Smart rings are becoming more than fitness trackers. Behind features such as sleep tracking, heart-rate monitoring and AI-generated health insights is a growing set of patents covering everything from biometric sensing to power management.
As these capabilities expand, companies are competing to develop and protect the technologies behind AI smart rings. Our patent analysis examines the leading assignees and their technology focus, spanning biometric sensing, AI-enabled analysis, hardware and power management.
Growing market for AI smart rings
Smart rings are wearable devices that use sensors embedded in a ring to collect physiological and behavioral data from the finger. Oura launched its first-generation Oura Ring in 2015, initially focusing on sleep and recovery tracking. As wearable technology advanced, smart rings incorporated more sophisticated sensing and data-processing capabilities, expanding beyond sleep tracking to metrics such as heart rate, temperature, blood oxygen, activity, and recovery.
The category gained broader attention in the 2020s as major technology companies entered the market. In 2024, Samsung introduced the Galaxy Ring, combining multiple health sensors with AI-powered health features. The entry of major technology companies has also contributed to growing interest in smart-ring patents.
Patent activity points to a broader competitive landscape than the consumer market alone suggests. Our analysis identified Goertek, Oura Health, Quanata and Samsung Electronics as the four largest assignees in our dataset. Their portfolios span biometric sensing, hardware design, power management, connectivity and AI-driven data processing.
Patents from Goertek and Quanata, for instance, cover smart-ring design, biometric functions, energy harvesting and machine-learning applications, showing that patent activity extends beyond the consumer-facing features of the devices.
Top Assignees and their technology focus
| Company | Technology Focus |
| Goertek | Wearable hardware, optical and microelectronic components, sensing, and charging technologies |
| Oura Health | Physiological sensing, sleep analysis, health metrics, and personalized health data |
| Quanata | Energy harvesting, power management, biometric sensing, and machine learning |
| Samsung Electronics | Biometric sensing, health monitoring, sleep analysis, and AI-assisted data processing |
The portfolios show different approaches to building smart-ring technology. Oura Health and Samsung Electronics are more closely focused on health-oriented technologies, reflecting the category’s emphasis on continuous health and wellness monitoring. Oura’s technologies are associated with functions such as sleep and health tracking, while Samsung has incorporated health-monitoring capabilities into its Galaxy Ring. Forbes similarly identifies health and wellness monitoring as a key feature of the emerging smart-ring category.
Meanwhile, Goertek and Quanata contribute technologies focused on the underlying hardware and device functionality. Goertek’s portfolio spans several parts of the technology stack, including device components, hardware design, sensing, and other supporting functions. Quanata, meanwhile, focuses more heavily on technologies related to power management and intelligent device functions.
Taken together, the four portfolios show that smart-ring innovation extends beyond health monitoring. Physiological sensing, hardware, power management, connectivity and data processing all contribute to the capabilities of a compact wearable, with companies approaching different parts of the technology.