315 - Exploring Starkey’s Omega AI Hearing Aids: A Conversation with CTO Achin Bhowmik

About this episode

Earlier this month, Starkey released its Omega AI hearing aid platform, and at EUHA 2025, Chief Technology Officer Achin Bhowmik discussed how the company’s latest generation builds on prior AI-driven models with new neural-network architecture designed to improve both hearing performance and health monitoring.Omega AI introduces what Starkey describes as the industry’s first use of three deep neural networks running in parallel. Each network performs a distinct function: one enhances speech understanding in noise, another predicts and proactively adjusts directionality, and a third monitors the acoustic environment to improve spatial awareness. According to Bhowmik, this approach—modeled on how multiple regions of the auditory cortex process sound—has resulted in measurable gains, including a reported 28 percent improvement in speech recognition accuracy and 8 decibel greater audibility for off-axis sounds compared with the previous Edge AI platform.Beyond hearing performance, Omega AI expands Starkey’s health-and-wellness capabilities. The devices now guide users through AI-based balance exercises, leveraging built-in motion sensors that assess gait and stability using protocols developed with academic partners. The system can also track physiological data such as respiration rate, providing users and clinicians with additional health insights that can support fall prevention and overall well-being.Bhowmik also outlined new generative-AI tools integrated across Starkey’s ecosystem. The TeleHear AI feature enables wearers to describe listening difficulties in natural language, prompting the device to suggest and apply fitting adjustments that can later be reviewed by the professional. Be sure to subscribe to our channel for the latest episodes each week and follow This Week in Hearing on LinkedIn, Instagram and X.

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