What is Next for Hearing Care? MED-EL’s "Hearing Beyond Tomorrow" Report Offers a Vision for AI, Robotics, Product Management, and Advanced Manufacturing

June 24, 2025 – Innsbruck, Austria: What does the future sound like? For over 1.5 billion people worldwide living with hearing loss, the answer could lie in the pages of MED-EL’s newly released report, Hearing Beyond Tomorrow: Exploring the Future of Hearing Healthcare. This first-of-its-kind publication is not just about where hearing care is headed – it is about how we will get there.

• Future Technologies: Transforming hearing care through AI, surgical robotics, product innovation, and advanced manufacturing.
• Global Challenges: Tackling health inequality, promoting ethical AI, and reducing stigma through innovative solutions.
• Expert Perspectives: Visionary insights from MED-EL experts shaping tomorrow’s hearing healthcare.

Hearing loss affects a growing global population. In response, breakthroughs in artificial intelligence, surgical robotics, and digital healthcare are unlocking new possibilities. MED-EL’s report envisions a future of hearing care where challenges become opportunities: from precision surgeries and invisible hearing implants to tools that extend care to underserved communities – all powered by human ingenuity.

Exploring Tomorrow’s Big Questions

Hearing Beyond Tomorrow takes readers on a journey into a rapidly evolving landscape, answering some of the most pressing questions in hearing healthcare today:

• Can robots help surgeons perform complex cochlear implantations with greater precision? Cutting-edge robotic tools and image-guided surgery are unlocking extraordinary possibilities while keeping human expertise at the heart of patient care.
• Will AI reshape hearing rehabilitation? From personalized therapy using ethical voice cloning to improving global access, artificial intelligence is already revolutionizing hearing solutions – and its potential impact is only just beginning to unfold.
• Could hearing implants become invisible? Totally Implantable Cochlear Implants (TICIs) promise solutions that are discreet and help to reduce stigma.
• How can digital tools address healthcare inequality? Telemedicine and AI-powered platforms expand expert care to remote, underserved populations across the globe.
• What makes manufacturing future-proof? MED-EL explores automation alongside human creativity and motivational techniques to deliver sustainable, precision-driven advanced manufacturing solutions suitable for today, tomorrow, and an unknown future.

These questions tap into not just the future of medical technology, but also critical human needs: improving health outcomes, enhancing accessibility, and creating compassionate solutions for 1 in 5 people impacted by hearing loss.

Shaping the Future Through Expertise

The report draws on the expertise of MED-EL’s leaders combing visionary ideas with practical applications to redefine hearing healthcare:

• Masoud Zoka Assadi, Head of Image-Guided Surgery & Surgical Tools, explores how robotics and surgical visualization modernize precision cochlear implantation while standardizing outcomes globally.
• Michal Zaremba, Head of Applied AI, highlights AI-powered rehabilitation tools that support personalized therapy in over 155 languages.
• Jennifer Robinson, Corporate Director of Product Management Hearing Solutions, shares her user-first approach to making hearing solutions more accessible, less stigmatizing, and seamlessly integrated with everyday devices like smartphones.
• Alexander Mayr, Head of Implant Manufacturing, focuses on integrating advanced manufacturing techniques with human skills to drive innovation in automation and precision production.
  

Through these expert perspectives, Hearing Beyond Tomorrow creates a compelling vision of what lies ahead for hearing care and the broader healthcare ecosystem.

Leading the Conversation

MED-EL has long been a pioneer in hearing healthcare, from its groundbreaking cochlear implant first implanted in 1977 to expanding access to innovative solutions globally. With Hearing Beyond Tomorrow, the company broadens the conversation to explore transformative possibilities in ethical AI, precision surgical robotics, and inclusive product design – offering a roadmap to a more innovative and user-focused future.

“At MED-EL, we have always believed that innovation must serve people,” says Dr. Ingeborg Hochmair, co-founder and CEO of MED-EL. “Technology alone cannot define progress – it must be ethical, transformative, and deeply meaningful for those who need it. This report examines questions that will define the future of hearing healthcare and invites all of us to rethink what is possible as we create a better tomorrow.”

In conjunction with the release of the report, a recent global market research study conducted by MED-EL shines a light on the evolving priorities of healthcare consumers worldwide. The study of over 10,000 people revealed that 1 in 2 patients feel advanced technologies, including the use of AI for personalized healthcare and digital tools to support health interventions from home, will be key in the next 10 years. This timely research highlights not only the urgency but also the relevance of addressing the challenges and opportunities explored in Hearing Beyond Tomorrow. Together, the report and the research illustrate a shared global vision for a smarter, more inclusive healthcare future.

Highlighting Real Stories from MED-EL Users

In addition to exploring future technologies, the report includes the personal journeys of three individuals who use different MED-EL technologies. These personal stories shine a light on how hearing implants can transform lives and inspire hope, while providing a human perspective on the potential of innovation in hearing healthcare.

Get the Report

Hearing Beyond Tomorrow: Exploring the Future of Hearing Healthcare is now available. 

Notes to Editors

Journalists can schedule 1:1 interviews with MED-EL’s experts to discuss the insights and ideas presented in the report. Contact [email protected] to arrange an interview.

About MED-EL

MED-EL Medical Electronics, a leader in implantable hearing solutions, is driven by a mission to overcome hearing loss as a barrier to communication and quality of life. The Austrian-based, privately owned business was co-founded by industry pioneers Ingeborg and Erwin Hochmair, whose ground-breaking research led to the development of the world’s first micro-electronic multi-channel cochlear implant (CI), which was successfully implanted in 1977 and was the basis for what is known as the modern CI today. This laid the foundation for the successful growth of the company in 1990, when they hired their first employees. To date, MED-EL has more than 3,000 employees from around 90 nations and 30 locations worldwide.
The company offers the widest range of implantable and non-implantable solutions to treat all types of hearing loss, enabling people in 139 countries enjoy the gift of hearing with the help of a MED-EL device. MED-EL’s hearing solutions include cochlear and middle ear implant systems, a combined electric acoustic stimulation hearing implant system, auditory brainstem implants as well as surgical and non-surgical bone conduction devices. www.medel.com 

CEO

Doz. DI Dr DDr med. h.c. Ingeborg Hochmair

Press Contact

PR & Corporate Communications
MED-EL Medical Electronics
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