Swiss hearing aid specialist Sonova launching new AI devices

Hearing with AI: Sonova is focusing on the next generation Keystone-SDA

Swiss hearing aid manufacturer Sonova is launching new devices powered by artificial intelligence (AI) that are designed to better filter out speech from background noise.

This is made possible by a new, specially developed AI chip, according to the company. With the new EON family from the Phonak brand, Sonova aims to defend its technological leadership in a rapidly growing market. EON represents the third generation of Sonova’s own real-time AI.

+ Swiss multinationals see gold in China’s silver economy 

Sonova has built a new chip called Hypersonic to handle the AI processing. Together with a newly trained neural network, it is said to consume 37% less energy than the previous Sphere generation.

This has a direct impact on the device. According to Sonova, the EON Sphere is 25% smaller and 20% lighter than its predecessor.

At the same time, the battery is said to last up to 38 hours. There are also improvements in speech intelligibility and outdoor use.

The new WindBlock 2.0 feature is designed to reduce wind noise by up to 50 decibels, making conversations easier whilst, for example, out walking, cycling or sitting on a terrace.

+ How we produce English news
Translated from German, reviewed by an English Department journalist.