Meta adds an FDA-cleared, prescription-free hearing aid feature to its smart glasses
Meta announced Hearing Enhancement, a software feature for its Meta-branded smart glasses (not the Ray-Ban Meta line, at least initially) that amplifies and processes environmental sound for adults with mild to moderate hearing loss. The underlying software, Hearing Assist, received FDA 510(k) clearance on July 13, 2026, as a Class II over-the-counter self-fitting hearing aid, using Apple's Hearing Aid Feature as its predicate device. Users set it up and self-fit through a smartphone app with no clinic visit or prescription required; the feature costs $149.99 as an add-on, is included with a Meta One subscription, and is HSA/FSA eligible.
Why it's notable: It puts an FDA-cleared hearing aid into a mainstream consumer device for the first time, extending the OTC hearing aid model started by Apple to another large tech platform and giving more patients with mild-to-moderate hearing loss a self-service path that bypasses an audiologist visit.