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Oura adds automatic VO2 Max tracking to smart rings. The updated VO2 Max feature estimates aerobic fitness during regular GPS-enabled workouts, eliminating the previous requirement for a six-minute walking test. Oura announced two new fitness features for its smart rings: Cardio Effort, which assesses activity-related strain, and automatic VO2 Max estimates. The revised VO2 Max feature will passively estimate results during regular GPS-enabled workouts, removing the need for a six-minute walking test. The statistics will be available in Oura Labs for third-generation Oura Rings and later models. Cardio Effort will compare a wearer's activity for the week with their individual baseline. The personalized metric uses five ranges: light, fair, maintaining, building and reaching. Stay ahead of the curve! The feature is based on the Training Impulse method and is designed to monitor long-term trends in cardiovascular activity, the company said. The VO2 Max feature was previously called Cardio Capacity in Oura Labs. That version did not estimate results automatically and required users to complete the walking test before enabling it. Other wearables, including the Apple Watch and Fitbit, already track similar cardiovascular metrics.

Department of Health - Abu Dhabi and ŌURA launch research partnership to study early warning signs of premature birth. October 20, 2026 at 23:00 PM EDT i This article is third-party content and does not represent the views of this site. Tamar Securities, LLC make no guarantees regarding its accuracy or completeness. * Project CRADLE is a first-of-its-kind 24-month pilot study that will examine whether continuous wearable data can help predict spontaneous premature birth * The study will lay the groundwork for predictive models that health systems could use to improve outcomes for mothers and babies Department of Health - Abu Dhabi (DoH) and ŌURA, a leading health intelligence platform and maker of the world's smallest smart ring, today announced Project CRADLE (Capturing Risk And Detecting Labor signals in Elevated-risk pregnancies), a 24-month pilot study to research how biometric data from wearable technology can reveal early warning signs of spontaneous premature birth. From Left to Right: H.E. Dr. Noura Khamis Al Ghaithi, Undersecretary of the Department of Health - Abu Dhabi, ŌURA CEO Tom Hale, and H.E. Mansoor Al Mansoori Chairman of the Department of Health - Abu Dhabi Announced by H.E. Dr. Noura Khamis Al Ghaithi, Undersecretary of the Department of Health - Abu Dhabi and ŌURA CEO Tom Hale at the Abu Dhabi Future Health Summit, Project CRADLE is the first live research initiative in the long-term partnership between DoH and ŌURA, previously announced in May 2026, to study how continuous wearable data can advance preventative health. Premature, or preterm, birth is when a baby is born before 37 completed weeks of pregnancy, and can occur spontaneously or following medical intervention. It affects roughly 1 in 10 births worldwide, accounting for millions of births every year, and remains one of the most unpredictable complications in pregnancy. Today, clinicians largely rely on symptoms and medical history, but identifying risks earlier in pregnancy could allow care teams to intervene sooner, ensure families are within reach of the right care, and help protect the health of mothers and babies. Project CRADLE will combine continuous wearable data from Oura Ring with Abu Dhabi's clinical and genomic data to better understand risk factors around preterm birth. Underpinned by robust data governance, clear ethics approvals and rigorous clinical oversight, this jointly designed study aims to set a structured path from research to real-world application within healthcare systems, including broader integration within Abu Dhabi's health system, subject to evidence and regulatory approval. The initial healthcare institutions to participate in the pilot will be Corniche Hospital and Mediclinic Airport Road, two of the leading maternal care institutions in Abu Dhabi. "In Abu Dhabi, we are building an intelligent health system of the future," said H.E. Dr. Noura Khamis Al Ghaithi, Undersecretary of the Department of Health - Abu Dhabi. "Continuous sensing enables a shift from reactive care to healthcare that anticipates risk, detects warning signs sooner, and enables faster, more precise and personalised intervention. Project CRADLE brings this approach to pregnancy and birth, one of the most pivotal moments in life, building the evidence to guide more timely care." She continued, "Women's health and fertility are at the heart of Abu Dhabi's health priorities. Our ambition is to become a leading center for reproductive health that is grounded in research that advances care. In the UAE's Year of the Family, we're proud that research carried out in Abu Dhabi could improve lives for mothers, babies, and families here and around the world." "For more than a decade, ŌURA has pioneered the science of what continuous physiological data can reveal about a person's health," said Tom Hale, CEO of ŌURA. "Project CRADLE shows what could be possible when a forward-thinking health system combines clinical excellence with accurate, continuous monitoring. We're proud to work alongside a health authority setting that standard, improving outcomes for families in the Emirate, and creating pathways that can be used across the world to improve health." Five months after signing their Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), DoH and ŌURA have moved from vision to active research, delivering on their commitment to pilot design, ethics approval, and local evidence generation. Project CRADLE is the first of three pilots focused on preventative health research, with a primary focus on women's health and cardiometabolic health. It is part of Abu Dhabi's prevention-led, data-driven health agenda which brings together Abu Dhabi's intelligent health system, population-scale health and genomics data, integrated health infrastructure, and policy to accelerate population health research, where new models of care can be safely designed, validated, and scaled. About Project CRADLE Population-level research suggests that biometrics such as heart rate and heart rate variability shift in the weeks before delivery. Project CRADLE is designed to test whether such shifts can be detected for an individual woman. The study will commence in the coming weeks and will follow an Abu Dhabi-based sample of women with elevated-risk pregnancies who choose to wear Oura Ring from early pregnancy through delivery. During the study, Oura Ring will continuously track biometrics, such as heart rate, heart rate variability, sleep and activity, which researchers will pair with clinical outcomes to build a longitudinal, labeled