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Phonak’s newest hearing aid is its most advanced yet, using real-time AI processing to help you hear what matters.
LIN YANQIN
MEDIACORP STUDIO 3 AND SONOVA
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AI-ENHANCED HEARING AIDS
IMPACT OF HEARING LOSS
According to the World Health Organization, hearing loss affects 430 million people worldwide, and this number is expected to reach 700 million — or one in 10 people — by 2050.
The good news is that hearing aid technology has significantly advanced in recent years. Picture a device that tucks sleekly in and around your ear, pairs seamlessly to multiple devices, and cancels out noises in loud environments — like a noisy hawker centre or shopping centre — so that you can hear your friends effortlessly.
These features are not uncommon among hearing aids, but leading hearing aid provider Phonak is taking them to anew level.
CUTTING THROUGH THE NOISE WITH AI
Phonak’s latest launch — the Audéo Sphere Infinio — is its most advanced yet, being the first in the world to feature a proprietary DEEPSONIC chip that processes sound in real time, using AI technology.
The AI chip uses a Deep Neural Network dedicated solely to separating speech from noise, instantly from any direction, to deliver exceptional clarity for users. It is paired with its operating system — the AutoSense OS 6.0 — that accurately identifies the sound environment in real time to make automatic adjustments to the device, creating a seamless experience for the user.
“Speech understanding in a noisy environment is the hardest [on the ears], even for people who don’t have hearing impairment,” said Mr Chua Tze Peng, managing director of Sonova Group (Singapore), which owns the Phonak brand. “But our new [DEEPSONIC] chip cleans up the noise, so you’ll be able to hear clearer, and communicate better across a diverse range of environments. Thus, enabling a more socially active lifestyle.”
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WELL HEARING IS WELL BEING
Cognitive decline refers to the gradual decrease in cognitive abilities such as your memory and thinking skills. In recent years, research suggests that untreated hearing loss can worsen cognitive decline and lead to conditions such as dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. “We take our sense of hearing for granted because for many of us, it is always there, but many people don’t understand that hearing loss has an impact on cognition,” said Mr Chua.
With hearing loss, the brain has to work harder to understand conversations correctly, leaving less energy for other tasks such as memory recall. This can lead to a decrease in cognitive function.
As hearing declines, loneliness can intensify — and this too, accelerates cognitive decline. “The moment you can’t hear, you tend not to speak or communicate with other people, and other people may have difficulties communicating with you,” added Mr Chua. “Hence, your social circle and communication skills, and your cognitive abilities can degenerate.”
There is hope, however; a study by researchers from Johns Hopkins University has found that among older adults who are at risk for cognitive decline, hearing intervention helped to slow down the loss of thinking and memory abilities by 48 per cent over three years.
“WE TAKE OUR SENSE OF HEARING FOR GRANTED BECAUSE FOR MANY OF US, IT IS ALWAYS THERE, BUT MANY PEOPLE DON’T UNDERSTAND THAT HEARING LOSS HAS AN IMPACT ON COGNITION.”
– MR CHUA TZE PENG, MANAGING DIRECTOR OF SONOVA SINGAPORE
THE RISK OF DELAYING HEARING AIDS
Hearing aids can improve the quality of life for those with hearing loss, but Mr Chua noted that users may initially be reluctant to try them as they take getting used to. “People think that hearing aids are magical wonders, but it’s not as simple as wearing spectacles,” he said. “The brain needs time to adjust to hearing again.”
Generally, people wait six to seven years before they take action to address hearing loss. But the longer a person waits to manage their hearing loss, the harder it is to treat later, especially with conventional hearing aids. “Imagine having hearing loss for five years before you take action…Our brain needs time to relearn the ability to differentiate and understand what was heard,” Mr Chua explained. “And that’s why first-time hearing aid users tend to feel more tired at the end of the day, because their brains are working a lot to process sound signals.”
TO ENSURE DURABILITY, THE AUDÉO SPHERE INFINIO HAS BEEN PUT THROUGH OVER 10,000 HOURS AND 135 INDIVIDUAL STRINGENT TESTS.
This can lead to “listening fatigue”, and both of Phonak’s latest offerings — the Audéo Infinio and Audéo Sphere Infinio — have been designed to address this issue. The new dedicated DEEPSONIC chip in the Audéo Sphere Infinio is a breakthrough for anyone struggling with hearing in noisy environments. It provides an unprecedented speech understanding in noise with clean and clear speech, in any direction without an increase in listening effort, saidMrChua.
During live conversations, the DEEPSONIC chip can process speech in real-time within the hearing aid without having to go through an external device like a mobile phone, eliminating audio delays. “This means end-users can enjoy the best speech clarity with AI de-noising. They can take calls, watch videos and even engage in live conversation that is lag-free and natural-sounding,” elaborated Mr Chua.
To find a hearing aid that best suits one’s needs, Mr Chua advised people experiencing hearing loss to seek out hearing care professionals who can support them on the journey. “We have proper training for everyone who sells our products — from audiologists in the hospitals to retailers — on how to do a fitting, the appropriate model for each patient and how best to address patient needs,” he said. “We want to ensure the best outcomes for our users.”
A NEW ERA OF HEARING TECHNOLOGY
Enhancing the AI capabilities of Phonak’s DEEPSONIC chip was key to supporting the enhanced personalisation and connectivity reach that modern users have come to expect, noted Mr Chua.
Hearing aids have become more advanced and attuned to modern lifestyles — both the Audéo Infinio and Audéo Sphere Infinio are water-resistant in pool water, salt water and freshwater, making them ideal for people who are active — and MrChua anticipates that in the years to come, they will become integral to general well-being.
Modern users, he added, have also become used to health monitoring features in various devices, and hearing aids could play a role in this. “For example, two years ago, we launched a product that can accurately measure your heart rate through the ear, because the ear is found to be a better place to measure health data such as heart rate,” he shared. “We believe that hearing aids could eventually have multiple functions that will be able to support not just hearing, but your entire health and wellbeing.”
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