MED-EL

MED-EL is a global technology company that 
researches in the field of hearing loss and develops 
and manufactures implantable hearing systems. 
These include cochlear implants, middle ear 
implants, bone conduction hearing implants, 
electric acoustic stimulation hearing implant 
systems and auditory brainstem implants. The 
company is headquartered in Innsbruck, Austria 
and was founded in 1990. MED-EL is a private company and is managed by its co-owner Ingeborg Hochmair, who is an internationally acclaimed 
scientist and researcher.
Background.
Austrian scientists Ingeborg Hochmair and Erwin Hochmair developed the first passive single-channel cochlear implant. The implantation of this device took place in 1977 in Vienna and was a milestone in the treatment of deafness .
After further developing the technology the Hochmair’s went on to found MED-EL, in Innsbruck, Austria in 1990. Since 2003, the American physiologist and award-winning inventor Geoffrey R. Ball has become CTO of the company’s business unit VIBRANT MED-EL.
Research and development.
In August 2013, a new building was inaugurated specifically designed for research & development.
MED-EL operates in over 100 countries worldwide including Europe, America, the Middle East, Asia and Australia. The headquarters of the company are in Innsbruck, Austria.
Awards.
Ingeborg and Erwin Hochmair were awarded in 2004 the Honorary Doctorate for Medicine from Technical University of Munich as “Pioneers of the hearing impaired technology” for developing the first multichannel cochlear implant with hybrid technology. In 2013, Ingeborg Hochmair received the prestigious Lasker-DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award in New York for her part in developing the modern cochlear implant.