Oura is going public, but these smart ring companies are coming for its crown
TechCrunch
β’Sat, 05 Sep 2026 15:00:00 +0000
π° What Happened
Oura officially filed to go public on September 3, with its revenue nearly doubling to $1.21 billion for the nine months ended June 30. The Finnish company says it sold 3.6 million rings over the past year and has around 5 million paid members, and the filing follows the launch of the Oura Ring 5, its slimmest and lightest ring yet. Meanwhile, rivals are emerging from many angles: French company Circular announced its upcoming ring will allow tap-to-pay, Chinese company RingConn debuted a ring with haptic vibrations, and Indian company Ultrahuman raised $70 million with backing from Qualcomm's venture arm for software that runs on the device itself.
π The Backstory
Oura has largely dominated the smart ring market for years, but the category is rapidly expanding beyond health and sleep tracking. The race is now about cramming the most smartphone-like features into a two-gram titanium band, with companies betting on payments, haptics, on-device software and even screens, such as the Pebble Halo, which is currently available only in India.
π― Why It Matters
Smart rings are one of the fastest-growing wearable categories, and Oura's IPO is a major milestone for it. The intensifying competition signals that the next wave of wearables may be smaller, more capable and far more personal, and investors are betting billions on who wins.
Oura officially filed to go public on September 3, with its revenue nearly doubling to $1.21 billion for the nine months ended June 30. The Finnish company says it sold 3.6 million rings over the past year and has around 5 million paid members, and the filing follows the launch of the Oura Ring 5, its slimmest and lightest ring yet. Meanwhile, rivals are emerging from many angles: French company Circular announced its upcoming ring will allow tap-to-pay, Chinese company RingConn debuted a ring with haptic vibrations, and Indian company Ultrahuman raised $70 million with backing from Qualcomm's venture arm for software that runs on the device itself.
Oura has largely dominated the smart ring market for years, but the category is rapidly expanding beyond health and sleep tracking. The race is now about cramming the most smartphone-like features into a two-gram titanium band, with companies betting on payments, haptics, on-device software and even screens, such as the Pebble Halo, which is currently available only in India.
Smart rings are one of the fastest-growing wearable categories, and Oura's IPO is a major milestone for it. The intensifying competition signals that the next wave of wearables may be smaller, more capable and far more personal, and investors are betting billions on who wins.