Hearing health is making noise.
Heard That
By 2050, 2.5B people could have hearing loss, with 700M requiring rehabilitation.
Not just the elderly, ~20% of adults experience tinnitus, and up to 20% of younger generations show measurable loss.
High stakes, mild impairment doubles dementia risk, with severe cases 5x’ing it. Globally, unaddressed cases cost an estimated $1T annually.
Turn it Down
As loud listening habits compound risk, hearing health is entering wellness — offering new tools for protection and performance.
Cancel culture. Preserving fun, high-fidelity plugs from EarPeace and Eargasm target festival-goers, while Loop offers social and quiet modes. Noise-canceling, earbuds from Anker, and Ozlo filter everything from snoring to city noise, while Google’s new Pixel Buds use AI-soundproofing.
Piece of mind. In high-risk older adults, hearing aids can cut cognitive decline by ~50%, while regular use is linked to lower dementia and mortality. Expanding access, the FDA’s 2022 approval of OTC hearing aids upped adoption, with Apple adding tests and amplification for AirPods — while Audien tapped Spanx’s CEO to destigmatize the category and scale into Target.
Creating “sound bubbles,” Hearvana raised $6M to bring superhuman listening tech to wearables, smart glasses, and AI assistants. Clarifying conversation, Fortell’s $7K aids use spatial AI, while Overtone blends function with fashion.
Hearables
As hearing health scales, diagnostics and optimization are the next frontier.
Tuning in, Johns Hopkins-born app Mimi tracks hearing sensitivity as a longitudinal biomarker, while Apple and Synseer embed heart rate and hearing monitoring into earbuds.
Elsewhere, EEG headphone tech from NextSense and Neurable—and colored noise from UMG’s Sollos— make it an access point for therapy.
Looking ahead: For prevention or performance, in-ear tech could become a tool for the healthy and young — positioning hearing health as a new pillar of preventative care and longevity.
