.cs.washington.edu Tags blind mobility, accessibility tech, pedestrian infrastructure, AI navigation, inclusive design, Glidance, urban mobility, OpenThePaths