Question 1

What is ARIA?

Accepted Answer

ARIA (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) is a set of attributes that define ways to make web content and applications more accessible to people with disabilities. ARIA tags help assistive technologies like screen readers, and now AI browsers like ChatGPT Atlas, understand element roles, states, and properties that aren't visually apparent. Key ARIA components include roles (navigation, button, dialog), states (expanded, selected, disabled), and properties (label, description, controls).

Question 2

Why use ARIA tags?

Accepted Answer

ARIA tags serve three critical purposes:

Accessibility Compliance: Required for WCAG 2.1 Level AA and European Accessibility Act (EAA) compliance by June 2025.

AI Discoverability: Enables AI browsers like ChatGPT Atlas to navigate and interact with websites effectively.

SEO Benefits: Correlates with 23% average organic traffic increase through improved user experience signals and semantic structure.

Legal Protection: Reduces lawsuit risk—4,000+ accessibility lawsuits filed in 2024, with 67% targeting companies under $25M revenue.

Question 3

How Do ARIA Tags Work?

Accepted Answer

ARIA tags work by adding semantic information to HTML elements through attributes like role, aria-label, and aria-expanded. These attributes communicate element purpose (role="button"), accessible names (aria-label="Submit form"), current states (aria-expanded="true"), and relationships between elements (aria-controls="menu"). Screen readers and AI browsers like Atlas read these attributes to understand page structure and enable navigation without relying on visual presentation.

Question 4

What is Website Accessibility?

Accepted Answer

Website accessibility ensures people with disabilities can perceive, understand, navigate, and interact with web content. This includes users who are blind or have low vision (screen readers, magnification), deaf or hard of hearing (captions, transcripts), or have motor disabilities (keyboard navigation, voice control). Accessibility also benefits AI tools, older users, people with temporary disabilities, and anyone in challenging environments (bright sunlight, noisy locations).

Question 5

What are ARIA Attributes?

Accepted Answer

ARIA attributes fall into three main categories:

Roles: Define element purpose (navigation, main, button, dialog, alert)

States: Indicate current condition (aria-expanded, aria-selected, aria-checked, aria-pressed)

Properties: Provide labels and relationships (aria-label, aria-labelledby, aria-describedby, aria-controls, aria-required)

These attributes enhance HTML semantics, enabling both users with disabilities and AI tools to navigate complex web applications effectively.

Question 6

How Do Screen Readers Use ARIA?

Accepted Answer

Screen readers use ARIA tags to understand element roles, states, and relationships that aren't visually apparent. When a screen reader encounters aria-expanded="true", it announces the element is expanded. aria-label provides accessible names for unlabeled elements. ChatGPT Atlas uses these same ARIA attributes to interpret page structure, making ARIA implementation valuable for both assistive technology users and AI navigation.

Question 7

When Should I Use ARIA Tags?

Accepted Answer

Use ARIA when semantic HTML alone is insufficient, which is primarily for interactive elements and dynamic content. Modern HTML5 provides many semantic elements (

Question 8

What's the Difference Between ARIA and HTML?

Accepted Answer

HTML provides structure and content. ARIA adds semantic meaning for assistive technologies. For example, HTML's

THE BLOG

How ChatGPT's Atlas Browser Uses ARIA Tags to Navigate Websites