ANI was started by Jim Sinclair, Kathy Grant and Donna Williams in 1992.[1] The advocacy group is organized by autistic people for autistic people.[2] ANI started out as a pen pal group, but when they first met in person, "they felt a sense of belonging, of being understood, of having the same concepts and sharing a language, of being normal."[3] Sinclair and the other founders created an online community where participants could discuss issues in the online forum.[4] ANI began publishing a newsletter, called "Our Voice," which was distributed through the ANI website.[5]