Pentagon Cancels $96M Biometric Ring Contract Amid Privacy Concerns

[Editor’s Note (April 10, 2025): This article has been updated to reflect the Defense Health Agency’s official explanation for the contract cancellation, which cited reprioritization rather than privacy or security concerns. An earlier version inaccurately referenced criticism from privacy advocates and a planned reevaluation of monitoring technologies.]

The U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) has abruptly canceled a $96 million contract for wearable biometric technology due to reprioritization. The contract, awarded to Oura Health in September 2024, was intended to provide 200,000 smart rings to military personnel for health monitoring and early disease detection.

The Defense Health Agency (DHA) announced the termination of the contract on March 6, 2025, explaining that the acquisition was no longer required.

The smart rings were designed to track various physiological metrics, including heart rate, body temperature, and sleep patterns, with the goal of identifying early signs of illness, including infectious diseases. Oura’s recent technological developments had expanded its health tracking capabilities beyond basic metrics, making them an attractive choice for military applications.

The cancellation comes at a notable time for Oura Health, which had recently reached a $5 billion valuation and was actively expanding its enterprise health monitoring capabilities through strategic acquisitions.

Source: Defense Scoop, Breaking Defense

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March 7, 2025 – by the ID Tech Editorial Team