Oura Courts $800M in New Investment Capital With Biometric Ring

According to a recent report from Bloomberg, Finnish healthcare tech company Oura Health is engaged in talks with a number of investors for another fundraising round that could result in a valuation of $800 million.

Oura Health has enjoyed a busy 12 months as its flagship Oura Ring has become a potential weapon in the fight against COVID-19, with a number of high-profile partnership announcements including one in September with the Seattle Mariners Major League Baseball franchise.

“We are thrilled the Seattle Mariners have chosen Oura to help take their training and conditioning programs to the next level,” said Harpreet Singh Rai, Oura CEO. “Proper recovery is critical to professional athletes since it directly impacts their ability to train and perform at their best. The Oura Ring measures changes in a person’s biometric data with unmatched precision, empowering team members to better monitor their health and make more informed decisions to achieve performance goals.”

Along with the Mariners, the Oura Ring was also chosen by the National Basketball Association as an option for players, staff, and personnel as the league used a ‘bubble’ format in Florida as its solution to restarting the 2019-2020 NBA season that was halted due to the pandemic.

Biometric sensors embedded within the Oura Ring are capable of tracking a variety of the wearer’s health metrics — such as temperature, heart and respiratory rates, and sleep patterns — and use that data to track their health, with the possibility of providing early warning signs of illness or the susceptibility to get sick.

A May 2020 study conducted by West Virginia University even found that the data collected by an Oura Ring could be used to predict the onset of COVID-19 as early as three days before any symptoms of the virus were felt by the wearer.

In 2020, Oura Health managed to raise $28 million in a funding round led by Google’s Gradient Ventures, Square Inc., and Forerunner Ventures. Prior investors in the company also include celebrity Will Smith, and former NBA superstar Shaquille O’Neal.

Source: Bloomberg

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May 5, 2021 – by Tony Bitzionis