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Exclusive: TympaHealth hears $23M Series A

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Illustration of a hand whispering into Benjamin Franklin's ear.  

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

Hearing-health startup TympaHealth raised $23 million in Series A funding, CEO Krishan Ramdoo tells Axios exclusively.

Why it's the BFD: Roughly 1 in 5 U.S. residents over age 12 has hearing loss and the condition's prevalence rises with age, but Medicare doesn't cover hearing aids or aid-fitting exams.

Deal details: Octopus Ventures led the round with support from new backers Dara Capital, Rezayat and individual investors Bob Davis and Jeff Leerink, as well as previous investors.

  • London-based Tympa will use the capital to expand in the U.S. and has named former Oticon executive David Horowitz vice president of sales for the country.
  • Ramdoo expects the company to raise its Series B in 2024.

How it works: Tympa serves roughly 28,000 patients a month by training a range of providers to perform virtual hearing assessments and diagnostics, which are then logged in its homegrown electronic health record.

  • In the U.K., the company provides its hardware and software on a £200 ($248) monthly subscription basis to organizations including Walgreens Boots Alliance, Sonova, Bupa and the British National Health Service (NHS).
  • At roughly 100 pharmacies, pharmacists use Tympa's tech to conduct hearing assessments and diagnostics.
  • The company has plans to publish more in peer-reviewed medical journals, says Ramdoo.
  • In 2022, it published a small study in The Journal of Laryngology and Otology concluding that medical students could use its smartphone-enabled video otoscopes to conduct ear exams and do wax removal.

What's next: In the U.S., Tympa is targeting primary care settings, retailers and pharmacies.

  • "Our secret sauce is the digital platform," Ramdoo tells Axios.

Of note: Several studies, including a 2020 international review published in The Lancet, place hearing loss among a dozen other modifiable risk factors for dementia — meaning early intervention may offer some protection against the disease.

The backstory: A practicing ear nose and throat surgeon for the NHS, Ramdoo had a "lightbulb moment" to start Tympa after participating in its clinical entrepreneurship program and seeing a patient's life changed dramatically by a hearing aid.

  • "When I followed up six months later, she was a completely new person," says Ramdoo.

What they're saying: Octopus Ventures partner and Tympa investor Joe Stringer sees equal market-capturing potential for the startup in the U.K. and U.S.

  • "It’s a wide open competitive landscape," Stringer says. "It's a perfect storm with end-users who are willing to pay, professionals who want to use it to make themselves more efficient, plus product market fit."

State of play: An FDA decision last summer to move hearing aids over the counter has pushed startups and large tech companies toward the hearing health market, expected to generate $12 billion in sales by 2031, per a recent Kenneth Research report.

Why it matters: Roughly 1 in 5 U.S. residents over age 12 has hearing loss and the condition's prevalence rises with age — but Medicare doesn't cover hearing aids or aid-fitting exams.

Deal details: Octopus Ventures led the round with support from new backers Dara Capital, Rezayat and individual investors Bob Davis and Jeff Leerink, as well as previous investors.

  • London-based Tympa will use the capital to expand in the U.S. and has named former Oticon executive David Horowitz vice president of sales for the country.
  • Ramdoo expects the company to raise its Series B in 2024.

How it works: Tympa serves roughly 28,000 patients a month by training a range of providers to perform virtual hearing assessments and diagnostics, which are then logged in its homegrown electronic health record.

  • In the U.K., the company provides its hardware and software on a £200 ($248) monthly subscription basis to organizations including Walgreens Boots Alliance, Sonova, Bupa and the British National Health Service (NHS).
  • At roughly 100 pharmacies, pharmacists use Tympa's tech to conduct hearing assessments and diagnostics.
  • The company has plans to publish more in peer-reviewed medical journals, says Ramdoo.
  • In 2022 it published a small study in The Journal of Laryngology and Otology concluding that medical students could use its smartphone-enabled video otoscopes to conduct ear exams and do wax removal.

What's next: In the U.S., Tympa is targeting primary care settings, retailers and pharmacies.

  • "Our secret sauce is the digital platform," says Ramdoo.

Of note: Several studies place hearing loss among a dozen other modifiable risk factors for dementia, including a 2020 international review published in The Lancet — meaning intervening early may offer some protection against the disease.

The backstory: A practicing ear nose and throat (ENT) surgeon for the NHS, Ramdoo had a "lightbulb moment" to start Tympa after participating in its clinical entrepreneurship program and seeing a patient's life changed dramatically by a hearing aid.

  • "When I followed up six months later, she was a completely new person," Ramdoo recalls.

What they're saying: Octopus Ventures partner and Tympa investor Joe Stringer sees equal market-capturing potential for the startup in the U.K. and U.S.

  • "It’s a wide open competitive landscape," Stringer says. "It's a perfect storm with end-users who are willing to pay, professionals who want to use it to make themselves more efficient, plus product market fit."

State of play: An FDA decision last summer to move hearing aids over the counter (OTC) has pushed startups and large tech companies toward the hearing health market, expected to generate $12 billion in sales by 2031, per a recent Kenneth Research report.

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