What Soundbites does

Soundbites Public Benefit Corporation is a Delaware-incorporated hearing health company that commercializes a patented micronutrient formulation called ACEMg (provitamin A/beta-carotene, vitamins C and E, and magnesium) as a once-daily dietary supplement marketed under the Soundbites brand. The product targets adults with sensorineural hearing loss who fall in the clinical gap between diagnosis and hearing-aid candidacy, as well as individuals seeking protection from noise-induced or age-related hearing decline. The core offering is sold direct-to-consumer through shop.soundbites.com at $39.99 per 4-week supply (one-time) or $33.99 on a cancellable 4-week subscription, with a 12-week starter kit priced at $80. A parallel wholesale channel serves licensed audiologists, primary care physicians, and otolaryngologists for in-office dispensing.

The technology base is anchored by 11 issued U.S. patents (two held directly by Soundbites PBC and nine exclusively licensed from the University of Michigan Kresge Hearing Research Institute) and 26 peer-reviewed publications documenting the formulation's mechanism of action in reducing cochlear oxidative stress. Manufacturing uses RP Scherer softgel technology in an FDA-certified pharmaceutical facility. Two adjacent software products extend the portfolio: Soundware, a validated at-home speech-in-noise and tone hearing assessment platform for longitudinal self-monitoring, and Otis, an RAG-based generative AI chatbot that fields consumer questions about hearing health. The company ships to the United States (free shipping), Canada, Hong Kong, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and China.

Soundbites operates as a Public Benefit Corporation with 1-10 employees, headquartered at 2370 East Stadium Blvd, Ann Arbor, Michigan, with a secondary office in Windsor, Canada. The company was incorporated in 2017 by Barry Seifer (CEO) following the passing of co-founder Dr. Josef M. Miller, the University of Michigan auditory neuroscientist whose 38-year research program generated the ACEMg technology and underlying patents. Capital formation has come from academic and governmental grants — approximately $22 million in NIH/NIDCD funding (1988-2017) and a €5 million European Commission medical innovation grant (2012) — rather than venture capital. Distribution combines a consumer e-commerce front end with a clinician wholesale tier and content marketing through the company Journal, press relations, and clinician education resources.

Name

Soundbites

Legal name

Soundbites Public Benefit Corporation

Website

https://soundbites.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Soundbites Public Benefit Corporation sells a patented ACEMg dietary supplement for hearing preservation, serving adults with sensorineural hearing loss and noise-exposed individuals through direct-to-consumer e-commerce and clinician wholesale channels, complemented by the Soundware assessment platform and Otis AI chatbot.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Hearing Health Dietary Supplements

SIC

Medicinal Chemicals & Botanical Products (2833)

akta.pro primary industry

Eye, Ear & Nasal Care (HLAIADAF)

akta.pro secondary industry

Assistive Hearing & Communication Access (Captioning, Hearing Support, Transcription) (EDAFAKAC)

Keywords

• Hearing preservation supplements
• Auditory micronutrition
• Noise-induced hearing loss
• Cochlear oxidative stress
• Sensorineural hearing support

Headquarters

HQ city

Ann Arbor

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Direct Product Sales: Sale of ACEMg supplement (Soundbites) directly to consumers via e-commerce platform. One-time purchases and subscription plans for individual consumers seeking hearing preservation supplements.
2. Wholesale/Professional Sales: Wholesale pricing offered to licensed healthcare practitioners (audiologists, physicians) for in-office dispensing. Includes volume pricing and access to clinical support resources.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Soundbites sells a patented daily dietary supplement (ACEMg softgel) that delivers a specific combination of provitamin A/beta-carotene, vitamin C, vitamin E, and magnesium in patented ratios to support inner ear antioxidant defenses and preserve auditory function. The supplement is offered directly to consumers via the company's e-commerce store as one-time purchases or 4-week subscriptions, and through wholesale clinician channels for in-office dispensing by audiologists and physicians. The company also operates Soundware (a free at-home hearing assessment platform) and Otis (an AI chatbot) to support product adoption and hearing health education.

Product overview

Soundbites Public Benefit Corporation (PBC) offers a portfolio of hearing health products built around the patented ACEMg (Antioxidant vitamins C and E, and Magnesium) formulation. The core offering is the Soundbites dietary supplement (softgel capsules), which is paired with Soundware — a free at-home hearing assessment platform (speech-in-noise and tone tests) — enabling users to monitor and measure the supplement's impact on their hearing. An AI chatbot called Otis, powered by RAG and generative models, provides hearing health information to website visitors. The portfolio is grounded in 38 years of peer-reviewed research from the University of Michigan Kresge Hearing Research Institute.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Otis: AI-powered hearing health chatbot (otology information system) designed to answer hearing questions and provide information about Soundbites and hearing preservation
• OTIS Study

Products and services

• Soundbites (ACEMg) Daily Hearing Preservation Supplement A daily dietary supplement in softgel capsule form containing the patented ACEMg formula (provitamin A/beta-carotene, vitamin C, vitamin E, and magnesium). Manufactured in an FDA-certified pharmaceutical facility using RP Scherer softgel technology. Sold to adults with diagnosed sensorineural hearing loss or seeking hearing preservation, and dispensed in-office by licensed clinicians.
• Soundware Hearing Assessment Platform

Quantifiable outcome

• 75.3% of daily ACEMg users maintained or improved DPOAE scores over two years, compared to 26.8% in untreated controls
• +3 more outcomes

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability5 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core, significant, supporting and active.

