The smart ring space is about to heat up with the likely debut of Samsung’s first-ever smart ring, the Galaxy Ring, which could be released on Wednesday at the brand’s Unpacked event. Before that happens, industry mainstay Oura continues to make a case for itself as the smart ring brand to beat.
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Take the most recent feature Oura unveiled, for example. It’s an AI health advisor released through Oura Labs, the brand’s in-app platform that allows Oura members to test experimental features.
Think of the AI health advisor as a personal trainer of sorts. The advisor gives personalized insights, recommendations, and encouragement to get members on track to achieve their health goals. This encouragement includes customizable coaching intensity and focus areas, and a forum to chat with your coach, ask questions, share progress, and get recommendations based on your daily health data.
The AI health advisor feature is one of many ways Oura is looking to prove to competitors and customers that it’s the top dog in the smart ring space. Oura regularly churns out new and experimental features for holistic health and wellness.
During the past few months, it’s integrated with key fitness apps like Strava, released heart health-focused attributes, such as the cardiovascular age and cardio capacity feature, partnered with Target for in-store ring fittings, and debuted cycle insights and awareness features for women.
The AI health advisor features seem similar to an Ultrahuman Ring Air feature, one of Oura’s competitors, that I tested out earlier this year. The AI-powered food insight feature, helps you document the foods you eat during the day and provides recommendations on how to get the most out of whatever food you log.
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The feature tells you how many Ultrahuman users reported glucose spikes after consuming the food and recommends how to get the most energy or avoid spikes by pairing the food with healthier options. The feature also told me to drink lots of water before consuming potato chips and take a walk after I ate them to lower any glycemic response.
Also: Ultrahuman Ring Air review
Both smart rings’ AI features offer examples of how AI can be used in smart rings and wearable technology. We’ll likely see how Samsung’s new Galaxy Ring and its possible AI features stack up to other smart rings this Wednesday.
