Oura sets its sights on the Middle East as talks with UAE health authorities advance

Oura, a Finnish smart ring company, has begun early discussions with UAE health authorities to explore new collaborations in health technology. The goal is straightforward: expand across the Middle East with speed, strategy, and strong institutional partners. The timing could not be better. Following a fresh 900 million dollar funding round that pushed its valuation to 11 billion dollars, Oura is now in an expansion phase.

“We have had a couple of conversations with the Ministry of Health, so we are here to see them further. There are some really interesting explorations for us to do here.”

The discussions may still be early, but the direction is unmistakable. Oura sees the Gulf as its next major region to scale.

Inside the Oura ring: Small, quiet, and always tracking

Oura specialises in one thing: a smart ring built to understand the body through long-term data.

Founded in 2013, the company designs rings that track:

• Sleep quality
• Blood oxygen
• Heart rate and recovery
• Early signs of illness

The newest Ring 4 now comes in ceramic, tougher, lighter, and with a more refined finish.

Within the broader wearables category, Oura competes with household names like Samsung Electronics and fast-growing challengers such as Ultrahuman. In the UAE, Oura already collaborates with GluCare, a Dubai-based diabetes management centre.

What sets Oura apart is its engine of continuous biometric tracking. Instead of one-off measurements, it studies patterns over time and turns them into practical insights users can understand and act on.

Growth numbers that speak for themselves

The company has sold more than 5.5 million rings, and remarkably, over half were sold in the past year. Revenue hit approximately 500 million dollars in 2024, doubling year over year. By next year, Oura expects to reach 1 billion dollars.

“We are growing 100 percent year over year,” Hale said. “Much faster than the market for wearables.”

And the market itself is accelerating. According to a survey, the smart ring segment could grow to more than 1.1 billion dollars by 2030, supported by rising consumer demand for continuous health monitoring.

For the Gulf, the value extends far beyond consumer tech. Wearables increasingly play an important role in preventive health, identifying sleep issues, signalling stress, and flagging early signs of illness. For health systems aiming to reduce chronic disease burdens, this data is becoming essential.

“There is a lot of alignment between our vision for preventive health and wearables and what is happening in the UAE,” Hale added.

Source:

DHArab

Grand View Research

Join the conversation at MedTech World Middle East | Dubai 2026

The rise of wearables, the shift toward preventive care, and the growing appetite for digital health innovation will be front and centre at MedTech World Middle East | Dubai from 11 to 13 February 2026. The event will bring together founders, investors, regulators, and healthcare leaders from across the region. If you want to be part of discussions like these and many more that influence health technology in the Middle East, this is the place to be.