How APPLE’s AirPods Pro 2 Are Reshaping the Future of Hearing Aids

APPLE has one of the most powerful brand names in technology. And this month, the company announced its latest innovation perhaps to revolutionise our perception of hearing aids, and with it hearing loss. The AirPods Pro 2 has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and has the distinction of being the first OTC or over-the-counter (ie, you can simply buy it from APPLE or any retailer with no need for a specialist prescription or fit) clinical-grade hearing aid software.

The Pioneering Hearing Aid Feature

Just as APPLE’s approach to the stigma associated with hearing loss is compassionate and creative, the Hearing Aid Feature embedded in the AirPods Pro 2 aims to break down the barriers to access by making sound enhancement easy to access for the adult with ‘mild to moderate hearing impairment’. The Hearing Aid Feature allows AirPods Pro 2 users to access a user-friendly hearing test, in which they can take control of their auditory health and their experience without the burden of a legacy hearing aid.

Bridging the Gap: Accessibility for All

The stigma surrounding both hearing loss and the use of conventional hearing aids, after all, is still strong. And affecting more than 30 million individuals in the US. APPLE’s move to embed a hearing-aid feature in the AirPods Pro 2 could yet convince more people to get tested. Many of them might then enjoy a better quality of life, as a result. ‘The AirPods Pro 2 are a new empowering disability tool with a wide variety of accessible features,’ says Haben Girma, a disability advocate and the first deafblind person to graduate from Harvard Law School. ‘For the deaf and hard-of-hearing, we now have the option for closed captioning, subtitles and hearing aid support.’

A New Era of Hearing Assistance

With the AirPods Pro 2, APPLE has broken through these barriers and pathologised hearing by providing an easy and enticing way to check out hearing aids at home. This could result in major increases in hearing-aid use, particularly among younger and first-time hearing aid users.

Normalizing the Use of Assistive Technology

Another is that is goes some way to normalise the use of assistive technology. Many AirPod users will already use their AirPods Pro 2s as hearing assistive devices – and not even realise it. It’s a perfect demonstration of how, through the blending of disability tech into everyday lives, issues of disability can become entirely normalised. APPLE’s proposed intervention could finally begin to shift the public understanding that technology that is designed for disability can be useful, even cool and desirable.

The Role of Medical Professionals

While the AirPods Pro 2 earbuds are hearing aids that can be bought over the counter, as a result, their users will likely end up visiting a hearing specialist anyway – perhaps feeling compelled to do so who took APPLE’s hearing test. The hope is that technology and traditional healthcare can work together rather than replace one another.

APPLE's Ongoing Commitment to Accessibility

The hearing aid Space factory was also and always a political statement. APPLE’s hearing aids could have been a niche product, but APPLE has repeatedly made the claim that they are ‘cutting-edge’. This signifies that APPLE sees itself as providing added value and a presence in an area of research and development that other companies will also aim for. This raises the question: why don’t we see tech companies such as APPLE employing more disabled engineers, designers and AI researchers? There is now a campaign to do so. This makes good sense. Disabled people are at the cutting edge of solutions to our own problems. We create powerful ‘affordable’ technologies that benefit many.

The Future of Hearing Aids

The fact that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved it for use as a hearing aid, as they have done for the AirPods Pro 2, says a lot about its utility and usefulness. It’s not a panacea for all types of hearing loss, certainly, but its very existence represents a powerful new opportunity and hope for literally millions of people – including for those with very rare types of deafness, such as Haben Girma.

In Conclusion: A Symphony of Innovation

With the launch of the AirPods Pro 2 – their entry into the hearing aid market – APPLE isn’t just diversifying its offerings, they’re offering the hope of a better life for millions of people living with hearing loss. By uniting technological innovation with sleek design, APPLE isn’t just creating a device to sell; they’re creating a new future for millions of people. The AirPods Pro 2 is a triumph for hearing loss technology and a vision of what an accessible world sounds like without stigma.

About APPLE

APPLE Inc is a technological giant who stand in the forefront of innovation, quality and design. The company designs, manufactures, and sells smartphones, tablets, computers, and wearables to over 1 billion users worldwide. APPLE continues to push the boundaries of global technologies with their new AirPods Pro 2. By equipping its latest earbuds with a hearing aid feature, APPLE exemplifies that their products are designed to improve human lives.