To me, the findings of this study are not only fascinating, but also pose yet another challenge for the idea that human language evolved in a Darwinian fashion. The problem is this: how would the human brain have evolved an ability to recognize written words when writing has only existed for a few thousand years? According to an article on the website of the British Library, the earliest known writing systems emerged in Mesopotamia around 3400 BC and in Egypt by around 3200 BC. By 1300 BC, the ancient Chinese appear to have developed a full-fledged writing system. This means that written language (as opposed to spoken language) has only been in existence for about 5,000 years. It would seem reasonable to assume that prior to the invention of writing, our ancestors would have had no need for a specialized ability to recognize written language. Thus, it would seem logical to conclude that a "sensitivity to visual words" would have evolved after the advent of writing. And yet, it seems highly improbable that the human brain could have evolved such a specialized ability within a period of a few thousand years--an extremely short period of time on the (supposed) evolutionary timeline.
On the other hand, if language was something with which the Creator endowed human beings from the beginning, the existence of the VWFA is much less difficult to explain. In fact, its existence would demonstrate His foresight--long before the advent of written language, He made sure that they possessed an ability to learn how to read! To conclude, quoting from an article at mindmatters.ai on the Ohio State study: "it appears that humans are designed to communicate" (emphasis mine).
Image: Example of Sumerian cuneiform from Wikimedia Commons