dataset. The study will investigate whether a reliable physiological signal appears before spontaneous preterm labor in an individual woman. It will also assess whether that signal could define a clinically actionable threshold - early enough for care teams to give treatments that support improved baby outcomes, such as lung and brain health, or to arrange transfer to specialist neonatal care. The jointly designed research will be conducted as an IRB-approved study, within DoH's data governance and Trusted Research Environment framework, with participants' informed consent and standard clinical care throughout. ŌURA's team of more than 50 in-house M.D.s and Ph.D.s will lead the wearable data science and analysis. ŌURA will partner with multiple leading health providers in Abu Dhabi to run the study, including Corniche Hospital and Mediclinic Airport Road, enabling participant recruitment alongside providing the highest level of care. Results are expected to be published in 2028. About the Department of Health -Abu Dhabi (DoH): The Department of Health - Abu Dhabi is the regulative body of the healthcare sector in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. Committed to ensuring excellence in healthcare, DoH monitors the health status of the population while shaping the regulatory framework for the health system. This includes inspecting against regulations, enforcing standards and encouraging the adoption of world-class best practices and performance targets by all healthcare providers in the Emirate. Abu Dhabi remains dedicated to shaping the future of healthcare by establishing an intelligent and sustainable ecosystem that prioritises health, longevity and quality of life for all community members. Leveraging state-of-the-art infrastructure and cutting-edge capabilities, DoH continues to develop and implement initiatives and programmes in line with its strategic focus areas, Healthy Population, Best-in-Class Care and Resilience and Innovation. These efforts reflect DoH's unwavering commitment to predicting, preventing and personalising healthcare for every individual. For further information on DOH, visit https://www.doh.gov.ae/ and follow on X, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube. About ŌURA ŌURA is a health intelligence platform designed to transform how people understand and manage their health in everyday life. ŌURA's platform is anchored by Oura Ring, the world's leading smart ring that helps you live healthier, longer. ŌURA supports millions of members worldwide across sleep, activity, stress, readiness, women's health, metabolic health, and heart health. Scientifically validated against medical gold standards, the lightweight Oura Ring tracks 50+ health metrics continuously, empowering both individuals and thousands of research teams, healthcare providers, sports teams, and organizations. Trusted by an ecosystem of more than 1,200 partners, ŌURA is advancing the future of preventative health with privacy and security at the forefront. Founded in Finland in 2013, ŌURA is headquartered in San Francisco with E.U. headquarters in Oulu, Finland. Contacts. Media contacts DoH: Mariam Al Marzooqi, +971 50 536 6660 Report this content If you believe this article contains misleading, harmful, or spam content, please let Tamar Securities, LLC know.

How product innovation keeps startups competitive: lessons from Oura's smart ring strategy. In the fast-moving world of wearable technology, standing still means falling behind. Oura, the smart ring manufacturer that once dominated its market, is discovering this truth as new competitors like RingConn and Ultrahuman circle closer. Their response? Double down on innovation with new fitness metrics that give users deeper insights into how their workouts impact their bodies. For African founders building in the health tech, IoT, and consumer hardware spaces, Oura's strategy offers a masterclass in competitive differentiation - and a warning about what happens when you assume market dominance is permanent. The competition is getting fierce. Oura didn't invent the smart ring category, but they perfected it. For years, they enjoyed a comfortable lead with minimal real competition. However, the market's growth has attracted ambitious rivals with their own innovations and often lower price points. This is a pattern FundNaija, Inc. is seeing across African tech markets too: early movers gain traction, but newer entrants challenge them with better features, local pricing, or superior user experience. Oura's response - launching advanced workout tracking features - isn't just about adding bells and whistles. It's about creating sticky value that keeps customers loyal and justifies premium pricing in an increasingly crowded marketplace. Why continuous innovation matters for your startup. Whether you're building a fintech app, health tech platform, or any software product, Oura's playbook applies: * Listen to your users: New fitness metrics came from understanding what customers actually wanted to track * Differentiate on depth, not just features: It's not enough to have fitness tracking - Oura went deeper with insights about workout impact * Move faster than competitors: In crowded markets, speed to innovation is a competitive moat * Communicate the value: New features only matter if customers understand why they should care Why this matters for founders. If you're building a startup - especially in hardware, health tech, or consumer products - remember that your first-mover advantage has an expiration date. The founders who win long-term are those who treat innovation as continuous, not occasional. This means: Building a product roadmap based on real customer feedback, investing in R&D even when business is good, and staying obsessed with solving customer problems better than anyone else. As you scale and seek funding, investors want to see that your team has a clear innovation strategy. On FundNaija, when you build your founder profile and track your growth metrics, highlighting your product development velocity and customer feedback loops can significantly strengthen your pitch to potential investors and lenders. The bigger picture. Oura's situation also reflects a broader market truth: as categories mature and attract competition, the winners are those who can evolve faster than their challengers. For African startups entering global markets or building for local needs, this is your competitive advantage - agility and the ability to move quickly based on real market feedback. Want to check your funding readiness? Try FundNaija's free FundScore to see how investor-ready your startup is and get personalized recommendations for strengthening your pitch. Get funding-ready today. Create an AI-powered business plan and discover funding opportunities tailored to your business.