SOUTH AFRICA— Hearing care solutions startup, Lexi Hearing, has made Time Magazine’s third annual Time100 Most Influential list.
Lexie Hearing has been included on the prestigious list for transforming accessibility to quality, affordable hearing solutions.
The Time100 list calls attention to companies making an extraordinary impact around the world and to assemble the list, Time solicited nominations from its global network of contributors and correspondents as well as from outside experts.
Then Time editors evaluated each on key factors, including impact, innovation, ambition, and success. The result is a diverse group of 100 businesses helping chart an essential path forward.
Lexie Hearing is now a market leader in hearing healthcare and the developer of the award-winning Lexie B2 Hearing Aids Powered by Bose.
Nic Klopper, Lexie Hearing founder and CEO, “It’s an incredible honour to be recognized by Time, next to some of the world’s most iconic brands. At Lexie, we work every day to create accessible hearing care for everyone, everywhere, and we’re thankful for Time for recognizing our positive global impact.”
In late 2022, the US Food and Drug Administration (US.FDA) approved the sale of non-prescription hearing aids over the counter (OTC) at retail and pharmacy stores.
Though South African-based, the tech-enabled devices are available only in the US, as South African legislation does not yet allow for hearing aids to be sold over the counter.
Today, Lexie’s OTC hearing aids help make hearing care more affordable and accessible for the 37.5 million Americans who need it.
Available in more than 12,000 stores nationwide for a fraction of the cost of prescription hearing aids, the devices are helping people take control of their hearing and shaping the future of hearing health.
“For too long, proper hearing care was under-prioritized and difficult to access. Hearing aids were exorbitantly expensive and required ongoing consultations,” said Klopper.
Klopper acknowledged that Lexie is changing things by changing the industry by offering more affordable solutions with high-powered technology, providing a clinically proven hearing experience for a much smaller cost than prescription hearing aids.
Lexie’s over-the-counter hearing aids and award-winning customer support are life-changing for people with mild to moderate hearing loss who can now get Lexie hearing aids at the click of a button.
Klopper says it all originated in South Africa in 2016 as a spin-off from a University of Pretoria project when he was involved in starting a company called hearX.
hearX is still an impact-driven company that has provided over 2 million hearing tests in 191 countries globally.
hearX has for now two decades, provided an entirely new way to overcome traditional barriers to the detection, diagnosis, and treatment of disabling hearing loss.
Lexie B1 hearing aids pair with the Lexie app, the first self-tuning mobile app that’s clinically proven to provide audiologist-quality customization for individuals 18 or older with perceived mild-to-moderate hearing loss.
Healthy hearing for everyone
The Lexie Cares Foundation is an initiative born from the Lexie Hearing core values of providing “healthy hearing for everyone, everywhere”.
466 million people worldwide experience debilitating hearing loss, according to the World Health Organization, and that number is projected to grow to 2.5 billion by 2050.
The initiative supports global organizations that make ear and hearing care accessible to people in their communities.
Consciously, through supporting the hearX Foundation’s efforts to bring affordable and accessible hearing healthcare to local communities in South Africa.
Moreover, this is through hearing screening initiatives, identifying potential hearing loss in children in the school phase. We want to ensure that they can hear better so that they can learn better.
Lexie Cares supports Veterans living in the USA who have suffered hearing loss because of their military service and Lexie restates its commitment to helping serve Veterans.
Lexie Care also supports and facilitates hearing aid kits for the Haiti Deaf Academy, a transformation program that offers skills that teach self-reliance through language, vocational, academic, and life-skills training to children that have hearing impairment.
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