Hearing First
Hearing First is a foundation-backed digital platform that provides free educational resources, community support, and professional development for families of, and clinicians serving, children with hearing loss pursuing Listening and Spoken Language outcomes.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2020
- HeadquartersPhiladelphia, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Hearing First does
Hearing First is a private LLC operating as an educational initiative of the Oberkotter Foundation, headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It runs a web-based digital platform that delivers listening, spoken language, and literacy resources to families of children who are deaf or hard of hearing, as well as professional development resources for the clinicians and interventionists who serve them. Core products include the First LSL Lessons step-by-step parent curriculum, the Starts Hear national awareness campaign targeting expectant parents about newborn hearing screening, the Family Support Community and Professional Learning Community platforms, the Powering Potential Podcast, the LSL Life docuseries, and resource tools such as the Familiar Sounds Audiogram and hearing device wear time materials.
Hearing First firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Hearing First
- Legal name
- Hearing First, LLC
- Website
- https://hearingfirst.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2020
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Hearing First is a foundation-backed digital platform that provides free educational resources, community support, and professional development for families of, and clinicians serving, children with hearing loss pursuing Listening and Spoken Language outcomes.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Hearing First industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Hearing Loss Education
- NAICS
- Educational Services (61)
- SIC
- Services-Educational Services (8200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Deaf/Hard of Hearing & Vision Services (Audiology, Interpreting, Orientation & Mobility) (EDAJAKAI)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Vision & Hearing Early Intervention Services (EDACAFAN), Speech & Language Therapy (Early Intervention) (EDACAFAB)
Keywords
Where Hearing First is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Philadelphia
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Hearing First business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Operations, Others
Revenue model
- Foundation Funding: Hearing First is an initiative of the Oberkotter Foundation. The organization provides all resources, services, and community platforms free of charge to families and professionals. The organization appears to be funded through foundation philanthropy rather than revenue generation.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Monthly | Free access to all resources and community services |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels9 records
Hearing First product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Hearing First provides free online educational resources, learning experiences, and community platforms that teach Listening and Spoken Language (LSL) strategies to families of children who are deaf or hard of hearing and to the professionals serving them. Its primary product is the First LSL Lessons step-by-step guide, supported by the Starts Hear national newborn-hearing-screening awareness campaign, the Family Support Community and Professional Learning Community, and a content library including the Powering Potential Podcast and LSL Life docuseries.
Product overview
Hearing First is an educational initiative of the Oberkotter Foundation offering a unified platform of resources for families and professionals supporting children with hearing loss. The core product is First LSL Lessons, a step-by-step guide that serves as the entry point to the ecosystem. This is supplemented by the Starts Hear awareness campaign for newborn hearing screening education, the Family Support Community and Professional Learning Community platforms for peer/professional engagement, content products including the Powering Potential Podcast and LSL Life docuseries, and resource tools like the Familiar Sounds Audiogram and hearing device wear time materials. All offerings are free and designed to support the Listening and Spoken Language (LSL) approach.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Starts Hear: National awareness campaign educating expectant parents about newborn hearing screening and follow-up steps after a failed screening.
- First LSL Lessons
- LSL Life
- Powering Potential Podcast
Products and services
- First LSL Lessons
Quantifiable outcome
- Over 1.2 billion total ad views achieved by Starts Hear awareness campaign over five years
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Hearing First
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Hearing First technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature5 records
Hearing First partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- BabyCentercoreNew partnership announced for Starts Hear campaign Year Six. BabyCenter is a parenting media company reaching expectant parents, aligning with the campaign's mission to educate families about newborn hearing screening.
- The BumpcoreNew partnership announced for Starts Hear campaign Year Six. The Bump is a parenting platform reaching expectant parents, providing expanded reach for newborn hearing screening awareness education.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Hearing First competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (AG Bell): National nonprofit focused on listening, speaking, and literacy for people with hearing loss. Directly comparable mission around Listening and Spoken Language outcomes for children, overlapping professional and family audiences with Hearing First.
- Hands & Voices: Parent-driven nonprofit supporting families of children who are deaf or hard of hearing across all communication approaches. Comparable in serving the same family audience with educational resources and community support, though more communication-agnostic than Hearing First.
- Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech: Educational organization providing listening and spoken language programs and early intervention for children with hearing loss. Comparable LSL focus and family/professional support model, with a stronger direct-service school component.
- Listen Foundation: Nonprofit supporting auditory-verbal education for children with hearing loss. Highly comparable LSL mission, family education, and funding-model approach, though smaller scale than Hearing First.
- Beginnings for Parents of Children Who Are Deaf or Hard of Hearing: Parent-support nonprofit offering impartial information and emotional support for families of deaf/HoH children. Comparable in providing family-centered education and resources, with a broader communication philosophy than Hearing First's LSL focus.
Broad incumbents
- American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA): National professional association for audiologists and speech-language pathologists. Comparable professional development and clinical resources audience, but operates as a broad professional membership body across all SLP/audiology domains rather than a pediatric LSL specialist.
- Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA): National consumer advocacy organization for people with hearing loss. Comparable in serving the U.S. hearing-loss community but covers the full age range and all hearing-loss severities rather than pediatric LSL specifically.
Regional players
- American Cochlear Implant (ACI) Alliance: Nonprofit advancing cochlear implant access and outcomes, particularly for children. Overlaps with Hearing First in pediatric hearing-device education and family support but is device- and access-focused rather than LSL-methodology focused.
Emerging players
- Raising Deaf Kids (Boystown National Research Hospital): Hospital-hosted web resource providing information for parents of deaf/HoH children across communication choices. Comparable family-education web resource with a broader communication-methodology stance than Hearing First.
Others
- Oberkotter Foundation: Parent philanthropic foundation funding Hearing First and other LSL initiatives. Listed as an ecosystem participant because it both owns Hearing First and independently funds pediatric hearing-loss research and family support—shaping the LSL category in which Hearing First operates.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Hearing First social profiles
Digital presenceHearing First compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance3 records
Hearing First financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Hearing First leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Hearing First funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Hearing First M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Hearing First
What does Hearing First do?
Hearing First provides free online educational resources, learning experiences, and community platforms that teach Listening and Spoken Language (LSL) strategies to families of children who are deaf or hard of hearing and to the professionals serving them. Its primary product is the First LSL Lessons step-by-step guide, supported by the Starts Hear national newborn-hearing-screening awareness campaign, the Family Support Community and Professional Learning Community, and a content library including the Powering Potential Podcast and LSL Life docuseries.
Is Hearing First a public or private company?
Hearing First is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Hearing First founded?
Hearing First was founded in 2020. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Hearing First based?
Hearing First is headquartered in Philadelphia, United States, in the North America region.
How does Hearing First make money?
One revenue line is on record: foundation Funding.
Who are Hearing First's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (AG Bell), Hands & Voices, Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech, Listen Foundation and Beginnings for Parents of Children Who Are Deaf or Hard of Hearing. Broad incumbents are American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) and Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA). American Cochlear Implant (ACI) Alliance is listed as a regional player. Raising Deaf Kids (Boystown National Research Hospital) is listed as an emerging player. Oberkotter Foundation is listed as an others.
Does Hearing First have an API?
No public API is recorded for Hearing First.
What industry is Hearing First in?
Hearing First's product category is Hearing Loss Education. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAJAKAI, Deaf/Hard of Hearing & Vision Services (Audiology, Interpreting, Orientation & Mobility), with a secondary code of EDACAFAN, Vision & Hearing Early Intervention Services. Its NAICS code is 61 and its SIC code is 8200.