In a world-first release, WEBTOON, one of the world's largest webcomics platforms, has partnered with Dot Inc. to adapt two of its most popular titles for fans with sight impairments.

Via a media press release, WEBTOON and Dot Inc. have partnered on two new comics to be available on Dot Inc.'s Dot Pad technology, which converts images to braille for people with sight impairments. Yumi's Cells by Donggeon Lee and Hooky by Míriam Bonastre Tur are the two comics to be released, with tactile versions set to be available globally on the Dot Pad.

These new comics represent some of the earliest implementations of this technology, with WEBTOON calling it the "world's first tactile digital comics." Following the collaboration, Dot Inc. community manager Misook Go, who is visually impaired herself, said, "The popularity of webcomics is at an all-time high and we thought it would be great if visually impaired individuals could enjoy them too. This is my first time exploring webcomics, listening to audio descriptions, and reading dialogue. It brought the imagined scenes vividly to life in my mind, and made the content even more engaging." She added that the cells in Yumi's Cells, which act as comedic devices for emotions in the story, "brought a new level of excitement" due to being able to feel their shapes. David S. Lee, Head of US WEBTOON, added his excitement at making comics more accessible to fans globally.

Monique E. Mariani, Braille instructor at the Braille Institute of America, echoed the pair, adding, "The new experience of engaging with webcomics through touch was very impressive. Even if you did not know Braille, the process of understanding through illustrations was fascinating." The Dot Pad was described as a "real-time tactile graphic and multi-line braille display for the visually impaired and people with blindness," displaying, "charts, graphs, images, and visual data with 320 refreshable braille cells. Users can run their fingers over the display and perceive the image with their fingertips." It's compatible with mobile devices and laptops via Bluetooth.

Yumi's Cells and Hooky mark some of the most popular webtoons of all time, with over 200 million and 100 million views, respectively. The former was listed on CBR's Korean Webtoons That've Gotten Adaptations Thanks to Their Incredible Popularity. The latter placed at #2 on 10 Webtoons To Read If You Like Studio Ghibli Movies. Hooky writer Míriam Bonastre Tur's new series, Marionetta, was also ranked runner-up in CBR's 15 Best Webtoon Comics Currently Available Online, Ranked.