In March, Starkey released Halo, a device tailored for Apple Inc.’s iPhone. Halo enables users to control their hearing aids from their phones, allowing them to geotag specific locations to automatically adjust sound levels, such as a loud restaurant or a quiet office, and gives them the ability to stream movies, music and phone calls.

Halo is the first Starkey product targeted to customers that might not have impaired hearing, according to Austin. The company will introduce similar products in the future, he said.

Reagan’s Ear

Austin has a net worth of $2.7 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. The company’s valuation is based on the average enterprise value-to-sales and enterprise value- to-earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization multiples of three publicly traded peers: Sonova Holding AG, William Demant Holding A/S and GN Store Nord A/S.

The company has allowed Austin to pursue a lifetime of charitable giving. From the outset, Starkey provided free hearing aids to any patient who couldn’t afford the cost. The philanthropic work is what distinguishes the company from its competitors, according to Kathleen Mennillo, Executive Director of the International Hearing Society, a Michigan-based membership association of audiology professionals.

“Through the foundation, they’ve gone above and beyond in addressing health care,” she said in a phone interview.

The billionaire, who keeps a mold of U.S. President Ronald Reagan’s ear in the company’s Minneapolis office, says he has poured $100 million of his own money into the Starkey Hearing Foundation. The organization delivers more than 100,000 free devices each year to people in the U.S. and in countries such as Rwanda, Ukraine and Vietnam.

Bush, Clinton

The foundation has drawn the support of volunteers such as Laura Bush and Chelsea Clinton, as well as several athletes and recording artists, who have joined Austin on mission trips around the world to provide hearing aids to those in need.

“What was good for the patient was good for the industry, and what was good for the industry was good for Starkey,” Austin said.