Written & Image credit to NCKU News Center.
 

National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) Department of Resources Engineering and Department of Mining and Petroleum Engineering Class of 1977 (66th Class) alumnus, Rehear Audiology Co., Ltd. Chairman Yeh Chia-Wen, returned to campus on the 5th at the invitation of the NCKU Phoenix Lecture series. Drawing on his own entrepreneurial and learning experiences, he shared what AI can do for human hearing and encouraged his younger NCKU peers that technology can solve problems and change the world, but must also carry medical and social responsibility.
 

National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) Department of Resources Engineering and Department of Mining and Petroleum Engineering Class of 1977 (66th Class) alumnus, Rehear Audiology Co., Ltd. Chairman Yeh Chia-Wen, returned to campus on the 5th at the invitation of the NCKU Phoenix Lecture series.
 

NCKU Vice President Li Yong-Chun delivered the opening remarks, describing alumnus Yeh’s career as a remarkable cross-boundary journey. Starting from mining, metallurgy, and petroleum engineering, Yeh first entered the pharmaceutical industry, where he introduced GMP standards at Shiteh Organic Chemical Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. and helped drive the upgrading of Taiwan’s pharmaceutical sector. He later moved into the high-tech industry and co-founded Realtek Semiconductor Corp., using its well-known “crab” chip to open international markets and bring Taiwanese chips onto the global stage. He then founded G.M.I. Technology Inc., which grew into a major electronic components distributor in the Asia-Pacific region, and has served as chairman of several listed and over-the-counter (OTC) companies, including Unitech Electronics and Unitech Computer Co., Ltd.
 

Vice President Li Yong-Chun stated that today’s theme, “From Hearing to Hearing Clearly,” aims to invite Mr. Yeh to share his entrepreneurial experience: what prompted him to establish Rehear Audiology Co., Ltd. in 2023, how the team combined AI chips with acoustics, and how chip development enables technology to help people with hearing loss solve difficulties in daily life. Currently, Rehear Audiology Co., Ltd.’s technology has entered the hearing-aid supply chain of top international headphone manufacturers. Just as NCKU has always taken University Social Responsibility (USR) as a development goal, he hopes to encourage the faculty and students present to work together so that the world can see NCKU.
 

NCKU Vice President Li Yong-Chun delivered the opening remarks, describing alumnus Yeh’s career as a remarkable cross-boundary journey.
 

Chairman Yeh Chia-Wen, who received the Outstanding Alumni Award from the Department of Resources Engineering in both the 2025 and 2026 (114th and 115th) academic years, stated that his learning journey originated at NCKU. During his time at the university, he received rigorous professional training in chemistry, electrical engineering, and geology. Building on the foundation of electrical engineering, he engaged in acoustic research. The World Health Organization estimates that by 2050, one in every four people worldwide will have hearing problems, with 1.5 billion people globally experiencing hearing loss. Hearing clearly relates to whether a person can converse with family, participate in society, and maintain dignity in life. Therefore, “hearing” is only the starting point; “hearing clearly” is the problem that technology truly needs to solve.
 

Yeh Chia-Wen stated that the current problem is that a pair of hearing aids costs NT$250,000 to NT$400,000 — who can afford such expensive hearing-assistance products? He therefore began investing in related product development. In 2022, the U.S. FDA’s OTC hearing-aid regulations officially took effect, allowing adults aged 18 and above who perceive themselves to have mild to moderate hearing loss to purchase over-the-counter hearing aids directly at pharmacies or online without a physician’s diagnosis, prescription, or on-site professional fitting.
 

‘From Hearing to Hearing Clearly — How AI Improves Human Hearing’Yeh Chia-Wen shared his own entrepreneurial experience and encouraged the junior students to always maintain enthusiasm for cross-disciplinary learning.
 

“What are headphones? You think they only have functions for listening to music and noise cancellation. But technological development has no boundaries!” Yeh Chia-Wen said. How to combine a professional medical product with a consumer electronic product is the first step in technology solving problems. Hearing aids and headphones use the same components; the difference lies in audiology, software, and medical validation. By adding AI functions to the original hardware equipment, a new product can be created, transforming a traditional Bluetooth headphone into a hearing device with hearing-aid functions to address hearing-loss problems.
 

Yeh Chia-Wen further shared that the same prescription and the same pair of headphones produce different eardrum sound pressures in different ear canals, so each person hears differently. Therefore, a fixed SOP is required for comparison and calibration. In 2023, Rehear Audiology Co., Ltd. combined AI chips with acoustics to develop hearing-aid technology. Through sonar methods, it developed a testing system, redefined headphone construction on a Software as a Medical Device (SaMD) platform, and the products it manufactures have entered the non-prescription (OTC) hearing-aid supply chain of top international headphone manufacturers. Currently, there are only two competitors worldwide: one is Apple and the other is Samsung. However, the company’s advantage is that it does not need to be bound to a mobile phone; as long as there is a chip, it can be universally applied across various products.
 

He shared what AI can do for human hearing and encouraged his younger NCKU peers that technology can solve problems and change the world.
 

“Do you know your hearing condition?” Chairman Yeh Chia-Wen said. As we enter an aging society, technology shoulders the mission of medical responsibility. However, how to ensure the accuracy and safety of products — when producing a “medical product,” it must withstand rigorous testing and cannot be ambiguous. This is the mission of technology professionals and the medical and social responsibility that must be observed. The brilliant speech attracted the full attention of the faculty and students present. Chairman Yeh finally encouraged the students to always maintain enthusiasm for cross-disciplinary learning. When encountering challenges and life turning points, bring out the unique resilience of people from the resources field, and success will surely follow.
 

NCKU Phoenix Lecture series on November 5