Alibaba Group recently introduced an AI-powered tool to create picture books for children with autism. This tool helps children express their feelings and understand the world through art.
Since its launch in June, over 50,000 people have used this feature. It creates audio-enhanced picture books from a simple prompt using Alibaba’s Qwen family of large language models (LLMs).
This digital tool aims to improve communication for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), which affects about 1 in 100 children globally. Children with ASD often struggle with social interactions and communication, making visual learning tools like picture books very helpful.
“By introducing this digital tool, we hope to encourage emotional expression for autistic children and create a more inclusive learning environment,” said Chu Hanlong, the project leader at Alibaba.
The tool uses Alibaba Cloud’s LLMs to turn a short plot summary into pictures, text, and audio narration. Parents and teachers can choose the story’s genre and main character, and adjust the content to suit different age groups.
Creating these digital picture books is complex. Alibaba Cloud engineers used a multi-agent framework called ModelScope Agent to coordinate several LLMs and AI tools with minimal human help.
“We tailored the LLMs to the needs of autistic children, using simple images and direct writing styles,” said Li Chenliang, an AI engineer at Alibaba Cloud. The team avoided using metaphors, puns, and idioms, and focused on clear, impactful drawings with one main character.
Alibaba also partnered with Shanghai Animation Studio and institutions specializing in autism education to better understand the needs of autistic children and their caregivers.
“By involving teachers and parents, we can combine these AI artbooks with other learning strategies to help autistic children,” said Wang Yonggu, a special education professor from Zhejiang University of Technology.
Parents and teachers in China can now use this digital tool on Alibaba’s Tongyi app.
Source: alizila
