The drama surrounding Oura’s smart ring patents didn’t start overnight. It’s been brewing for a while. As one of the first companies to make smart rings functional, Oura carved out a niche with its design. But it wasn’t long before rivals came along, launching rings that looked an awful lot like Oura’s.
That didn’t sit well with the original ring bearer, who is now hissing and standing over its precious patents. The company has taken the matter straight to the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) and argues that the newcomers had blatantly ripped off their design. Did they?
Yes, they copied and ITC rules in favor of Oura
There’s copying, then strategic imitation, so precise that it borders on theft. It’s not uncommon for companies to be “inspired” by competitors. A feature here and a shape there make their next best flagship happen. So the question becomes whether Ultrahuman and RingConn follow industry trends or whether they outright copied Oura’s design.
According to the US International Trade Commission, it was a replication. After analyzing engineering schematics, tear-downs, and internal documentation, the ITC ruled that both rivals infringed on Oura’s patents. The ruling was decisive, but if there was any hope of redemption and understanding of intent, Ultrahuman torched its credibility by faking evidence about its manufacturing process with photoshopped logos and doctored documents.
Oura, not wanting to play nice, hired a private investigator to dig deeper, and the deception unraveled quickly. The ITC judge then called Ultrahuman’s CEO “not credible” and slammed the company for its lack of honesty.
Related: Circular Ring 2 Will Support Two Cutting-Edge Health Metrics
What’s next for the copycats?
Both Ultrahuman and RingConn should be banned from importing or selling their rings in the US. This is a fair punishment, considering that patents exist for a reason. They grant inventors a time-limited monopoly in exchange for revealing their innovation to the world.
It incentivizes companies to spend time and money on Research and Development. Oura, for example, wasn’t merely first to market. It pioneered biometric sensing in a ring form factor and many other features. Plus, Ultrahuman and RingConn had choices. They could have negotiated licensing agreements, designed around the patents, or created original products themselves.
We’re happy with the initial determination, which validates our position and the strength of our patents in the U.S. The initial determination is subject to review by the full Commission in the coming months, and we’re optimistic that the Commission will make a similar determination that Oura’s inventions and patents are being infringed upon by foreign competitors.
Oura
Regardless, Oura is optimistic about the court’s rulings and isn’t shy about showing off their victory. In a recent blog post, Oura celebrated the favorable determination and doubled down on its identity as the best wearable tech.
The case is a big win for the company and a loud message to competitors because the US is arguably the most commercially influential market for wearables. The US wearable technology market alone was estimated at USD 42.96 billion in 2023 and is projected to reach around USD 177.64 billion by 2034.
