The recent launch of Oticon Reveal marks a new chapter in hearing technology as the world’s first hearing aid powered by a Dual AI system.
The technology is designed to give the listener access to both speech and contextual sounds in an optimal balance, in real time.
Behind this development are many years of audiological research from scientists at Demant, exploring a fundamental question: how much of what we hear should be speech, and how much should be the world around it?
While the question may sound simple, answering it requires a detailed understanding of how the brain processes sound and how this is connected to our sense of hearing.
Recent research has brought scientists closer to understanding this balance. One important finding is that the hearing industry’s long-standing focus on noise reduction may come with a cost.
While improving speech clarity remains essential, suppressing surrounding sounds too aggressively can make it harder for the brain to interpret what we hear.
This represents an important step forward in understanding how hearing technology can support a more natural listening experience.
Moving beyond speech only optimisation
For many years, much of the hearing aid and consumer technology industry has focused on isolating speech and reducing background noise.
According to Elaine Hoi Ning Ng, Director of Research in Demant’s Hearing Aids business area, research continues to show why this approach may be too one dimensional.
“Speech improvement remains essential for people with hearing loss, but our insights show that this alone is not enough. The brain depends on a balance between speech and the surrounding sound environment to understand the world efficiently.” - Elaine Hoi Ning Ng, Director of Research, Hearing Aids
This is not an entirely new philosophy for Demant. The company has explored this principle since introducing the BrainHearing concept and launching Oticon Opn in 2016.
The latest research brings scientists closer to understanding what that balance looks like in practice. At the same time, an increasing body of research is highlighting the importance of contextual sounds and the potential consequences of reducing them too much.
Why context matters for the brain
Hearing is not simply about detecting sound. It is about making sense of what we hear.
When sound reaches the brain, it is processed in working memory and compared with sound patterns stored over time. Contextual sounds play an important role in this process by providing information about the listening environment.
They can help us understand what is happening around us and predict what might happen next.
Without these cues, listening can become more demanding, leaving us to work harder to understand what we may have missed.
“As an industry, we have become very good at filtering noise. But when we remove too much of the surrounding sound, we risk working against how the brain naturally processes information. What is gained in clarity can be lost in meaning.
Noise is not always noise. Many sounds that are traditionally labelled as background noise contain contextual information that helps the brain understand where we are, what is happening around us, and what sounds deserve attention.
Before the brain can suppress irrelevant sounds, it must first learn to identify, organise, and interpret them.” - Elaine Hoi Ning Ng, Director of Research, Hearing Aids
This understanding is particularly important for people with hearing loss. Hearing aids are designed to make sounds more accessible, but the way those sounds are processed can also influence how easily the brain can understand and respond to the listening environment.
The unintended effects of aggressive noise reduction
Early research points to broader questions about what happens when contextual sound is removed too aggressively.
When technology takes on too much of the filtering process, one possible consequence is that the brain may have fewer opportunities to perform this task itself.
Over time, this could potentially affect the ability to distinguish between sounds in more complex, real world environments and increase the mental effort required to process them.
However, research in this area is still developing and there is not yet sufficient evidence to draw firm conclusions.
There are also questions about whether widespread use of noise cancelling technology, such as headphones and earbuds, could influence our ability to filter sounds when we are not using the technology.
More research is needed to understand these potential effects and determine the long term implications of aggressive noise reduction for auditory processing and everyday listening.
More than hearing: safety, navigation and wellbeing
Contextual sound supports much more than our ability to follow a conversation.
It provides important cues that help us navigate physical spaces, notice changes in our surroundings and respond to unusual or important sounds, such as alarms.
These sounds can also contribute to how we experience everyday situations.
“When you have access to the entire sound surroundings you pick up a lot of details. It is amazing how much information we get from contextual sounds.
Unusual sounds would often stand out and be something you recognise instantly. If a sound around us indicates danger or a need to focus, the brain instantly gives it priority, triggering our alert system, which can help improve safety.
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Discover how state of the art hearing aid technology can help you hear more of the sounds that matter. Experience the latest innovations in hearing technology at your local Hidden Hearing clinic.
