Essilor’s Ray-Ban Stories smartglasses

EssilorLuxottica is entering the hearing solutions market with proprietary technology which combines prescription glasses and hearing solutions in one product.

The company said it had assembled a dedicated ‘Super Audio’ and in-house R&D team to introduce breakthrough hearing technology for the 1.25 billion consumers suffering from mild to moderate hearing loss. The team will be supported by technology from its recent acquisition of Israeli startup Nuance Hearing, which developed ‘beamforming’ technology to amplify and track sound from a specific directional source while rejecting background noise. The move also follows the 2021 release of its Ray-Ban Stories – smartglasses which direct sound to the wearer from speakers in the arms without any visible obstruction to the ear.

EssilorLuxottica is uniquely positioned to open up a new avenue for the industry by addressing the need for good hearing with innovative technologies, said Francesco Milleri, EssilorLuxottica chairman and CEO. “Our proprietary hardware and software, combined with our design and manufacturing capabilities, will enable us to pair hearing solutions and prescription glasses into one groundbreaking product, and to bring it to market everywhere. As we did in the vision space, we will be the first to remove the stigma of traditional hearing solutions, replacing it with comfort and style.”

The company said it expects its high-quality hearing-solution eyeglasses to be launched in the second half of 2024.