Aura

Today, we launched Trusted Family Access at Aura to address a largely unseen crisis unfolding in homes everywhere: older Americans facing a relentless wave of scams as losses reach $7.7 billion-- and family caregivers are left to spot the warning signs and pick up the pieces. The need to protect the people we love doesn’t end when they grow up. It changes shape, and as parents age, it can mean offering a second set of eyes without taking away their independence. Our new research shows how common this responsibility has become. Seventy percent of caregivers say they consider helping an aging loved one stay safe online a form of caregiving, while 81% worry scams could cost their loved one some privacy or independence. For the already stretched sandwich generation who care for both children and an aging adult, it’s one more responsibility to carry. In a separate Aura survey, 70% said they are the first line of defense when an aging loved one encounters a potential scam. So we built something to help. With Trusted Family Access, a trusted person can-- with permission-- help monitor signs of fraud and identity theft while their loved one remains in control. Because protecting families means supporting them at every stage of life. Read our press release: https://lnkd.in/gz4s2Tzn Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gbpt5GUh

This week’s Meta settlement marks an important shift in the kids’ online safety conversation: platforms can no longer place the burden on parents alone. The protections aren’t perfect, but they set a new baseline for responsible product design and raise the bar for TikTok, YouTube and others. But broader change takes time, and parents still need practical guidance to navigate the technology already shaping their kids’ lives. That’s especially true as students head back to school with more access to phones, school-issued devices and AI tools than ever. To help, Aura and Common Sense Media are hosting a live webinar to talk advice and insights on kids, technology and the new school year. I hope you’ll join us September 15 at 3 PM ET: https://lnkd.in/gGbgGBr3

Today is National Senior Citizens Day, and it’s a reminder that our parents and grandparents are navigating an online world that’s getting harder to trust. Scammers have always targeted older adults. But AI is making their tactics faster, cheaper and a lot more convincing— and it’s costing seniors billions. I recently spoke with Scripps News about this growing scam boom and what families need to know. Because if a scam can almost fool you, imagine how convincing it can be to an aging parent… Thanks for taking the time to connect on this important topic Emily Hanford-Ostmann! Check out the full interview here: https://lnkd.in/g6Np76tD 

A defining moment for Aura! Today, we reported our first earnings as the combined Aura and Qoria, a milestone that reflects not only strong execution, but the incredible work that's gone into bringing together two category leaders in just a few short weeks. Most importantly, it's a celebration of our people. Thank you to our teams around the world for making this possible! Together, we're building something truly global, and we're excited for what we'll accomplish in this next chapter. Read more from Hari below.

Major News: Today marks an extraordinary milestone as the transaction between Aura and Qoria is now complete. Starting Monday, our combined company will begin trading normally on the ASX under the ticker AXQ. Aura and Qoria have always been mission-driven, mission-aligned companies. We’re committed to creating a safer, healthier online world.  Together, we represent a significantly larger, more diversified business with global reach, bolstering Aura’s scaled consumer platform with a global base of Qustodio parent accounts and approximately 32,000 school customers.   On a pro forma combined basis, the group generated more than US$300 million in annual recurring revenue (ARR) for the year ended December 31, 2025, targeting +20% growth in calendar year 2026 and positive free cash flow from closing to December 31, 2026. Congratulations and our deepest gratitude to the teams, shareholders and families who have trusted us and have made this all possible. Let’s keep building! https://lnkd.in/g7NzHv6U

We are thrilled to announce that Steven Tristan Young has joined Aura as our new Global Chief Marketing Officer (CMO)! 🚀 Steven joins us at a defining moment. As we continue to scale our AI-powered online safety solutions, he will lead our global marketing strategy, partnering closely with our product teams to drive our next phase of growth and redefine digital protection for families and individuals worldwide. Steven also brings an incredible track record of scaling household consumer brands. Most recently, he served as CMO at Poshmark, where he led their 2021 NASDAQ IPO, drove international expansion, and supported their acquisition by Naver Corp. Prior to that, he was VP of Growth at Grubhub, steering consecutive years of double-digit growth. Please join us in giving Steven a warm welcome to the Aura team! 🌐 💙 👉 Read the full announcement here: https://lnkd.in/guF9PF3u

Last weekend marked the official start of summer, and for parents, that means the "digital tug-of-war" has begun. ☀️📱 Research from Aura reveals that 44% of kids say they feel more pressure to be online than they do to drink or ditch class. This summer, we’re moving beyond the stopwatch of "screen time" to look at the real impact of tech on our families—and how to stay safe from the seasonal scammers hiding in the noise. Read our latest post on how to prepare for a liberating, safe summer.

Toy Story 5 hit theaters this past weekend, bringing a reality many parents know all too well to the big screen: these days, kids are often reaching for tablets before they reach for toys. Rhitu Chatterjee's just published NPR piece explores this shift, using research from Aura’s latest report to show that the movie’s premise is closer to reality than fiction. Childhood is changing, and summer makes that especially clear as screen time climbs when school is out. Thank you, Rhitu, for tackling such an important topic and helping drive this critical conversation. Check out the full story for a deeper look at what the data says about kids’ summer screen use and tips from experts on how to handle it.  https://lnkd.in/ewbFhBEH

The Surgeon General’s office just issued a formal advisory warning that excessive screen time is becoming a serious health concern for kids and teens. It notes that many kids spend 4+ hours a day on screens, and nearly half say they lose track of time on their phones altogether. It also links heavy screen use to worse sleep, lower school performance, less physical activity, and weaker in-person relationships… We see those patterns regularly in Aura Parents data, which is why we launched our Digital Wellbeing Score: to help parents spot device-use behaviors linked to changes in mood, stress, and sleep. What we found reinforces that it’s about habits, not just hours. Kids with lower digital wellbeing check their phones 7x more, send 5x more messages, and switch apps 3x more than peers with higher digital wellbeing. Heading into summer when screen time climbs the highest for kids and teens, it couldn’t be more relevant. You can learn more about it at aura.com/parents. And, stay tuned for our upcoming report on what kids’ summer screen use really looks like. https://lnkd.in/ezKVd7AP