Incredible innovation starts with a need, and entrepreneurship begins with an idea that makes a real-world difference. On today’s episode of The Small Business Show, Rebecca Rosenberg, founder and CEO of ReBokeh and recent 2025 EDDIE Awards winner, and Aarti Sahgal, founder and CEO of Synergies Work, discuss how they’re empowering entrepreneurs with disabilities to chase their dreams.
It’s estimated that roughly 25 million Americans live with impaired vision, and most individuals will experience normal, age-related vision deterioration after their mid-forties. However, 90% of those with vision impairments retain some usable, functional vision.
Rosenberg, who has albinism, experiences low vision but maintains functional sight. She became frustrated by the lack of assistive technology and accessibility tools that could help her make the most of it. So, while still in college, she decided to build the technology herself. Her company, ReBokeh, is the only one developing technology specifically for individuals with low vision, helping them leverage their functional sight to improve daily life.
"We have large visions and missions that everyone's welcome. But, if there is no intentionality behind that vision, it becomes difficult for people to access that knowledge." — Aarti Sahgal
Synergies Work is a business incubator and accelerator that supports entrepreneurs with disabilities. Sahgal founded the company after realizing there was a lack of access to education, capital and community designed for this unique group of entrepreneurs. In fact, less than 1% of venture capital funding goes toward disability innovation. The organization’s EDDIE Awards spotlights trailblazing entrepreneurs who are making a difference, with winners selected by an independent panel of business leaders from across the country.
EDDIE is an acronym for “entrepreneurs dedicated to diverse and inclusive excellence”. The awards feature five categories: technology, creativity, social impact, small business startups and small brick-and-mortar businesses.
Sahgal notes that innovation always begins with a need. As a mother of two sons, the youngest of whom has Down Syndrome, she witnessed firsthand how two distinct worlds coexist but rarely meld: one for individuals with disabilities and one for everyone else. She also saw that while the entrepreneurial space is filled with many accelerators and incubators, few open doors for individuals with disabilities. So, she decided to create one herself.
"People with disabilities are the most qualified people to be startup founders... If you have a disability, why shouldn't you start a company? You have all of the tools you need to be successful, built in!" — Rebecca Rosenberg
When launching ReBokeh, Rosenberg received invaluable financial support and guidance from Bucknell University and Johns Hopkins University, both of which played critical roles in helping her get started. She agrees with Sahgal that securing funding remains one of the most significant challenges. In her experience, venture capitalists—and the general public—often underestimate how many people live with disabilities. Many investors fail to recognize the size of the market or the pressing need for innovation. Her biggest challenge is convincing them that the problem and the opportunity exist.
Rosenberg encourages aspiring entrepreneurs with disabilities to go for it. She points out that individuals with disabilities are often the most qualified because they regularly overcome barriers and challenges that others never encounter. They’re resilient, risk-tolerant and adept at solving complex problems early in life.
Sahgal adds that success in entrepreneurship requires grit, determination and a brilliant idea. Individuals with disabilities are natural innovators because they’re constantly finding creative ways to navigate a world not built for them.
Both women agree that innovation knows no boundaries and that when determination meets purpose, barriers become opportunities.
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