Oura is going public, but these smart ring companies are coming for its crown

Oura has officially filed to go public, with the paperwork submitted on September 3, according to the company. The Finnish smart ring maker reported that its revenue nearly doubled to $1.21 billion for the nine months ending June 30, and it said it has sold 3.6 million rings over the past year along with roughly 5 million paid members. The filing follows the launch of the Oura Ring 5, which the company describes as its slimmest and lightest model to date.

Oura’s move comes as the smart ring market expands with new competitors pursuing different strategies. French company Circular announced this week that its upcoming ring will support tap-to-pay contactless payments, while Chinese firm RingConn introduced a ring this year featuring haptic vibrations. Ultrahuman, based in India, announced this week that it raised $70 million with backing from Qualcomm’s venture arm, and the company says it is working on a ring capable of running software directly on the device, eventually supporting AI interactions and games.

The competition is no longer limited to health and sleep tracking, as companies push to add smartphone-like functions to small titanium bands. Some rings now include screens, such as the Pebble Halo, which is currently sold only in India, while others promise touchpads, like the Dreame Ring. This trend contrasts with the original appeal of smart rings, which was to offer a less intrusive alternative to smartwatches and phones for monitoring health without constant screen time.

Ultrahuman’s Ring Pro, priced at $479, is set to begin shipping in the U.S. in mid-September. The company’s U.S. business was disrupted in October 2025 when the U.S. International Trade Commission ruled in Oura’s favor in a patent dispute, blocking Ultrahuman from importing new ring inventory into the country. Ultrahuman developed the Ring Pro with a redesigned form factor to work around Oura’s patent, and the device includes a new heart-rate sensing system for better sleep signal quality and a dual-core processor for more accurate data and on-device processing.

Circular’s Ring 3 series, including Pro and Slim models, is expected to launch early next year. Both rings will have an integrated NFC chip for contactless payments and haptic vibrations for silent alarms, reminders, and health alerts. The Ring 3 Pro is slimmer than its predecessor and offers FDA-cleared ECG for AFib detection, blood pressure trend tracking, glucose tracking, advanced sleep analysis, and comprehensive biometric monitoring.

RingConn’s Gen 3, which launched in May and starts at $349, provides vascular health insights by using sensor data to assess changes in vascular strain after calibration with externally measured blood pressure values. It also tracks heart rate, blood oxygen saturation, sleep, activity, and stress, and uses vibration alerts for health changes, sedentary reminders, and low battery. Samsung’s Galaxy Ring, released in 2024 and priced at $399, is positioned as a strong option for users within Samsung’s device ecosystem, though it lacks some advanced features such as sleep apnea detection and AFib detection, which are available on competing models.

Dreame, a newer entrant, unveiled a ring this year with haptic alerts for alarms, calls, and messages, plus a small touchpad for actions like skipping songs or taking photos on a connected phone. The ring also offers heart rate tracking, blood oxygen monitoring, heart rate variability insights, and sleep analysis. These devices, alongside the others, illustrate a market where Oura’s dominance faces challenges from multiple angles, each aiming to blend health tracking with expanded functionality.

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