Indian startup develops 1st-ever smart ring to track health, make payments on go

Chennai: Indian tech startup Muse Wearables on Thursday announced that it has developed a smart ring equipped with advanced health tracking and 'on the go payments'.

The Bengaluru-based Muse Wearables was born out of the IIT Madras Incubation Cell. It was founded by K.L.N Sai Prasanth and Yathindra Ajay K.A, graduates of IIT Madras, and Prathyusha K, NIT Warangal graduate.

Called ‘Ring One’, the device can measure six different vitals -- heart rate, blood oxygen, temperature, respiratory rate, heart rate variability and blood pressure. It is 10 times lighter than a smartwatch and users can wear it night and day 24x7, and comes with up to seven days of battery life.

Trained with five million data points from over 4,000 people, Ring One offers clinical grade accuracy for health information and offers cuff-less BP measurement for the first time in a ring.

It is also the world’s first smart ring to offer NFC payments and health tracking in the smallest form factor. For this Muse has partnered with some of the biggest payment networks including Mastercard, VISA and Rupay. The payments will be live in India, the US, Canada, Europe, Australia, Singapore and UAE.

The company, which is yet to reveal the price, aims to launch the product on September 27 globally and October 25 in India. The product’s website is, however, open for pre-reservations.

“Observing hundreds of users during the Covid-19 pandemic span has imparted us with priceless insights, most notably that the wrist might not be the most optimal position to get accurate data. Also, many people were unable to wear the wrist tracker during sleep. We found that the finger is a more accurate location to get precise data,” said Prathyusha K, Co-founder and Chief Operations Officer, Muse Wearables, in a statement.

Ring One comes in a band-like fashion, and also has a “Turn wheel” interface. With a simple turn of the outer band of the Ring, users can switch between various modes. So a turn to the left can start a workout or a turn to the right can enable secure payments.

Made with Titanium grade 2 and Ceramic (Zirconia), Ring One is lightweight yet very strong. Its multi-layered coating and diamond polishing ensure it has a beautiful finish and is scratch-resistant. The inner layer of the Ring is made with medical-grade epoxy to ensure users have an exceptional level of comfort during wear.

Ring One is water resistant up to 100 metres, giving users the freedom to enjoy swimming and showering without having to remove the Ring. It comes in Silver and Black, all black colours, gold and rose gold variants.

Muse is also planning to launch 18K gold versions of the ring as limited edition pieces. Ring One will be available in 9 sizes. Every order comes with a sizing kit that helps users find the perfect size.