​Apple face lawsuit after AirPods shatter child’s eardrums

Apple is currently facing a lawsuit from the parents of a boy who has now been rendered partially deaf after a set of AirPods shattered one of his eardrums.

Caused by a volume spike from Apple’s Amber Alert, the “ear-shattering” incident has led the boy to permanent hearing loss, in which he will have to wear a hearing aid for the rest of his life.

Parents of the boy, a Texas couple who have not been named, are now filing a lawsuit against the tech conglomerate per NBC News.

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The child - referred to as B.G. - was allegedly watching Netflix on a “low volume” before Apple’s Amber Alert sounded.

According to the suit, the alarm “went off suddenly, and without warning, at a volume that tore apart B.G.’s eardrum, damaged his cochlea, and caused significant injuries to B.G.’s hearing.”

Parents of B.G. say that the boy suffered dizziness, vertigo, tinnitus and nausea following the incident, which happened in 2020. The then 12-year-old boy was told he would have to wear a hearing aid for the rest of his life.

The suit also claims that “the AirPods do not automatically reduce, control, limit, or increment notification or alert volumes to a safe level that causes them to emit.”

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Speaking on the case, the family’s attorney, Tej Paranjpe, said: “This boy’s life has been severely altered because Apple did not provide a warning about the volume levels of its AirPods, leading to his permanent hearing loss.

“Had Apple designed the AirPods to self-adjust to safe levels or provided warnings about the volume increases associated with alerts, this boy would be living a normal life.”

The family are seeking a number of damages as a result of the case, including physical harm, disability, emotional trauma, and expenses for future medical bills.

Gemma Ross is Mixmag's Editorial Assistant, follow her on Twitter