Generative AI for university students with disabilities: challenges and opportunities

Background The rapid integration of generative artificial intelligence (AI) in higher education is reshaping teaching, learning and assessment practices worldwide. While these technologies hold promise for inclusive education, their implications for students with disabilities remain unknown, especially in resource-limited settings such as those in sub-Saharan Africa. Understanding how students with disabilities experience generative AI is critical for advancing equitable digital transformation in universities.Purpose This study aimed to explore the challenges and opportunities experienced by Tanzanian university students with disabilities when using generative AI tools. It focused on how these technologies influenced learning, accessibility and participation in higher education.Method A qualitative research design was employed, with data collected through semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions from 18 students with visual, hearing and physical impairments from one public and one private university in Tanzania. Data were analysed using thematic analysis to generate themes that captured students’ lived experiences with generative AI tools.Findings Key challenges included limited institutional awareness of and guidance on the use of these tools, insufficient AI accessibility and customisation features, privacy concerns and financial barriers related to the cost of subscriptions, assistive technologies and internet access. Concurrently, generative AI offered important opportunities by enabling personalised and inclusive learning, enhancing autonomy and confidence, providing timely feedback that supported engagement and motivation and strengthening digital competence and career readiness.Conclusion The findings suggest that while generative AI has the potential to promote inclusion for students with disabilities, its benefits are unevenly realised. Clear institutional policies, accessible infrastructure and inclusive pedagogical integration are essential to ensure that generative AI contributes to equitable participation, rather than reinforcing existing inequalities in higher education.