Samsung's lawsuit against Oura failed. What happens next could reshape the smart ring market

Samsung's lawsuit against Oura has been dismissed without prejudice in U.S. District Court. While federal judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín gave Samsung until late April to file an amended complaint, there isn't much legal leeway. And this ruling is a reminder that Samsung aside, the smart ring industry remains in legal limbo even as things appear normal.

Last summer, Samsung preemptively sued Oura, arguing that "Oura's pattern of indiscriminate assertion of patent infringement" against smart ring brands like Ultrahuman, Circular, and RingConn was an "actual, imminent risk to Samsung" and the upcoming Galaxy Ring.

The March 27 ruling — spotted by ip fray's Florian Mueller and shared with Android Central — shows Martínez-Olguín argue that Oura's general statements about enforcing its patents "were not directed at Samsung" and "do not reveal a likelihood or intent to enforce Oura’s patents against Samsung."

Oura only reserved the right to "take the action that's appropriate." It may decide that means suing Samsung, but Samsung lacks standing to argue future harm to its business without anything concrete.

Samsung can refile the suit, but only with "allegations that predate the filing of the initial complaint," and we don't know of any overt threats Oura made against Samsung before or after the Galaxy Ring launch.

Mueller argues in his analysis that Samsung's lawsuit successfully hampered Oura's legal action until some of its patents were "rendered moot" due to statutory limitations. He also believes Samsung may try to amend its complaint or appeal the dismissal, even without a "smoking gun," to forestall Oura from suing in another district like East Texas.

Samsung's stalling gambit has given the Galaxy Ring almost a year of unimpeded sales. But if this ruling eventually clears the way for Oura to sue, it could interfere with the hypothetical Galaxy Ring 2 or later models.

Of course, as this ruling states, there's no proof that Oura will sue Samsung after this. And we're still waiting to see how the other top smart ring brands will fare in their own Oura patent infringement lawsuits. We've reached out to Samsung for comment on this ruling and will update the post if we hear back.

It's Oura versus the smart ring world

In March 2024, Oura filed an International Trade Commission (ITC) action against Circular, RingConn, and Ultrahuman, stating they had "no choice" but to legally challenge brands that "imitate and ride the coattails of our innovation" through patent infringement.

A month later, the ITC announced a Section 337 investigation, indicating Oura had asked for a "limited exclusion order and cease and desist orders" that would essentially ban these brands from sale in the United States.

A year later, the investigation page still shows as "Pending before the Administrative Law Judge," with the most recent notice in December 2024 indicating that certain aspects of the case are still being amended. There's no way to know how long it'll take or how the change in U.S. administration will affect the ruling, but the case hasn't gone away.

Frankly, it's easy to forget how fragile the smart ring industry is at this moment. Smart ring sales were under a million in 2023 and should climb to 2.5 million in 2025, per IDC predictions shared with Android Central. The top smart ring brands keep releasing new models and signs point to strong sales.

The Circular Ring 2 is at $1.6 million and climbing for its Kickstarter, promising blood pressure and glucose readings. Ultrahuman sells luxury smart rings and constantly updates its Ring Air with new "Powerplug" features. RingConn launched its Gen 2 ring last year and the Gen 2 Air this month.

Unless you pay close attention to legal filings, you'd have no idea that the smart ring industry could come to a crashing halt if Oura proves that most of its competitors infringe on its ideas.

And those ideas keep coming! While researching possible designs for the Oura Ring 5, I found dozens of Oura patents filed in 2025 alone and hundreds more before that, ranging from new one-size-fits-all design ideas to more outlandish tricks like unlocking or controlling your car with your Oura Ring.

Samsung has its own patented ideas for the Galaxy Ring 2, like an outer temperature sensor to detect if you have a fever, gesture controls for other connected devices like a laptop or tablet, or a resizable design that'll morph into your finger size.

It also has more resources than startup brands like Circular and Ultrahuman, which could make it a tougher opponent for Oura to battle in the courts. Still, even Apple had to reckon with a potential watch recall over the Masimo blood oxygen patent dispute, and Samsung has already lost one legal fight.

Ultimately, no matter which smart ring brand you wear or are interested in, you may want to pay close attention to Oura's ITC case and the likely follow-up to Samsung's counter-suit. The smart ring legal war should only keep heating up.