AI Auto Alt Text Generator WordPress Plugin

AI Auto Alt Text Generator started from a very practical accessibility problem: WordPress makes it easy to upload images, but it does not make it easy to keep alt text useful at scale. The paid tools in this space can be helpful, but they also add another subscription layer for something many small sites simply need to tidy up properly.

Where I fit

This was my own open-source product: I scoped it, designed the WordPress admin flow, built the OpenAI integration, wrote the release copy, published it on WordPress.org and maintain the GitHub repository. The useful part of the project is not just the API call; it is the set of WordPress decisions around when to generate, what to overwrite, what to leave alone, and how much control to give the site owner.

The brief

The plugin needed to give site owners a low-cost way to improve image accessibility without sending their media through a separate SaaS platform. It had to feel native to WordPress, work for single uploads and existing media libraries, and stay honest about the limits of AI-generated accessibility copy: helpful first drafts, not a replacement for judgement.

What I built

• Automatic alt text generation on image upload, storing the result in WordPress’ native attachment alt field.
• A one-click Media Library action that generates alt text and titles without a page refresh.
• A bulk updater that scans existing images, regenerates missing or filename-style alt text, and leaves genuine descriptions alone.
• Settings for model choice, image size, visual detail, output language, site context, filename context, timeouts, batching and delay.
• Developer hooks, optional outgoing webhooks with signing, and a WordPress Abilities API integration for automation-friendly use cases.

Build notes

• The hard part was treating the AI call as one part of a WordPress workflow rather than the whole product.
• Bulk generation needed guardrails: batch size, delays, timeout handling, better error messages and logic that avoids overwriting good human-written alt text.
• The prompt was tightened around accessibility: clear descriptions, meaningful in-image text, no “image of” prefix, and concise output rather than keyword stuffing.
• Because cost matters, the plugin exposes image detail and model choices so a site owner can trade quality, speed and API spend deliberately.

What the tool needed to make easier

The goal was to reduce the boring, easy-to-avoid accessibility debt that builds up in real WordPress sites. A good plugin here should not make editors learn a new system. It should meet them in the Media Library, handle the repetitive first pass, and make the final text easier to review.