News and Announcements
Australia’s voice technology start-up hits the halfway mark for its seed raise
- Published September 02, 2022 12:00AM UTC
- Publisher Wholesale Investor
- Categories Company Updates
Imagine living one day without your voice. This lasts a lifetime for people who suffer permanent voice loss. But thanks to Laronix, there is a modern solution to the problem that affects this population.
Laronix was founded in 2018 with the vision of restoring natural voice for people with voice loss, including laryngectomy patients, who have permanently lost their larynx and subsequently their voice due to cancer. Existing solutions for this population are either extremely invasive or leave the patient with an unnatural-sounding voice. In some cases, the surgery leaves people with no voice and no solution at all. With the second-highest suicide rate among all cancer survivors, laryngectomy patients face challenges on a daily basis, not only with their physical health, but also mental health, employment ability, and feelings of isolation.
Laronix has developed Bionic Voice, the world’s first smart artificial voice-box, to solve the problem of permanent voice loss. Bionic Voice is non-invasive and registered with the FDA and TGA as Class I device. It significantly reduces the risk of infections and other complications seen with existing solutions. Bionic Voice uses natural voice technology to give people their unique voice back, whether male, female, or non-binary. Laronix is now working closely with two major hospitals in Australia and the US for the clinical testing of Bionic Voice and it is on track to launch this product in 2023.
By developing Bionic Voice, Laronix is creating a new global voice technology market worth AU$6.8 billion. As a fast-growing Australian voice technology start-up in the health domain, Laronix has already secured 50% of its AU$2 million seed raise. The Laronix Team continues its journey to solve permanent voice loss not only for laryngectomy patients, but also a broader population of people with voice impairment, such as structural and functional voice disorders. Laronix is excited to share this journey with collaborators and investors who also believe in the vision of bringing natural voice to people with voice loss and impairments.