Oura expands AI-driven capabilities with new acquisition

Healthcare wearables developer Oura has acquired Finland-based Doublepoint, a technology company that provides AI-driven gesture recognition technology.

The acquisition will give Oura access to technology that tracks and assesses small hand movements. Oura aims to layer the technology on top of the continuous sensing features available with the Oura Ring. The healthcare wearable device collects data on a wide array of health and wellness metrics to provide insights into sleep, movement, cycles and stress. Ohto Pentikäinen, Doublepoint's co-founder and CEO, said in the press release that its gesture recognition technology aims to help "better understand themselves without adding friction to their lives." Combining with Oura will bring the technology to a broader audience, he added.

For Oura, the acquisition will support future offerings. The company believes the future of healthcare wearables will include data gleaned from a combination of voice and gestures, the press release stated. Doublepoint's expertise in AI, biometrics and human-computer interaction aligns with Oura's goals of supporting preventative healthcare and creating "AI-led experiences" to help people navigate their health. The acquisition also brings Doublepoint's team of AI architects and builders, who are experts in biometric-based interaction for next-generation computing platforms, the press release stated.

"As we continue to build the next era of Oura, strategic acquisitions play a key role in accelerating our growth and expanding what our devices and platform can do," said Tom Hale, CEO of Oura, in the press release. "Welcoming the Doublepoint team into Oura strengthens our bench with world-class talent, reinforces our long-term commitment to growing in Finland, and helps us move even faster to deliver intuitive, human-first experiences for our members across devices, services, and environments."

The financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. This is Oura's fourth acquisition, following Sparta Science, which offers streamlined data collection and analysis; Veri, another Finnish company that provides a continuous glucose monitor-enabled app for metabolic health; and Proxy, which provides digital identity signal technology for digital privacy.

The news of the latest acquisition comes on the heels of Oura testing its first proprietary AI model focused on women's health. The model will allow users to ask questions about reproductive health, which the system will answer using generative AI and algorithms, as well as the ring's biometric tracking data.

Anuja Vaidya has covered the healthcare industry since 2012. She currently covers the virtual healthcare landscape, including telehealth, remote patient monitoring and digital therapeutics.