Have you ever been to a party where you just can’t quite hear the person speaking to you across the table? You can only ask them to repeat themselves so many times, right?
EssilorLuxottica, a France-based tech and the parent of Ray Ban, thinks it has found a solution to this: glasses that help you hear.
The glasses have little speakers by the ears that elevate the sound coming from whichever direction the listener looks. Ideally, when looking across the table, the device can sense who you are speaking to and make it easier to stay connected in crowded spaces.
Called the OTC Nuance Audio Glasses, the company received FDA approval on Feb. 3. In a press release, the company said the product will be available for purchase in the US in Q1.
The problem. About one in eight (30 million) people in the US over 12 years old have hearing loss in both ears, according to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders.
The institute also reports depression is more common among patients with hearing loss (18%) compared with the general population (8%). And it has found that 28% of people over age 52 with moderate to severe hearing loss have trouble with daily functions, like interacting with people and managing finances.
Still, only 16% of adults ages 20–69 and 30% of adults 70 and above with hearing loss use hearing aids, according to the institute’s research.
For example, A 2006 study by researchers from the University of Sydney showed that weak vision is correlated to weak hearing. Davide D’Alena, global head of marketing, super audio for EssilorLuxottica, told Healthcare Brew that the company began working on the device after acknowledging a connection between vision and hearing.
As a glasses company, D’Alena said EssilorLuxottica was in a good position to work more in hearing support.
“Both [senses] are very critical on how you experience the world around you, but they are still addressed separately,” D’Alena said, noting how patients go to different doctors and stores for vision and hearing support.
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After learning more about the extent of hearing loss around the world and how infrequently people sought out hearing support, D’Alena said that the company thought it could create a solution.
“There is still a strong stigma surrounding the traditional hearing aids,” he said, adding that they’re often associated with aging, according to a 2013 study out of the University of Nottingham in the UK. There are also issues with comfort and affordability, he said, as aids can go for $2,000 to $7,000 and generally aren’t covered by Medicare.
The glasses. To create the audio glasses, EssilorLuxottica acquired Tel Aviv-based Nuance in 2023. The startup’s technology added directional voice detection to the glasses so the hearing aid focuses on the voice of a speaker when the listener is looking at them.
With a slogan of “See more. Be more,” the company’s goal is to combine tech that improves vision—and now hearing—with style to uplift users’ self-confidence, according to D’Alena.
The glasses can be prescription but don’t have to be, and were designed with both the goals of working well and looking “nice,” D’Alena said.
“Now, the priority is really to launch this one on the market,” he said. “We are really pushing on education and training—both consumer education, but also our partners’ education—because this is a new category. You need to explain the product. You need to train the install staff.”
EssilorLuxottica was founded in 2018 following a merger of Essilor and Luxottica, two glasses companies founded in the 1970s and 1960s, respectively. The company has over 190,000 employees and a market cap just shy of $130 billion. It owns optical retailers including LensCrafters, Sunglass Hut, and Target Optical.