How Auracast Broadcast Audio Simplifies Accessibility in Public Spaces
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Published July 14, 2026
A variety of solutions aim to help people with hearing loss in public settings, from hearing loops to infrared or FM transmitters. Unfortunately, this range of solutions relies on various protocols, which can lead to compatibility mismatches between the hearing accessibility option offered by a venue and a user’s hearing aid or implant. Auracast™ broadcasts audio over the Bluetooth® LE Audio protocol, providing a convenient audio solution for venues and conference halls by enabling connection to users’ existing mobile phones, hearing aids, or headphones.
This week’s New Tech Tuesdays explores the technology behind audio accessibility and how a universal protocol that requires minimal additional hardware could expand options for audio assistance.
Reimagining Audio Assistance Technologies
The most common form of audio assistance today is the hearing loop, an induction loop that surrounds a venue and transmits to telecoils in users’ hearing aids or cochlear implants (Figure 1). Hearing loops deliver clean audio directly from microphone or speaker feeds in conference halls, airports, taxis, places of worship, homes, and theaters. However, not every venue has a hearing loop, and not every hearing aid has a telecoil. As advocates for hearing accessibility push for more hearing loop installations, the number of hearing aids with telecoils is declining as more Bluetooth-enabled options become available.[1]
Figure 1: A sign showing an ear with a line through it and a capital “T” indicates a space is equipped with a hearing loop that transmits audio to users’ telecoils. (Source: JuanCi Studio/stock.adobe.com)
Bluetooth Auracast offers a service similar to hearing loops, but with less hardware. Normally, Bluetooth audio connections are one-to-one, with a single audio source connecting to a single Bluetooth device. Auracast enables one-to-many connections, allowing a single device to broadcast to an unlimited number of Bluetooth receivers, such as hearing aids or headphones. Users experience clear audio, and venues need only install a Bluetooth transmitter rather than an entire induction loop system.
The Newest Products for Your Newest Designs®
The Ezurio Aurawave AW100 Auracast Platform simplifies the transition to Auracast systems with a convenient package and preconfigured firmware that can be tailored to users’ specific needs. Rather than rebuilding an audio setup around Auracast, users can connect the Aurawave AW100 to their existing audio hardware. The platform supports audio over I2S, USB, or line-level analog via the 40-pin header. The internal antenna enables the platform to broadcast without additional RF hardware.
The platform is designed to be as simple as possible to deploy, without requiring Bluetooth expertise. Hands-on support from Cloud2GND is available to help get users’ ideas to production if they have a unique use case.[2] The firmware supports standard Internet of Things (IoT) AT commands, and users can flash custom firmware via the 10-pin SWD header. The Auracast platform is suitable for a variety of applications, from hearing assistance in large public settings to personal devices such as speakers and athletic helmets.
Tuesday’s Takeaway
Hearing loops are a beneficial technology for many users, and they are not facing obsolescence. Auracast systems will likely coexist with existing hearing loop installations, much as auxiliary ports have coexisted with Bluetooth audio systems since the 2010s.
Reimagining Bluetooth as a broadcast medium rather than a one-to-one connection opens new possibilities for accessibility and shared audio experiences. Beyond improving accessibility in public spaces, Auracast can power multi-speaker entertainment setups, silent TVs that broadcast to headphones, and other broadcast audio applications that benefit from higher fidelity levels than FM radio offers.
Sources
[1]https://hearingreview.com/hearing-products/accessories/assistive-technologies/whats-going-on-more-loops-and-fewer-telecoils
[2]https://www.ezurio.com/product/aurawave-aw100-series-auracast-development-board