Together, Michael and Hiroshi made a dozen more prototypes and tested every version.
They tested Auris on 32 people with constant ringing in their ears. Young adults. Older adults. People with mild ringing in one ear. People with severe, debilitating tinnitus in both ears.
High-pitched ringing, low-frequency humming, pulsatile whooshing, & cricket-like chirping.
They tested every frequency. Every sound type. Every use case.
The results were astonishing.
87% of participants reported significant relief with consistent Use
The results held across every age group. 30s, 50s, even 70s.
One participant was 68. Severe tinnitus for over a decade. She thought her brain was too old to change.
After two months of daily use, the ringing faded so far into the background she'd forget about it for hours.
And here's what surprised Michael most: people didn't stay dependent on it.
In the first few weeks, users needed it daily. But after 8-12 weeks of retraining, their brains held the pattern. The relief lasted even when the device was off.
They still used it occasionally. During flare-ups or for maintenance. But it was no longer a crutch. It was a tool that had done its job.
It didn’t matter what caused their tinnitus. Hearing loss, noise exposure, TMJ, sinus issues, stress, or even surgery. Whether they wore hearing aids or not. Auris worked across every type of case they tested.
People with severe tinnitus reported feeling peace of mind. They could finally rest.
Waking up each morning without that heavy sense of dread in their chest. The constant anxiety was gone.
They felt lighter, less tense, and more present in everyday life. The mental fog and exhaustion that tinnitus brought began to lift.
After six months of testing, Michael and Hiroshi launched the product in the U.S.
They sourced the initial production through Hiroshi’s connections in Japan.
The product was named Auris — Latin for "ear" — to honor the breakthrough that gave Michael his life back.