Announcements

Philips is set to begin shipping its 2026 television models with native Auracast broadcast audio support built in. Several other major television manufacturers have made similar moves in recent years. Native Auracast support in televisions is relevant to hearing accessibility because it removes the need for a separate transmitter to stream audio directly to compatible hearing aids, cochlear…

Envoy Medical announced the first clinical data presentations from its pivotal trial of the Acclaim fully implanted cochlear implant. Interim data from an initial cohort showed improvements in speech recognition scores and quality-of-life measures. Among the four participants who reported tinnitus before surgery, tinnitus scores also decreased. The Acclaim captures sound through a sensor implanted…

InnoCaption recently launched InnoCaption Video, a new app that provides live captions during video calls for people with hearing loss. The app is designed for platforms and situations where existing captioning tools are insufficient. Separately, InnoCaption received FCC certification for IP Relay service in December 2024, expanding its coverage beyond captioned telephone calls. IP Relay allows…

Rayovac has redesigned its hearing aid battery packaging to address accessibility concerns raised by older adults and people with limited hand strength or dexterity, while maintaining compliance with Reese's Law child-resistant requirements. The updated packaging for the Extra and ProLine ranges features a new opening method and clearer visual instructions. According to Rayovac, independent…

Widex introduced the Allure AI RIC with Clarity Boost, a new hearing aid that adds an AI co-processor to the existing Allure platform. The AI processing is designed to activate only on demand through a separate program called Clarity Boost, intended for challenging listening situations. According to Widex, this approach should preserve natural, low-delay sound the brand is known for during…

A research team is recruiting adults age 50 and older who have hearing loss and use voice calls with captions to take part in a study on captioned telephone services. The research is funded by the Federal Communications Commission and conducted by MITRE, Rochester Institute of Technology, and Gallaudet University. Participants will complete four brief captioned phone conversations with a research…

The Speech Accessibility Project is recruiting adults with any degree of hearing loss to participate in a research study aimed at improving voice recognition technology for people who are deaf or hard of hearing. The project is supported by Amazon, Apple, Google, Meta, and Microsoft. Participants will record speech samples and answer questions online at their own pace, using a personal computer or…

Apple announced a set of new and updated accessibility features, which are expected to arrive later this year across Apple devices. One such feature is automatic subtitles feature for video. According to Apple, it will automatically display transcriptions of spoken audio when captions or subtitles are not already present, covering personal videos, clips shared by others, and streamed content.…

Apple has introduced Name Recognition, an accessibility feature available in iOS 26 that allows iPhone to listen for a user's name and send a notification when it hears it. The feature is designed to help people who are deaf or hard of hearing stay aware when someone is trying to get their attention. Users set up the feature by going to Settings > Accessibility > Sound & Name Recognition…

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is accepting applications for participation in working groups under CSRIC X, the 10th term of its Communications Security, Reliability, and Interoperability Council. One of the working group topics is expanding multimedia availability in Next Generation 911 (NG911) systems and increasing 911 accessibility. The FCC is seeking applicants from a range of…