A young girl born profoundly deaf was brought to tears after trying on high-tech glasses that allow her to "see" conversations in real time.

Kendyl Pool, 10, has relied on American Sign Language (ASL) since infancy due to inner ear malformations that prevent her from hearing. Her mother, Bri, discovered the $1,500 caption glasses on TikTok and immediately knew they could be life-changing for her daughter. She surprised Kendyl with them on her birthday.

“Kendyl had no idea these even existed,” Bri said. “When she put them on and I started talking, she was completely shocked. She even cried a little because she couldn’t believe she could see what I was saying right in front of her.”

The glasses, developed by HearView, connect via Bluetooth to an app that uses voice recognition to transcribe speech. The text appears on a small screen inside the lenses, allowing Kendyl to follow conversations more easily. They also help her practice speaking by letting her check if her words are displayed correctly.

“She can’t hear herself speak, so she uses the glasses to check if she’s pronouncing words right,” Bri explained. “She’ll say ‘Mom, Mom, Mom’ and wait to see if it pops up. When it does, she gets so excited.”

Being the only deaf person in her family, Kendyl has sometimes struggled with feeling different. The glasses have already boosted her confidence, allowing her to communicate with people who don’t know ASL and participate more fully in social activities.

A key feature of the glasses is their ability to store conversations, so Kendyl can review important discussions later—such as instructions from teachers or doctors.

“For so long, captions on TVs or devices have been inaccurate or lagging, making it hard for deaf people to fully experience what’s being said,” Bri said. “But I tested these glasses myself, speaking fast and using different phrases, and they are incredibly accurate.”

“This is a huge step for inclusion. These glasses provide full access to conversations in real time, and that is life-changing.”