The Romanian deep-tech startup .lumen wins the accessibility award at CES 2026

The company supported by EIT wins the CTA Foundation Pitch award for its AI glasses, which bring autonomous driving technology to blind people.

Las Vegas, January 15, 2026 – The Romanian deep-tech startup .lumen has been named the winner of the prestigious CTA Foundation Pitch for Accessibility competition at CES 2026. This victory, accompanied by a $10,000 prize, highlights the company's progress in assistive technology: a device that uses artificial intelligence to replicate the main functions of a guide dog, eliminating logistical challenges.

In short

.lumen won the CTA Foundation Pitch for Accessibility competition at CES 2026, receiving a $10,000 prize.

The startup's "glasses for the blind" use Pedestrian Autonomous Driving AI (PAD) to guide users without GPS or internet.

Supported by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), the company is scaling its solution to help 40 million blind people worldwide.

The award-winning technology, known as .lumen Glasses for the Blind, fundamentally reimagines mobility for visually impaired individuals. Instead of relying on GPS – which can be inaccurate for precise sidewalk navigation – or requiring an internet connection, the system uses proprietary Pedestrian Autonomous Driving technology (PAD AI).

The device operates similarly to an autonomous car but is adapted to human scale. It continuously scans the environment using sensors to understand the 3D space, identifying obstacles and safe paths in real-time. Navigation commands are then conveyed to the user through a haptic interface that "pulls" the head gently in the correct direction, allowing for intuitive movement without using hands.

Founder and CEO Cornel Amariei, who was born into a family where he was the only member without disabilities, described the victory as a moment when "the circle closed." "Years later, the technology we are building is recognized here, on the CES stage, as the most innovative in its field," he said.

The rapid rise of the company has been strongly supported by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT). Through programs like EIT Health's "Headstart" and "Catapult," and later through the EIT Urban Mobility accelerator, .lumen received critical early funding and mentorship. This supportive ecosystem has helped the company not only refine its medical device but also secure an €11 million grant at the end of 2025 to adapt its spatial AI for use in humanoid delivery robots, demonstrating the versatility of European deep-tech innovation.

https://2eu.brussels/ro/stiri/startup-ul-romanesc-de-deep-tech-lumen-castiga-premiul-pentru-accesibilitate-la-ces-2026