iHEAR Medical, Atlazo pair on hearables product development
iHEAR Medical, a provider of direct-to-consumer and OTC hearing solutions, on Tuesday partnered with Atlazo to develop an advanced digital hardware platform to power iHEAR's next generation of hearing aids and hearables. The ultra-low power System on Chip platform will offer machine learning, analytics, connectivity and integrated power management capabilities enabling unprecedented energy efficiency, size reduction and cost savings.
The digital hardware platform is designed to power a new Hearing of Things standard offering real-time health tracking, voice commands and seamless connectivity to other smart devices, including mobile phones and home appliances.
"iHEAR's technology and IP will expand the hearing aid market and lead the emerging hearables market," John Luna, COO of San Leandro, Calif.-based iHEAR. "The collaboration with Atlazo and the HoT standard will accelerate the growth of hearables devices market expected to reach $23 billion by 2023."
The Hearing of Things operating system intends to shift personal computing and devices from reliance on traditional visual displays to the auditory domain, offering direct communications into the ear with complete privacy and reduced distraction. Consumers will be able to selectively listen to and send communications to their social media and text messages using hearing devices instead of their cell phone or computer, eliminating the need to be tethered to traditional computing devices for sending and receiving information.
"Consumers will not only benefit from improved hearing in challenging listening situations, but also from more natural interactions with smart devices compared to traditional methods of visual and touch-based user interfaces," Adnan Shennib, CEO of iHEAR Medical, said.
The new HoT standard will offer bi-directional wireless connectivity to everyday devices, from mobile phones to home appliances. Hearing devices powered by HoT OS will streamline the user experience for mobile phone functionality, including phone calling and control of home appliances, with a voice user interface. In addition, HoT devices will monitor and relay personal and health information into the ear privately and discreetly. iHEAR Medical and Atlazo have 19 pending and issued patents for the HoT standard, targeting smart hearing devices.
Atlazo will design and manufacture the highly integrated single-chip hardware. "We are pleased to join forces with iHEAR Medical to develop intelligent ultra-lower power SoC solutions for hearing aids and hearables, leveraging iHEAR's extensive domain experience in hearing health," Karim Arabi, CEO Atlazo, said. "We see our collaboration with iHEAR as a first step towards entering the broader market of consumer health and fitness to enable connected digital health."
The World Health Organization estimates 5% of the world's population, or approximately 360 million people, suffer from a disabling level of hearing loss. While 95% of those with hearing loss can be readily treated with a hearing aid, less than 10% of them use one. Hearing loss has become increasingly prevalent in the U.S., and is now the third most common health problem after heart disease and arthritis. With the average cost of hearing aids reaching $5,000 for a pair, only 14% of Americans with hearing loss currently own a hearing aid due to excessive cost and limited access to hearing care.
The digital hardware platform is designed to power a new Hearing of Things standard offering real-time health tracking, voice commands and seamless connectivity to other smart devices, including mobile phones and home appliances.
"iHEAR's technology and IP will expand the hearing aid market and lead the emerging hearables market," John Luna, COO of San Leandro, Calif.-based iHEAR. "The collaboration with Atlazo and the HoT standard will accelerate the growth of hearables devices market expected to reach $23 billion by 2023."
The Hearing of Things operating system intends to shift personal computing and devices from reliance on traditional visual displays to the auditory domain, offering direct communications into the ear with complete privacy and reduced distraction. Consumers will be able to selectively listen to and send communications to their social media and text messages using hearing devices instead of their cell phone or computer, eliminating the need to be tethered to traditional computing devices for sending and receiving information.
"Consumers will not only benefit from improved hearing in challenging listening situations, but also from more natural interactions with smart devices compared to traditional methods of visual and touch-based user interfaces," Adnan Shennib, CEO of iHEAR Medical, said.
The new HoT standard will offer bi-directional wireless connectivity to everyday devices, from mobile phones to home appliances. Hearing devices powered by HoT OS will streamline the user experience for mobile phone functionality, including phone calling and control of home appliances, with a voice user interface. In addition, HoT devices will monitor and relay personal and health information into the ear privately and discreetly. iHEAR Medical and Atlazo have 19 pending and issued patents for the HoT standard, targeting smart hearing devices.
Atlazo will design and manufacture the highly integrated single-chip hardware. "We are pleased to join forces with iHEAR Medical to develop intelligent ultra-lower power SoC solutions for hearing aids and hearables, leveraging iHEAR's extensive domain experience in hearing health," Karim Arabi, CEO Atlazo, said. "We see our collaboration with iHEAR as a first step towards entering the broader market of consumer health and fitness to enable connected digital health."
The World Health Organization estimates 5% of the world's population, or approximately 360 million people, suffer from a disabling level of hearing loss. While 95% of those with hearing loss can be readily treated with a hearing aid, less than 10% of them use one. Hearing loss has become increasingly prevalent in the U.S., and is now the third most common health problem after heart disease and arthritis. With the average cost of hearing aids reaching $5,000 for a pair, only 14% of Americans with hearing loss currently own a hearing aid due to excessive cost and limited access to hearing care.