Xander, a Boston-based startup that’s developing assistive technology to enhance daily, in-person communication for individuals, families, and teams affected by hearing loss has announced that it has raised $1.4 million in pre-seed funding.
The company has shared that it’ll use the funding to accelerate the market launch of its first product named XanderGlasses. Augmented reality (AR) captioning glasses that were created as an alternative to hearing aids.
Alex Westner, co-founder and CEO at Xander commented, “We believe that assistive technology provides the most significant benefit when it’s uncomplicated and reliable. XanderGlasses function like a simple ‘on’ and ‘off’ device. They work wherever people need them, whether they are at home, at work, or in a loud public setting. In this augmented reality experience, captions display in the field of view of the wearer, which enables the wearer to look directly at the person they’re speaking with and refer to the captions as needed, instead of fumbling with complicated screens.”
Help for those who need it
The company also revealed that despite advances in other assistive hearing devices, there are many cases where devices that are supposed to adjust or amplify sound don’t work.
Xander’s AR captioning XanderGlasses on the other hand is powered by Vuzix’ Blade smart glasses. This provides a lightweight smart glasses solution that uses the sense of sight to supplement sound for users.
The glasses also come with real-time captioning that helps improve cognition and understanding for users, especially in noisy environments and in difficult listening situations. Xander’s captioning glasses also provide inobtrusive assistance and help to significantly improve understanding of speech during conversations for users.
The pre-seed funding round was led by Ray Stata, co-founder and board member of Analog Devices, with participation from Mark Ethier, co-founder of iZotope, the 77, and additional angel investors.
Isa Muhammad is a writer and video game journalist covering many aspects of entertainment media including the film industry. He's steadily writing his way to the sharp end of journalism and enjoys staying informed. If he's not reading, playing video games or catching up on his favourite TV series, then he's probably writing about them.
