Fortell
Fortell builds AI-powered hearing aids that use a custom on-device neural processor to separate speech from background noise in real time, restoring clarity in challenging environments like restaurants and busy streets. Its AI 2.0 update improved speech-in-noise performance by 2.13 dB on average across all tested conditions, with the largest gain of 4.1 dB in multi-talker scenes. The company also operates an audiology clinic in New York City and offers remote support through a companion mobile app.
- Artificial Intelligence
- Consumer Electronics
- Hardware
- Healthcare Technology
- Medical Devices
Funding
Raised to date
$163MRaised to date based on public sources. This may differ from the amount the company actually raised and is based only on what is publicly available on the internet.
across 1 round
VE$163M · Undisclosed
Announced Sep 2026 · from article date
Disclosed cumulative: $163M
Founders
Founder details are not available yet.
Product
Problem
Traditional hearing aids amplify all sounds indiscriminately, making it difficult for users to understand a single voice in noisy environments like restaurants, trains, or busy streets. This "cocktail party problem" remains the toughest challenge in hearing science, causing many users to abandon hearing aids or avoid social situations altogether.
Solution
Fortell provides AI-powered hearing aids that use a custom on-device neural-network coprocessor to identify what a sound is and where it comes from, then selectively amplifies target speech while suppressing background noise in real time. The system draws on subtle differences in timing, spectral content, and amplitude across multiple microphones to localize each voice in a room. Fortell AI 2.0, the latest model update, was retrained on an expanded corpus of real-world audio recorded in restaurants, cafes, construction sites, trains, buses, and offices, improving every objective speech-clarity metric tested. Users can choose between two listening modes: All Voices, which keeps every voice audible while reducing background noise, and Front Voices, which additionally suppresses talkers not directly ahead. The hearing aids receive over-the-air AI model updates, and a companion mobile app provides remote control, health tracking, and remote support sessions with licensed hearing care professionals.
Target Audience
Primary customers are adults with hearing loss who struggle to understand speech in noisy environments, as well as their audiologists and hearing care professionals seeking clinically validated, high-performance hearing solutions.
Features
- Custom in-house machine-learning coprocessor running neural-network-based speech enhancement algorithms directly on the device
- Multi-microphone array that localizes voices using timing, spectral, and amplitude differences to separate target speech from interference
- AI 2.0 model trained on expanded real-world audio corpus, delivering 2.13 dB average SNR improvement over the original model and 4.1 dB in the toughest multi-talker condition
- Two listening programs: All Voices (attenuates background noise while keeping all voices audible) and Front Voices (suppresses off-axis talkers)
- Over-the-air firmware and AI model updates that improve performance without requiring new hardware
- Companion mobile app with remote hearing aid control, health tracking, device location, and remote support sessions with licensed professionals
- In a pre-registered double-blind randomized controlled trial, Front Voices improved speech intelligibility by 9.2 dB over the next best hearing aid employing AI source separation