Research question. What typographic system can help an autistic adult traveller find the changed gate, distinguish it from the previous gate and choose a next step, while giving Grounded a recognisable adult identity?
Typography is both a brand decision and part of the wayfinding system. In an airport, the person may be looking between a phone, overhead signs, other travellers and announcements. The screen therefore needs an obvious reading order, recognisable numerals and text that remains usable when someone enlarges it or listens through accessibility features. Maia’s Critical Report gives the project an audience and a reason to investigate these needs; its ten self-declared autistic respondents do not establish a preferred typeface or prove that a design works for all autistic travellers. The design decisions below are research-informed hypotheses to test.
For this app, the most important typographic task is not to make every line equally prominent. A traveller needs to identify the current destination first, retain the previous gate as context, then understand the available action. For example:
This hierarchy responds to the product’s audience and job: it helps someone keep control of the next decision without assuming how they feel or what kind of help they want. It also creates a useful comparison test. If A04, B12 and the action are all bold, all caps or equally colourful, type is no longer helping the traveller decide what to read first.
The AASPIRE web-accessibility guidelines were developed with autistic end-user involvement and evaluated through usability work. They include plain sans-serif text, user-controlled font size, consistent navigation and read-aloud options. These are useful starting points, not rules that every autistic person prefers the same typeface. A 2025 study of adults with autism, ADHD and developmental disabilities reported that Arial was the most preferred of the tested font styles for 83.8% of its autism group, while 64.7% ranked 16-point as their preferred size. These are stated preferences within that study, not proof of better comprehension or a universal autistic preference. They make a plain sans-serif and 16-point body text useful comparison points for Grounded, alongside the iOS system baseline. AASPIRE guidelines · Adults with neurodevelopmental disorders and information presentation
Autism is not a single reading profile. Some autistic people also have dyslexia, ADHD, low vision, motor or learning disabilities, or other health conditions; others do not. A systematic review and meta-analysis of children and adults with autism included 340 studies and around 590,000 participants. Its pooled point-prevalence estimates included ADHD at 37% and anxiety disorders at 35%, but estimates varied by age and by whether the studies used clinical samples or population/registry data. These figures are context, not predictions about any individual traveller. They support designing for adjustable access needs without making a diagnosis or assuming a particular support need. Lai et al., systematic review and meta-analysis
This is an intersection-aware approach: an adult traveller with autism may also benefit from larger text, stronger contrast, more line spacing, reduced reading density, screen-reader support or an option to hear the update. It does not mean Grounded is being designed specifically for every one of those disabilities. It means a basic travel task should not become inaccessible because the designer treated autistic people as a uniform group or designed the interface around only one sensory or reading style.
There is also no strong basis here for declaring one typeface “autism-friendly.” AASPIRE provides guidance grounded in autistic participation, but the best option still needs to be checked with the intended users and task. Research on specialist dyslexia typefaces also cautions against treating a font label as an accessibility solution. A 2026 meta-analysis focused on children with dyslexia found no consistent or reliable effect of dyslexia-friendly typefaces on reading speed or accuracy. This is evidence about children with dyslexia, not autistic adults; it is useful here as a reminder that specialised-looking fonts still need task-specific testing. The practical priority is readable letterforms, adequate size, spacing control, text clarity and user choice. PubMed: Does font improve reading in dyslexic children?
The earlier brand research already compared airport information products with wellbeing and companion-led apps. I am using those as different types of reference: