Starkey Hearing Technologies
An American privately owned hearing-technology company known for hearing aids that combine amplification, wireless connectivity, artificial intelligence, and selected health-monitoring functions.
Last updated August 31, 2026
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Overview
Starkey Hearing Technologies is an American privately owned manufacturer of hearing aids and related hearing products, headquartered in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. The company traces its origins to 1967, when William F. “Bill” Austin opened a small hearing-aid repair business after leaving medical school. In 1970, Austin acquired Starkey Labs, an earmold company, and developed the business into a hearing-aid manufacturer. Starkey has remained closely associated with Austin and his family while expanding from a repair and custom-fitting operation into a global hearing-technology company. The brand’s historical identity has been built around custom hearing care, direct relationships with hearing professionals, and product innovation. One early commercial distinction was the introduction of a 90-day trial period for hearing aids. The company gained unusually high public visibility in the 1980s after President Ronald Reagan used Starkey hearing aids. The resulting surge in demand created manufacturing and fulfillment pressures but also helped establish Starkey as a nationally recognized American hearing-aid brand. Austin has also personally fitted hearing aids for several prominent political and religious figures, although the company’s core business has remained professional hearing care rather than celebrity marketing. Starkey’s portfolio includes hearing aids in receiver-in-canal, behind-the-ear, in-the-ear, in-the-canal, completely-in-canal, and invisible formats. It also develops products for tinnitus relief, single-sided hearing loss, hearing protection, and wireless connectivity. Its Halo platform, introduced in 2014, was designed to work with Apple’s iPhone and a companion application. Later generations expanded the role of the hearing aid from a sound-amplification device into a connected personal technology platform. Livio AI, introduced in 2018, incorporated embedded sensors and artificial-intelligence features, including activity tracking, fall detection, language translation, tap controls, and functions intended to support monitoring of cognitive and physical activity. The company has continued this technology strategy through platforms including Evolv AI, Genesis AI, Signature Series, and Edge AI. Recent products use more advanced signal processing, environmental classification, motion detection, and automated adaptation. Starkey’s Edge AI platform introduced a processor with an integrated neural-processing unit intended to support on-device analysis of speech and surrounding sounds. Companion software, including the My Starkey and Thrive Hearing Control applications, allows users to adjust settings, review device information, and access selected wellness features. Starkey also sells accessories and hearing-protection products. These include television and remote-control accessories, remote microphones, SoundGear products designed to enhance useful sound while protecting against sudden loud noise, and custom earplugs for occupational and recreational environments. The company distributes through hearing professionals and has supplied products to public-sector healthcare systems, including U.S. veterans’ and military healthcare channels. As of November 2024, reference material described Starkey as employing more than 5,000 people across 29 facilities and operating in more than 100 markets. It was characterized as the only American-owned global hearing-aid manufacturer. The company is private and does not publish the level of regular financial disclosure associated with a publicly traded corporation. Its present positioning centers on premium hearing care, American ownership, independent hearing professionals, connected devices, artificial intelligence, and the integration of hearing support with broader digital-health functions.
History
Starkey’s history began in 1967, when William F. “Bill” Austin established a small hearing-aid repair shop after leaving medical school. The business initially concentrated on repair and fitting services, but Austin’s purchase of the earmold company Starkey Labs in 1970 created a foundation for manufacturing. Starkey subsequently developed its own hearing aids and became associated with customer-oriented policies, including an early 90-day trial period. The company’s public profile expanded substantially in 1983, when President Ronald Reagan began wearing Starkey hearing aids. The resulting increase in demand doubled sales and created a production crisis as the company worked to fulfill orders. Austin’s personal work fitting hearing aids for several U.S. presidents, two popes, Mother Teresa, Nelson Mandela, and other prominent figures further connected the founder with the brand, although Starkey’s principal distribution model remained professional hearing care. During the 1990s and 2000s, Starkey grew into a major hearing-aid manufacturer. Reference material indicates that sales had approached $200 million by 1992 and that estimated annual sales were approximately $850 million by 2018; these figures are historical estimates rather than current audited disclosures. The company also developed a philanthropic presence. In 1984, William Austin and Tani Austin founded the Starkey Hearing Foundation to provide hearing assistance to people who could not otherwise afford it. By 2017, the foundation reported distributing one million hearing aids worldwide. Starkey’s product strategy increasingly moved toward digital connectivity. Halo, launched in 2014, connected hearing aids with iPhones and a companion application. In 2016, the company promoted advanced processing and software intended to improve listening, including music perception, for aging users. The iQ family followed in 2017. Livio AI, introduced in 2018, represented a broader change in category positioning: it combined hearing assistance with sensors, artificial intelligence, activity tracking, fall detection, translation, tap controls, and app-based functions. The company also introduced the Thrive Hearing Control app and wireless accessories alongside the platform. The period from 2015 to 2018 brought significant organizational and legal disruption. In 2015, Austin dismissed president Jerry Ruzicka and several senior managers. In 2016, federal prosecutors charged Ruzicka and four others with allegedly taking more than $20 million from Starkey and a supplier. Ruzicka was convicted in 2018 on eight charges, including mail and wire fraud, and was sentenced later that year to seven years in prison. Court proceedings also drew scrutiny to testimony by Austin; reference material states that some of his statements were removed from the record after being found false. Contemporary reporting described Starkey as financially resilient but facing strategic pressures, including weaker patent-filing activity, a decline in its position in Veterans Administration sales, and increasing consumer purchases through warehouse clubs and proprietary dealerships. Starkey continued to emphasize independent audiologists. In 2017, Brandon Sawalich, Austin’s stepson and a Starkey employee since 1994, became president while Austin retained the chief executive role. Achintya Bhowmik joined as chief technology officer that year. Subsequent platforms, including Evolv AI, Genesis AI, Signature Series, and Edge AI, extended the company’s emphasis on automatic adaptation, environmental awareness, motion sensing, and neural processing. Genesis AI appeared in late 2023; Signature Series followed in 2024; and Edge AI added a neural-processing unit intended to support on-device classification of speech and environmental sound. In 2024, Genesis AI received a MedTech Breakthrough award, and Edge AI became available through several U.S. government healthcare systems. Starkey remains a private, American-owned global manufacturer. As of November 2024, reference material described more than 5,000 employees, 29 facilities, and operations in over 100 markets. Its business combines hearing aids, accessories, hearing protection, digital applications, professional support, and philanthropic outreach through Starkey Cares and the Starkey Hearing Foundation. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the foundation’s Hear Now program was suspended, with no resumption date identified in the cited material.
- 2024
Signature Series and Edge AI launched
[1]The company expands the Genesis platform and introduces Edge AI with neural-processing hardware.
- 2023
Genesis AI platform introduced
[1]Starkey unveils a new processor and signal-processing architecture.
- 2018
Livio AI introduced
[1]The company launches a sensor-equipped AI hearing platform with wellness and connectivity features.
- 2017
Brandon Sawalich becomes president
[1]Sawalich succeeds Austin as president while Austin remains chief executive.
- 2014
Halo connected hearing aids launched
[1]Starkey introduces hearing aids designed to work with iPhones and a companion app.
- 1984
Starkey Hearing Foundation established
[1]William and Tani Austin establish a foundation focused on providing hearing aids to people in need.
- 1983
Ronald Reagan uses Starkey hearing aids
[1]The president’s use of the brand produces a major demand surge and manufacturing strain.
- 1970
Acquisition of Starkey Labs
[1]Austin purchases an earmold company and begins building Starkey’s manufacturing operation.
- 1967
William Austin starts a hearing-aid repair business
[1]Austin establishes the business that later develops into Starkey Hearing Technologies.
Products and positioning
A premium, innovation-led hearing-technology brand emphasizing professional hearing care, custom fitting, wireless connectivity, artificial intelligence, and wellness-oriented device features.
AI-connected hearing aid · 2018
Livio AI
Introduced in 2018, Livio AI combined hearing amplification with embedded sensors and software features. Depending on configuration, it supported activity tracking, hearing-use-based cognitive-health indicators, fall detection, language translation, tap controls, and wireless connectivity. The launch also included the Thrive Hearing Control app, Starkey TV, Remote, and Remote Microphone+ accessories.
AI hearing aid platform
Evolv AI
Evolv AI is a Starkey hearing-aid family built around automated sound processing, wireless connectivity, and app-based control. It represents the company’s continuing effort to make hearing aids adaptive across changing acoustic environments while retaining multiple form factors for different degrees and patterns of hearing loss.
