Hello! Thanks for visiting! Let me introduce myself.

I’m a Bay Area native (born and raised in Fremont) and veteran freelance tech journalist based in San Francisco’s blissfully-foggy Richmond district. For the last decade, I’ve managed a newsroom staffed by precisely one person—me—covering all things accessibility and assistive technologies. My byline has appeared in several leading publications, including TechCrunch, The Verge, MacStories, iMore, and TidBITS, amongst other places over the years.

My first-ever bylined piece from 2013 is still available to read today.

I’ve also been on the other end of the table, having been interviewed myself numerous times about my career and related topics. Likewise, I’ve contributed to various stories for outlets like the New York Times and MIT Technology Review, and have been a regular participant in the annual Six Colors’ Apple Report Card.

Nowadays, the majority of my coverage is split between my column at Forbes and my owned-and-operated blog called Curb Cuts, launched in 2024. I’ve been a member of Forbes’ invite-only contributor network since April 2020, where I write regularly about disability matters affecting the technology industry as part of the outlet’s emphasis on bolstering its DEI coverage. In addition to its presence online, my byline has been featured in print magazines on multiple occasions.

What exactly is my beat? In essence, it shines a spotlight on how technology—hardware and software—impacts the lives of disabled people. In a Journalism 101 sense, my coverage strives to hold truth to power by holding accountable those who create things that light up and make noise to keep making their product(s) accessible to everyone. In a social justice context, disability coverage in mainstream media is woefully inadequate despite the societal push for inclusiveness. My work is but one small, humble attempt at moving the needle.

Accessibility is not a beat conducive to breaking news and scoops, but I’ve had a few in my time. This one about AirPods from 2018 remains the biggest by far.

I write all my stories in Markdown. My favorite text editor is MarkEdit on macOS.

What makes my reporting distinctive from my comrades in the tech press is the perspective I bring to my beat. I’m a lifelong disabled person who has multiple conditions; this lived experience enables me to imbue my work with firsthand knowledge and expertise that transcends sheer enthusiasm for technology. The fact I’m a member of the marginalized and underrepresented group that is the disability community gives my work instant credibility, allowing me to write with the utmost authority. I’m also bilingual; I’m fluent in American Sign Language. It’s my first language, as both my parents were fully deaf. That makes me a CODA.

This one time—not at band camp—I conducted an interview entirely in ASL.

In my career, I've covered every big tech company in existence, including the five biggest in Amazon, Apple, Google, Meta, and Microsoft. I’ve written about everything from the newest iPhones and MacBooks to autonomous vehicles and scooters to CPAP machines and hearing aids and many more topics. If there’s one lesson to take from my wide-ranging anthology of articles, it’s that accessibility and technology contain multitudes of relevance that are worthy of exploration.

I've interviewed many high-ranking executives over the years, including Apple CEO Tim Cook in 2018 and Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger in 2023. I've also spoken with people working on accessibility at Activision Blizzard, Adobe, Airbnb, Capital One, Comcast, CVS, DoorDash, Ford, GitHub, Indeed, Intel, Lyft, Netflix, OpenAI, PBS Kids, Salesforce, Samsung, Slack, Sony, TD Bank, Webex, Xbox, and Zappos, as well as the founders and CEOs of countless startups. I’ve covered the accessibility efforts of Amtrak, Consumer Reports, eBay, Electronic Arts, LG, and Walmart. I’ve also covered institutions like Harvard University, the FCC, NYU, the Smithsonian American Art Museum, and the Department of Veterans Affairs. A considerable number of my interviews over the years have featured people who have their own Wikipedia page. They include Tony Coelho, the former congressman credited with pioneering the Americans with Disabilities Act, Pennsylvania state treasurer Stacy Garrity, Gallaudet University president Roberta Cordano, multiple Paralympic athletes and social media influencers, astronaut Kellie Gerardi, tech YouTuber iJustine, former NFL player Tim Wright, Olympic gold medalist Greg Louganis, Disney Legend Andreas Deja, and celebrities in Chris Evans, Lou Ferrigno, Bachelor alums Sarah Trott and Arie Luyendyk Jr, and Arthur creator Marc Brown. I also have extensive experience doing reporting which connect the dots bridging disability, tech, and Hollywood—those are fun stories.

Besides my writing, I've been on podcasts, public radio, and television over time to discuss my career in the news racket, accessibility, and other subjects. I was co-host of Accessible, a now-defunct fortnightly podcast on accessibility in tech, alongside my friend Timothy Buck. In 2015, I went on NPR’s Science Friday. I was interviewed for Story & Pixel's 2017 documentary, App: The Human Story, appearing in B-roll footage. The film examines the sociological effects of iPhone apps and their development since Apple first opened the App Store in 2008.

Besides my infrequent cameos on podcasts, radio, and television, I’ve also done my fair share of public speaking in life. I recently spoke virtually to a journalism class at Rutgers University about my career’s origin story, how I get story ideas, being a marginalized person in the media, and more. I also took questions from students. I’ve also served as the moderator of panels at accessibility-centric events such as the 2023 edition of the all-virtual Sight Tech Global Conference.

My background is in special education and early childhood development. Prior to pivoting to journalism, I worked nearly a decade with preschoolers (ages 3-5) with moderate-to-severe disabilities. Most of that time was spent working children on the autism spectrum; I had extensive training in teaching methodologies specifically designed for autistic children. They include ABA, PECS, and TEACCH. I also worked with middle schoolers in a similar role. I completed Early Childhood Studies coursework, spanning the growth and development of children birth through early elementary school (ages 0-8), at my then-local community college.

If you have a story idea or just wanna say hello, I’d love to hear from you! You can email me at contact@stevensblog.co. If you have a pitch, please read this first.