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iHEAR Medical Announces Partnership with Atlazo to Develop Next Generation Hearing Aids and HearablesSAN LEANDRO, Calif., March 20, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- iHEAR Medical, the leader in direct-to-consumer and OTC hearing solutions, announced today that it has partnered with Atlazo Inc. to develop an advanced digital hardware platform to power iHEAR's next generation of hearing aids and hearables. The ultra-low power System on Chip (SoC) platform will offer machine learning, analytics, connectivity and integrated power management capabilities enabling unprecedented energy efficiency, size reduction, and cost savings. The digital hardware platform is designed to power a new Hearing of Things™ (HoT™) standard offering real-time health tracking, voice commands, and seamless connectivity to other smart devices, including mobile phones and home appliances.
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates 5% of the world's population, or approximately 360 million people, suffer from a disabling level of hearing loss. While 95% of those with hearing loss can be readily treated with a hearing aid, less than 10% of them use one. Hearing loss has become increasingly prevalent in the US, and is now the third most common health problem after heart disease and arthritis. With the average cost of hearing aids reaching $5,000 for a pair, only 14% of Americans with hearing loss currently own a hearing aid due to excessive cost and limited access to hearing care. "iHEAR's technology and IP will expand the hearing aid market and lead the emerging hearables market," stated John Luna, Chief Operating Officer of iHEAR and a veteran of the hearing industry. "The collaboration with Atlazo and the HoT™ standard will accelerate the growth of hearables devices market expected to reach $23B by 2023." Atlazo Inc. will design and manufacture the highly integrated single-chip hardware. "We are pleased to join forces with iHEAR Medical to develop intelligent ultra-lower power SoC solutions for hearing aids and hearables, leveraging iHEAR's extensive domain experience in hearing health," stated Karim Arabi, Founder and CEO of Atlazo. "We see our collaboration with iHEAR as a first step towards entering the broader market of consumer health and fitness to enable connected digital health." Atlazo's fully integrated platform includes mixed-signal SoC and software algorithms for powering the wearable healthcare IoT market. Atlazo innovations are protected by 12 pending patents, and include integrated power management, ultra-low power computing, integrated low-power connectivity, on-device analytics, and machine learning. For more information on Atlazo, visit: www.atlazo.com The Hearing of Things™ operating system intends to shift personal computing and devices from reliance on traditional visual displays to the auditory domain, offering direct communications into the ear with complete privacy and reduced distraction. Consumers will be able to selectively listen to and send communications to their social media and text messages using hearing devices instead of their cell phone or computer, eliminating the need to be tethered to traditional computing devices for sending and receiving information. "Consumers will not only benefit from improved hearing in challenging listening situations, but also from more natural interactions with smart devices compared to traditional methods of visual and touch-based user interfaces," stated Adnan Shennib, Founder and CEO of iHEAR Medical. The new HoT™ standard will offer bi-directional wireless connectivity to everyday devices, from mobile phones to home appliances. Hearing devices powered by HoT™ OS will streamline the user experience for mobile phone functionality, including phone calling and control of home appliances, with a voice user interface (VUI). In addition, HoT™ devices will monitor and relay personal and health information into the ear privately and discreetly. iHEAR Medical and Atlazo have 19 pending and issued patents for the HoT™ standard, targeting smart hearing devices. For inquiries on the HoT™ standard and partnership opportunities, visit [email protected] iHEAR Medical is a venture-backed firm dedicated to addressing the global need for affordable and accessible hearing solutions. iHEAR's products and business models break through the persistent barriers that prevent people with hearing loss from using hearing devices, iHEAR Medical is pioneering direct-to-consumer and smart hearing solutions with over 50 U.S. and international patents issued and pending in its intellectual property portfolio. The cloud-based platform delivers effective hearing solutions at a fraction of the cost of conventional products, bringing the price of prescription-quality hearing aids in line with prescription eyeglasses. For more information on iHEAR Medical, visit: www.ihearmedical.com
SOURCE iHEAR Medical 
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