InnoCaption Co-CEO Joe Duarte receives Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA) Lifetime Achievement Award

BUENA PARK, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE( HLAA) 2022 Convention in Tampa, Florida. Throughout his career, Joe has been dedicated to developing technologies and implementing them to improve communication for people with hearing loss.

The award recognizes Joe for his longstanding and unwavering commitment to the hearing impaired community. He was nominated by HLAA staff who have seen first hand Joe’s contributions over the years to HLAA and people with hearing loss.

“From the time he launched Duartek, to his work to make our conventions accessible, to our national office, to InnoCaption, Joe has been a tireless advocate for the deaf and hard of hearing community. We are thrilled to recognize his efforts and accomplishments which have made a difference in the lives of so many,” said Barbara Kelley, Executive Director, HLAA.

Joe was born in Portugal, where his hearing loss was repeatedly misdiagnosed until he received his first hearing aid at the age of 4. He then moved to the United States while in high school, eventually earning a degree in biomedical electrical engineering. He received his first cochlear implant in 2008.

Joe founded the accessibility design and consultancy company Duartek, which provided audio visual solutions and bespoke integrated systems with a particular focus on auditory accessibility and connectivity with hearing aids and cochlear implants. He successfully built and ran the business for 30 years. Joe first learned about InnoCaption at a conference while it was still in the testing and development phase. He was so inspired by the innovation that he got directly involved with the fledgling startup to help launch the app and share the technology with the world.

“Joe is a strong believer and advocate for technology that improves the lives of people living with hearing loss. His innovative spirit and vision have brought to life truly life-changing technology to improve access to communication said Barbara.

“While hearing loss inherently presents challenges to communications, it has been exciting and rewarding to harness the power of technology to help overcome these challenges. Throughout my life, I have felt the need to help spread the word about ways to improve relationships with each other, and it’s an honor to be recognized today by this great organization,” said Joe.

The Hearing Loss Association of America is the leading national organization representing the growing number of people with hearing loss in the United States. Its mission is to empower people with hearing loss through access to communication, education, support and advocacy.

About InnoCaption

InnoCaption is the only FCC certified captioning phone service to offer real-time captioning of incoming and outgoing calls on smartphones via stenographers. InnoCaption also offers the ability to caption using the best Automated Speech Recognition (ASR) technology when users prefer not to have a live assistant during calls. This captioning service is federally funded and provided free of charge to people whose hearing loss makes it difficult to understand phone calls. www.InnoCaption.com