Hearing4all

Name

Hearing4all

Legal name

Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg

Website

https://hearing4all.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Hearing Research and Audiology

NAICS

Offices of Physical, Occupational and Speech Therapists, and Audiologists (621340)

akta.pro primary industry

Audiology & Hearing Diagnostic Centers (HLAFAKAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Audiology & Hearing Services (ENT-Affiliated) (HLAKAMAI), Hearing Enhancement / Assistive Listening Audio Devices (CRACANAL), Audio & Speech Analytics (call analytics, QA, insights) (HDAAAFAH)

Keywords

• Hearing research
• Hearing diagnostics
• Hearing aid technology
• Cochlear implants
• Auditory neuroscience

Headquarters

HQ city

Oldenburg

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Hearing4all is an interdisciplinary Cluster of Excellence conducting multi-disciplinary hearing research across three German universities and several partner institutions. The cluster develops hearing diagnostic tools, hearing aid processors, cochlear implant technologies, and AI-based hearing solutions, and transfers these to industry and clinical partners. Its portfolio spans research processors (SmartHeaP, KAVUAKA), the Virtual Hearing Clinic mobile diagnostic platform, the trueLOUDNESS normalization method, the Hydrogel Electrode, the Hearpiece transparent hearing system, the SoundLab mobile learning unit, and the publicly accessible Oldenburg Hearing Health Repository.

Product overview

Hearing4all is a Cluster of Excellence (Exzellenzcluster) focused on hearing research, led by the University of Oldenburg in collaboration with Hannover Medical School and Leibniz University Hannover. The organization develops both research technologies and transfer products including diagnostic tools (Virtual Hearing Clinic, Online Hearing Test), hearing aid technology (SmartHeaP processor), and educational platforms (SoundLab). The portfolio spans from basic research outputs like the KAVUAKA research processor to applied products like trueLOUDNESS for loudness normalization and the Hydrogel Electrode for cochlear implants. Key offerings include measurement programs, the transparent hearing system Hearpiece, and open data repositories for hearing health research.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Hearpiece: Transparent hearing system developed by Hearing4all researchers
• trueLOUDNESS
• Virtual Hearing Clinic
• SoundLab
• Joint Research Academy (JRA)
• SmartHeaP
• KAVUAKA

Products and services

• Virtual Hearing Clinic Digital health platform combining diagnostic modules into a mobile app for low-threshold hearing diagnostics and hearing support, enabling self-administered hearing tests, prediction of treatment success for hearing aids and cochlear implants, hearing aid simulation, and treatment recommendations based on audiological grading.
• SmartHeaP Hearing Aid Processor Application-specific, high-level programmable hearing aid System on Chip (SoC) with high computing power and low power consumption, developed as a complete system for use in next-generation digital hearing aids.
• KAVUAKA Research Processor Research chip developed for hearing systems, designed to meet the high computing power requirements of future hearing aids and cochlear implants.
• Online Hearing Test (Digit Triplets Test) Anonymous online hearing screening test measuring how well users can understand speech in noisy environments, providing simple hearing status verification.
• trueLOUDNESS Loudness normalization method for hearing aids that provides improved loudness perception and a new approach to hearing assessment and hearing aid fitting.
• Hearpiece (Transparent Hearing System) Transparent hearing system designed to improve sound perception and hearing assistance through transparent audio technology.
• Hydrogel Electrode Electrode technology for cochlear implants designed to improve the interface between the implant and neural tissue.
• SoundLab Mobile Learning Unit Mobile learning unit about the sense of hearing for schools and extracurricular learning centers, enabling pupils to have active listening experiences and gain knowledge through research-based learning.
• Oldenburg Measurement Programs Standardized measurement applications developed in Oldenburg for hearing assessment and hearing aid fitting evaluation, made available to industry and clinical partners.
• Oldenburg Hearing Health Repository (OHHR) Publicly accessible dataset for research and development in hearing health, enabling open science collaboration and supporting standardized hearing health data.
• Categorical Loudness Scaling openEHR Archetype First openEHR archetype developed by Hearing4all.connects members, enabling standardized Categorical Loudness Scaling data interoperability, published in the international Clinical Knowledge Manager (CKM).

