#1717
Bill Austin
Overview
- Source of Wealth
- Hearing aids
- Industry
- Manufacturing
- Residence
- Brownsville, Texas
- Education
- High School (High School Graduate)
- Marital Status
- Married
- Children
- 3
Biography
Bill Austin owns Starkey Hearing Technologies, the largest hearing aid manufacturer in the U.S.
He bought a hearing aid parts shop, which was then called Starkey Labs, for $13,000 in 1970.
Austin fired several top executives of Starkey Hearing in 2015, a tumultuous time for the company.
That move unleashed a series of events that resulted in the former company president being found guilty of federal fraud charges in 2018.
Austin spends much of his time traveling to developing countries for his Starkey Hearing Foundation, distributing hearing aids.
About
Starkey's customers have reportedly included five U.S. presidents, two popes and singer Dolly Parton.
The Starkey Hearing Foundation says it has donated over 1.5 million hearing aids around the world.