First there was Whisper started by a former Demant VP. Whisper is no more, but now there is Augmented Hearing started by 3 former Demant employees. They also emphasize AI and seem to be aiming at a broader market than just hearing aids. I found several links with some info, but nothing great. They’re seeking capital right now so who knows if anything will come of this.
For the record, Whisper (whisper.ai) made some key hires from Demant but wasn’t founded by them. And according to their home page they are still in business, having shifted their immediate focus away from hearing aids. I have received a full refund of everything I paid for my Whisper aids.
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Sorry for being imprecise. This is at least the second company to involve former Demant employees. Although Whisper still exists, Whisper hearing aids are no longer sold/supported. Both companies put a fair emphasis on AI.
Definitely we should keep an eye on these guys, they are thinking way ahead on AI, we’ll see some kind of technological innovations from them for sure.
Maybe this new startup sees how lucrative it can be to create a startup that can deliver a good proof of concept in order to be bought out by a big tech company and get rich before having to rely on business acumens that they may not have in order to navigate the tricky HA business. I guess what I’m trying to say is that I wouldn’t hold my breath hoping that another new startup similar to Whisper will bring something tangibly positive for HA users like us. I will assume for now that they’re probably using the HA market as a stepping stone for a new and sophisticated get-rich-quick technology buy-out scheme.
Ok, the hearing aid market is difficult to break into and startups often fail (or get bought out). So the chances are that you’re right. But, seriously. Are you totally happy with the choices available to you in the hearing aid market right now? Well, I’m not.
So when some smart people decide to break out on their own and attempt to create something new I applaud them. If enough groups of smart people do the same, at least one of their collective efforts is going to bear fruit. If they do get bought out, it’s not going to be for some doodlings on a white-board. They’ll have produced something worth being bought out for. Are they motivated by money? Same as the companies they’ve left probably. Good on 'em I say.
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This is good old American capitalism at work. In a few short years Whisper went from nothing to producing a product that, IMO, rivaled the best available product from the established manufacturers. Maybe this new startup can do it too.
@d_Wooluf , @ziploc : both of you have very good points. I guess I should be glad because competition is good to have, even if it may not result in a direct win to the consumers in the HA industry like us in the end if they tangent out to a related but different industry (which was why I was cynical). At least it shakes up the trees a bit and spur the innovation race to hasten. So I agree, good for them, like you said! But good for us? Remains to be seen. At least it can’t be worse for us anyway.
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Are these hearing aids? That term is never used on their website. I’m not sure what they are or what the company is trying to accomplish. They seem to be a combination of multi-tasking ear buds and something that does acoustic clarifying in challenging situations. Unclear if they’re marketing them to the general population or to the hearing impaired.
I found an article with one of the founders of this start up. He refers to their product as a “hearing enhancer”. He makes it clear that this is something “very different from a hearing aid.” He goes on to say that in this case the user is buying the product but not any services (audiologist) to go with it. If anything, I think they’re looking to compete in the OTC arena. Sony markets its CRE-C10 as an instrument for people who “need a boost” in challenging situations but not as something to be worn all day. In contrast, they market their E10 as an OTC hearing aid.
Who among the founding team has ties to Demant?
Here’s an article that names the three cofounders of Augmented Hearing from Demant: Augmented Hearing: Improving hearing for everyone | by APX | APX Voices | Medium
I don’t know that there are any products at this point. It’s a startup. I’d agree that this is unlikely to turn into a competitor to the Big Five Hearing aid companies, but what they develop might get licensed to them or they may be bought out (or they may just disappear)
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Anyway you look at it new development can influence the hearing aid industry, maybe in a very good way. The consumer should benefit.
An optimistic outlook.
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