Quantifiable outcome

• First openEHR archetype published in international Clinical Knowledge Manager (CKM)
• +3 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability6 records

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• Carl von Ossietzky Universität OldenburgcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerManaging (mittelverwaltende) university of the cluster. Hosts the main administrative office (Geschäftsstelle) and key research areas in Medical Physics and Acoustics. Prof. Dr. Dr. Birger Kollmeier serves as cluster spokesperson.
• Medizinische Hochschule Hannover (MHH)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner university hosting ENT clinic, cochlear implant center, and Institute of AudioNeuroTechnology (VIANNA). Second-largest administrative office location. Home to world's largest cochlear implantation center.
• Leibniz-Universität HannovercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner university contributing expertise in microelectronic systems, quantum optics, and biophotonics. Home to the Institute of Quantum Optics and Lower Saxony Center for Biomedical Engineering (NIFE).
• Hörzentrum Oldenburg gGmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCore research and clinical partner specializing in hearing diagnostics and hearing aid research. Collaborates on Virtual Hearing Clinic development, 'Portable Hearing Lab', and hearing studies.
• Fraunhofer Institute for Digital Media Technology IDMTcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner institute contributing to 'The Hearing Car' with AI-supported acoustic sensor systems and mobile neurotechnologies. Also involved in trueLOUDNESS development and SoundLab project.
• Jade University of Applied Sciences (Jadehochschule)supportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerContributing partner in hearing research, notably involved in the SoundLab mobile learning unit project and science podcast 'Hirn gehört'.
• Laser Zentrum Hannover (LZH)supportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch partner contributing laser and optics expertise to hearing research and biomedical applications within the cluster.
• DHZ Hannover (Deutsches Hörzentrum Hannover)supportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner clinic contributing clinical expertise in hearing diagnostics and rehabilitation within the Hannover research site.
• University of Haifa (Israel)supportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational research partner; Humboldt Research Fellow Hanin Karawani Khoury conducting research at Oldenburg; German-Israeli research project funded by Ministry of Science of Lower Saxony.
• University of Groningen (Netherlands)supportingStrategic or Co-development Partner40-year cooperation with University of Oldenburg, celebrating anniversary in October 2020. Joint workshop 'Hot Topics in Hearing and Neuroscience' as part of celebrations.
• Hanse-Wissenschaftskolleg (HWK)supportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerFellowship cooperation with Hanse-Wissenschaftskolleg enabling international researchers to conduct research at Oldenburg University as part of Hearing4all fellowship program.
• acatech – German National Academy of Science and EngineeringsupportingOthersProf. Dr. Dr. Birger Kollmeier appointed as member of acatech, Germany's National Academy of Science and Engineering, recognizing outstanding contribution to science.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Broad incumbents

• Sonova: Global hearing-aid parent company (Phonak, Advanced Bionics) with internal R&D on hearing-aid signal processing and AI; comparable in product category to SmartHeaP / KAVUAKA / Virtual Hearing Clinic transfers and a natural industry partner.
• Cochlear Limited: Global cochlear implant market leader with R&D arm active in the same cochlear implant and electrode technologies Hearing4all develops (e.g., Hydrogel Electrode); a key potential commercialization counterpart.
• MED-EL: Austrian cochlear implant and hearing implant manufacturer with active R&D in auditory neuroscience and surgical technology — comparable to MHH's cochlear implant center and a likely commercialization partner for Hearing4all surgical work.

Direct peers

• Oregon Hearing Research Center (OHSU): Leading US hearing research center with overlapping focus on auditory neuroscience, hearing aid signal processing, and cochlear implant science, comparable to Hearing4all's basic-to-translational research arc.
• National Acoustic Laboratories (NAL): Australian government-funded hearing research laboratory. Closest academic peer to Hearing4all with shared focus on hearing diagnostics, hearing aid research, and translational outcomes for people with hearing loss.
• MRC Institute of Hearing Research (University of Nottingham): UK's primary public hearing research institute, integrated into the Nottingham Biomedical Research Centre. Comparable translational hearing research scope including diagnostics, auditory neuroscience, and clinical trials.
• Vanderbilt Bill Wilkerson Center: US academic medical center combining hearing research, otolaryngology, and audiology clinical service — directly comparable basic-to-clinical orientation and cochlear implant expertise to Hearing4all/MHH.
• Karolinska Institutet - Center for Hearing and Deafness: Swedish academic hearing research program with strengths in auditory neuroscience and hearing loss epidemiology. Comparable academic scale and mission to Hearing4all's cluster structure.
• Eaton-Peabody Laboratories (Harvard / MIT / Mass Eye and Ear): Joint Harvard/MIT auditory research lab focused on auditory physiology, hearing diagnostics, and cochlear implant research — directly comparable scope to Hearing4all's five research areas including cochlear implants and auditory processing.
• Hörzentrum Oldenburg gGmbH: Non-profit hearing research and clinical partner organization physically embedded in Oldenburg alongside Hearing4all, with overlapping mission on hearing diagnostics and hearing aid evaluation.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Hearing4all