Hearing Aids: Key takeaways from the EUHA Conference 2026

We attended the EUHA hearing conference in Hannover, Germany, hearing management presentations from Sonova, Demant, WSA (private) and GN Store Nord. Key takeaways: (1) In line with Demant's guidance upgrade, the hearing aid market accelerated in Q3, helped by concurrent product launches and higher marketing spend, which likely released pent-up demand, though manufacturers were hesitant to comment on the recovery's sustainability; (2) AI/DNN technology still offers significant headroom, with a step-change already achieved in speech-in-noise performance but the industry still in the early innings; (3) disruption from outside players remains a perennial worry, with this year's focus on United Imaging and Fortell, where distribution remains the key barrier; (4) consumerization is increasing as users become better educated before their first fitting, requiring manufacturers to shape consumer brand awareness. We continue to like Sonova best (Outperform, CHF 285 target);