• University of Michigan - Kresge Hearing Research InstitutecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner38-year research partnership with Dr. Josef M. Miller at the University of Michigan Medical School Kresge Hearing Research Institute. This partnership developed the foundational ACEMg technology, including 9 patents exclusively licensed to Soundbites PBC. Research supported by NIH/NIDCD grants totaling approximately $22 million over 29 years.
• Keep Hearing InitiativecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAffiliated 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that supports research, education, and global access to hearing preservation. Contributed to Soundbites PBC's research and education projects since 2019, producing educational videos, co-authoring the real-world evidence study, and collaborating on Soundware development. Pursues global access to ACEMg independent of ability to pay.
• Lake Forest Hearing ProfessionalssignificantStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrivate audiology clinic in Lake Forest, Illinois that served as the clinical site for the real-world evidence study. Records were extracted from the clinic's electronic medical records and deidentified by licensed audiologist L.A. Halvorson before analysis.
• ProHearing ConsortiumsignificantStrategic or Co-development PartnerEuropean Commission-funded consortium of three universities and Hearing Health Science, Inc. (University of Michigan patent licensee) for translational research on ACEMg from 2012-2020.
• Soundware LabssupportingTechnology or IntegrationR&D partner contributing to Soundware hearing assessment platform development.
• Soundhub DenmarksupportingTechnology or IntegrationR&D partner listed on website footer alongside other research partners.
• OTIS Study (Clinical Trial NCT06477354)activeStrategic or Co-development PartnerClinical study titled 'ACEMg for Hearing Preservation and Tinnitus Relief' registered at clinicaltrials.gov (NCT06477354) evaluating ACEMg's impact on hearing preservation and tinnitus outcomes using AirPods hearing test data from participants.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Audicus: Online hearing-aid retailer serving adults with mild-to-moderate hearing loss via subscription/financing models. Comparable DTC hearing-health customer and GTM motion, but in amplification rather than supplements.
• Care/of: Personalized DTC vitamin/supplement brand with subscription model, transparent quality sourcing, and direct e-commerce — analogous business model and DTC mechanics for a subscription-driven health product like ACEMg.
• Thorne: Premium, science-led DTC supplement brand with practitioner-channel distribution and NSF/clinical quality positioning. Highly comparable business model, brand posture, and clinician channel strategy to Soundbites' ACEMg offering.
• Eargo: Direct-to-consumer OTC hearing aid company (Eargo Neo). Addresses the same end consumer (adults with early/mild sensorineural hearing loss) but with amplification devices rather than a supplement; useful comparator on DTC channel economics in hearing health.

Emerging players

• Frequency Therapeutics: Clinical-stage company developing regenerative therapies for hearing loss (e.g., FX-322). Direct strategic reference for the drug-development trajectory that Soundbites could ultimately pursue if human trials and IP mature.
• Sound Pharmaceuticals: Clinical-stage developer of ebselen (SPI-1005) for noise-induced hearing loss and ototoxicity. Closely comparable to ACEMg's primary indications (noise-induced and aminoglycoside ototoxicity) on the pharmaceutical side.
• Decibel Therapeutics (now part of Regeneron): Clinical-stage biotech developing therapeutics to protect, repair, and restore hearing—most directly comparable to the pharma-path indication set Soundbites may pursue (ototoxic protection, genetic hearing loss). Provides a reference point for the prescription drug upside Soundbites could pursue.

Direct peers

• Similasan: Swiss-based OTC brand selling homeopathic ear-care products (e.g., Ear Relief Drops) through retail pharmacies. Comparable OTC ear-care brand targeting the same consumer segment with similar regulatory positioning under DSHEA.
• Lipo-Flavonoid: A long-standing OTC supplement brand (Lipo-Flavonoid Plus) marketed specifically for tinnitus and ear health via retail pharmacy and DTC channels. Most directly comparable product competitor to ACEMg in the 'supplement for hearing/tinnitus' category.
• Arches Natural Products: Sells 'Arches Tinnitus Formula,' a branded natural-supplement product for tinnitus and hearing-support sold through DTC and practitioner channels. Closely comparable category, target user, and channel overlap with Soundbites.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/soundbites
• Facebookfacebook.com/soundbitesdotcom
• Instagraminstagram.com/Soundbites
• Xx.com/soundbitesdotco
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/international-property-finance-group

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 Soundbites