New six-report research finds AI-generated content is now the top-cited factor in ecommerce accessibility lawsuits, even as brands keep scaling how much content they create with AI.
NEW YORK, July 28, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — accessiBe has released a comprehensive six-report research series examining how generative AI is reshaping accessibility risk across US ecommerce. The research, conducted in partnership with Qualtrics, non-profit leaders, and disability community organizations, surveyed 304 US ecommerce and retail decision-makers alongside members of the disability community, and documents a widening gap between how quickly brands are deploying AI-generated content and how well they govern it.
The central finding: generative AI is now core infrastructure in ecommerce, with 78% of brands generating at least a quarter of their customer-facing content with AI. But the oversight systems needed to keep that content accessible have not scaled at the same pace. Among brands that have faced accessibility legal action, 65.4% point to AI-generated content as the top-cited factor.
“AI is now how ecommerce brands produce content at scale, and that’s not going to change.
What’s missing is the assumption check: most teams treat AI output as accessible by default, when accessibility isn’t a given, it’s a step that still has to happen. In a sector this heavily litigated, that gap is what’s costing brands,” said Judy Quintana, SVP of Marketing, accessiBe.
The series moves from establishing where AI is deployed across the storefront through to what breaks, where legal risk concentrates, and what an effective accessibility program looks like in practice. Individual reports include a professional accessibility audit of two AI-built storefronts and a governance playbook for mid-market and enterprise organizations. The six reports are:
- The AI usage map for ecommerce
- Where gen AI content breaks
- Litigation hot zones
- The gen AI ownership gap
- Two AI-built storefronts: an accessibility audit
- How AI changed accessibility
The research arrives as accessibility becomes a board-level concern: 62.3% of ecommerce leaders now name AI accessibility their top strategic priority over the next 12 months, alongside continued investment in AI features and agentic commerce.
The full six-report series, AI, eCommerce & the Accessibility Gap, is available at: accessibe.com/accessibility-platform/reports/gen-ai-ecommerce.
Part of a broader platform
This gap isn’t a reason to slow down AI-generated content — it’s a reason to build oversight into the same workflow already producing it. accessiBe’s end-to-end platform is built for that: accessWidget applies AI-driven adjustments to keep pages usable in real time, accessFlow surfaces code-level accessibility issues for developer teams inside their existing workflows, and accessServices provides expert audits, manual testing, and litigation support for what automation alone can’t catch. Together, they help ecommerce brands keep publishing at AI speed while building the ongoing oversight that supports their accessibility and compliance efforts.
About accessiBe
accessiBe is an end-to-end accessibility platform unifying AI automation, developer tools, and expert services to help organizations create inclusive digital experiences at scale. Guided by its mission to level the digital playing field for everyone, the company is trusted by over 85,000 websites worldwide. Developed in collaboration with the disability community and organizations including United Cerebral Palsy, the Special Olympics USA Games, and the Parkinson’s Foundation, accessiBe continues to advance accessibility through technology, accountability, and innovation. To learn more, visit www.accessibe.com.
Media Contact:
Olga Shmuklyer
Fusion Public Relations
accessibe@fusionpr.com
+1(917)715-032
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SOURCE accessiBe
