Oura Deepens Patent War With Ultrahuman, Seeking U.S. Sales Ban on Redesigned Ring Pro

Smart ring pioneer Oura has escalated its legal battle against its Bengaluru-based rival Ultrahuman, filing a fresh patent infringement lawsuit in the United States designed to block the American sales of the startup’s flagship Ring Pro device. The legal maneuver comes mere months after Ultrahuman successfully executed a product redesign that allowed the Indian wearable technology company to claw its way back into the lucrative U.S. market following a debilitating import ban.

The federal complaint, lodged on Thursday in a Texas district court, marks the latest chapter in an aggressive legal campaign waged by Oura. Over the past few years, the Finnish smart-ring maker has leveraged its intellectual property portfolio to aggressively target competing hardware manufacturers across the globe, initiating high-stakes litigation against major industry players such as Samsung, RingConn, Circular, and Zepp Health.

According to the newly filed legal documents, Oura alleges that Ultrahuman’s redesigned Ring Pro directly infringes two distinct patents held by the company. These legal claims focus specifically on the intricate design elements and vital internal components of the smart ring, including its proprietary battery architecture and sensitive sensor arrays. In response to the alleged violations, Oura is pursuing significant monetary damages alongside a permanent injunction that would effectively halt the importation, marketing, and distribution of the Ring Pro across the United States.

The friction between the two wearable tech companies has been building steadily since 2023, when Oura initially sued Ultrahuman over the Ring Air. That earlier model had been instrumental in helping the Indian startup establish a recognizable brand presence and gain traction in the American market. Seeking to decisively cut off its competitor’s momentum, Oura brought a separate case before the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) in 2024. That administrative proceeding culminated in a favorable ruling for Oura in August of last year, triggering a formal import ban that temporarily severed Ultrahuman’s access to U.S. consumers.

Undaunted by the regulatory setback, Ultrahuman engineers went back to the drawing board to re-engineer their hardware. The resulting Ring Pro was officially launched in February, featuring substantial modifications intended to steer clear of Oura’s existing legal claims. Those efforts initially bore fruit when U.S. Customs and Border Protection issued a favorable ruling in March, clearing the way for Ultrahuman to stage a major commercial comeback in the American market.

However, Oura contends that the customs clearance was overly narrow and only addressed the single patent tied to the previous trade commission dispute, leaving other vital pieces of intellectual property exposed.

"Ultrahuman has a history of copying Oura’s innovations, as demonstrated by the 2025 ITC ruling against the company," an Oura spokesperson said in a statement provided to TechCrunch. "Ultrahuman introduced a redesigned ring but failed to address continued infringement of Oura’s patents, seeking instead to capitalize on our innovation and the market leadership we have built."

Oura points specifically to two patents in its latest complaint: design patent D804,471 and utility patent 12,769,363. Notably, the latter of the two patents is exceptionally fresh. Issued to Oura on October 20—just two days prior to the filing of the lawsuit—patent 12,769,363 covers a sophisticated smart-ring design integrating a compact curved battery, an internal circuit board, positioning magnets, and advanced health sensors.

In an effort to tighten the legal noose, Oura has also named Plano, Texas-based electronics manufacturer SVTronics as a co-defendant in the lawsuit. The complaint asserts that SVTronics manufactures the Ring Pro at its facility in Texas under the direct control and instruction of Ultrahuman. Oura maintains that both corporate entities are jointly liable for patent infringement through the collective manufacture, importation, and commercial sale of the contested wearable device within U.S. borders.

Ultrahuman co-founder and CEO Mohit Kumar pushed back against the allegations, expressing strong confidence in the legality of the Ring Pro and confirming that the startup is prepared to mount a robust defense against Oura’s latest legal onslaught.

"Oura has now chosen to assert different patents, including one that issued just two days before this lawsuit was filed," Kumar said in a statement. "We will address these claims through the appropriate legal process and will defend our position vigorously. There is no court order affecting Ring Pro, and it remains available to customers in the U.S."

While Oura’s primary focus remains locked on blocking unauthorized competition, its legal strategy has yielded mixed results across the broader industry. Not all of Oura’s patent disputes have culminated in protracted courtroom battles. Some rival startups have opted for negotiated settlements to preserve their market access. For instance, both RingConn and Circular ultimately resolved their respective intellectual property disputes with Oura by entering into multi-year licensing agreements, agreeing to pay ongoing royalty fees to the Finnish company in order to continue selling their smart rings in the U.S. market.

However, litigation against larger consumer electronics giants, such as the ongoing patent battles involving Samsung, continues to wind through the legal system. These intensifying corporate skirmishes are unfolding against the backdrop of a rapidly expanding global smart-ring market. Market research firm IDC projects that worldwide shipments for wearable smart rings will surge by 12.8% this year, reaching an estimated 4.9 million units, with annual shipments projected to climb to approximately 6.3 million units by 2030. While Oura maintains its position as an established category leader, innovative startups like Ultrahuman are aggressively fighting for market share.

The timing of the lawsuit also coincides with significant corporate developments for both companies. For Oura, the legal filing follows closely on the heels of a major strategic retreat in the financial markets. In September, the company made headlines by shelving its highly anticipated $2.2 billion initial public offering, attributing the decision to lingering macroeconomic uncertainty and broader market volatility. Despite stepping back from its public debut, Oura has continued to double down on software and hardware development, rolling out new fitness and cardiovascular health tracking metrics designed to deepen user engagement.

Meanwhile, Ultrahuman has been aggressively shoring up its financial and technological foundation. In September, the Bengaluru-based startup successfully closed a $70 million funding round backed by prominent investors including Qualcomm Ventures and Labcorp, pushing the company’s valuation to roughly $365 million. As part of its long-term growth strategy, Ultrahuman has been collaborating closely with Qualcomm to develop next-generation smart rings capable of running complex software directly on the device, positioning the hardware to expand far beyond traditional health and fitness tracking into advanced categories like interactive artificial intelligence applications and gaming.