AI hearing aid platform · 2023
Genesis AI
Genesis AI introduced a new processor and signal-processing architecture. Starkey and trade coverage described extensive automatic adjustments and updated detection of movement and acoustic environments, positioning the platform as a foundation for more adaptive hearing assistance.
hearing aid series · 2024
Signature Series
The Signature Series is a second-generation product based on the Genesis AI platform. Its reported features include motion-based optimization and automated Edge Mode+, with compact models intended for users seeking a relatively discreet form factor.
neural-processing hearing aid platform · 2024
Edge AI
Edge AI uses Starkey’s G2 Neuro Processor with an integrated neural-processing unit. The platform is designed to support on-device processing related to speech and environmental sound classification, alongside adaptive hearing functions. In 2024 it became available through several U.S. government healthcare systems.
smartphone-connected hearing aid · 2014
Halo
Halo was a connected hearing-aid platform introduced in 2014. It was designed to work with Apple’s iPhone and a companion application, helping establish Starkey’s move toward smartphone control and digitally managed hearing settings.
hearing protection
SoundGear
SoundGear products are intended to improve useful sound while protecting hearing from sudden loud noises. They serve users who need a combination of situational awareness, sound enhancement, and protection in occupational, recreational, or other noisy environments.
Controversies
2016
Embezzlement allegations involving former executives
Federal prosecutors charged former president Jerry Ruzicka and four others with allegedly taking more than $20 million from Starkey and a supplier. Ruzicka was convicted in 2018 on eight charges, including mail and wire fraud, and sentenced to seven years in prison. Court proceedings also involved scrutiny of testimony by William Austin, with some statements struck from the record.
Marketing campaigns
- 1984Starkey Hearing Foundation outreach
Global
The Starkey Hearing Foundation was created to provide hearing aids and hearing care to people in underserved communities. Its fundraising and outreach have included an annual gala and large-scale international distribution efforts.
Outcome. The foundation reported distributing one million hearing aids by 2017. Its Hear Now program was suspended during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- 1983Ronald Reagan brand visibility
United States
President Ronald Reagan’s use of Starkey hearing aids generated exceptional public awareness and a sharp increase in demand. Although not described as a conventional paid advertising campaign, the association became one of the company’s most important visibility events.
Outcome. Demand exceeded manufacturing capacity and created a temporary production crisis while strengthening the brand’s national profile.
Brand decisions
2024
Expansion of AI and neural-processing portfolioProduct launchBackground
Starkey continued competing through automated sound processing, smaller form factors, and embedded computing.
Action taken
The company launched Signature Series and Edge AI, including the G2 Neuro Processor and integrated neural-processing unit.
Aftermath
Edge AI entered U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Defense, and Indian Health Service channels.
2018
Launch of Livio AI ecosystemProduct launchBackground
Starkey sought to broaden hearing aids from amplification devices into connected personal technology.
Action taken
The company launched Livio AI with embedded sensors, artificial intelligence, health-related features, a mobile application, and wireless accessories.
Aftermath
The platform established a product direction later extended by Evolv AI, Genesis AI, Signature Series, and Edge AI.
2017
Brandon Sawalich appointed presidentStrategyBackground
The company sought continuity and leadership renewal following the departure of its former president.
Action taken
Brandon Sawalich, Austin’s stepson and a longtime Starkey employee, became president while Austin retained the chief executive role.
Aftermath
Sawalich later became the company’s chief executive and continued the company’s technology-focused direction.
2015
Management restructuring after dismissal of presidentStrategyBackground
Starkey faced internal management disruption and later criminal allegations involving former executives.
Action taken
William Austin dismissed president Jerry Ruzicka and several senior managers.
Aftermath
Federal charges followed in 2016, while the company continued operations and maintained its focus on independent hearing professionals.
Recent events
- 2025
Jenni Hargraves appointed executive director of Starkey Cares[1]
Leadership change
Jenni Hargraves was appointed to lead Starkey Cares, the company’s corporate-social-responsibility and community-outreach organization.
- 2024
Starkey launches Signature Series[1]
Product launch · Product generation
The Signature Series extended the Genesis AI platform with motion-based optimization and an automated Edge Mode+ function in small form factors.
- 2024
Starkey announces Edge AI hearing aids[1]
Product launch · Product generation
Edge AI introduced the G2 Neuro Processor with an integrated neural-processing unit for processing speech and environmental sound information on the device.
- 2024
Edge AI becomes available through U.S. government healthcare systems[1]
Product launch · Regulation
Starkey reported availability of Edge AI through the Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Defense, and Indian Health Service.
- 2023
Starkey launches Genesis AI platform[1]
Product launch · Product generation
Genesis AI introduced a new processor and signal-processing architecture with expanded automatic adjustments and motion- and environment-detection capabilities.
- 2018
Starkey introduces Livio AI hearing platform[1]
Product launch · Product generation
The Livio AI launch combined hearing assistance with embedded sensors, activity and cognitive-health-related tracking, fall detection, translation, tap controls, a mobile application, and wireless accessories.
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