
AudioFocus is developing innovative hearing aid technology designed to help individuals hear clearly in noisy environments. Unlike traditional hearing aids that amplify all sounds, AudioFocus uses a proprietary machine learning algorithm that analyzes echo statistics to amplify only nearby and important voices. This approach mimics natural hearing and allows users to follow conversations even in complex auditory settings. The company is building purpose-built hardware, including a unique microphone array and custom, ultra-low power ASIC processors, to support its software. They have received expert validation from professionals at Johns Hopkins University, University of the Pacific, and Stanford University School of Medicine, who have praised the technology's potential to address the common complaint of understanding speech in noise.

AudioFocus is developing innovative hearing aid technology designed to help individuals hear clearly in noisy environments. Unlike traditional hearing aids that amplify all sounds, AudioFocus uses a proprietary machine learning algorithm that analyzes echo statistics to amplify only nearby and important voices. This approach mimics natural hearing and allows users to follow conversations even in complex auditory settings. The company is building purpose-built hardware, including a unique microphone array and custom, ultra-low power ASIC processors, to support its software. They have received expert validation from professionals at Johns Hopkins University, University of the Pacific, and Stanford University School of Medicine, who have praised the technology's potential to address the common complaint of understanding speech in noise.
Product: Hearing aids optimized for understanding nearby speech in noisy places
Technology: Proprietary ML that analyzes echo statistics + custom microphone array and low-power AI processors
Founder: Shariq Mobin, PhD — Founder & CEO
Funding: Seed round announced 2019-08-22; investor: Y Combinator (amount undisclosed)
Location: Oakland, California
Assistive hearing / hearing aids focused on speech intelligibility in noisy environments
Medical devices (hearing aids)
Amount not disclosed on accessible records
“Backed by Y Combinator (YC S19)”