US — TechCrunch

Aina’s smart ring has a screen, a joystick and a mic so you can talk to AI agents

DevicesNovember 5, 20261 min read

Aina, a small hardware startup, has released a smart ring with a screen, a joystick, and a mic. It lets you talk to AI agents, take notes, and control apps from your finger.

What happened

Aina launched a smart ring called the "AI ring." It has a small screen, a joystick, a microphone, and a speaker. You can use it to take notes, send prompts to AI agents, set reminders, and take phone calls. The company wants people to use it as a controller for both AI and non-AI apps.

Key facts

Early-bird price: $399. The price goes up to $499 after the early-bird period ends.
Pre-orders start Thursday.
Shipping is planned to start in January 2027.
Aina raised $5.5 million in July.

Where this came from

Aina first made Mirage, a controller with three keys. Each key could press a button in the app on your Mac, such as turning your camera on or off during a video call. The ring uses lessons from Mirage. Other smart rings, such as the Pebble Index 01, Sandbar Stream, Oasis, and Natura, already do similar things.

Why it matters

More people now use many apps and AI agents at once. The founder says phones and laptops were built for opening apps, not for working with agents that act on their own. This ring is one try at a new way to control them. A reviewer who tested it said it felt like a smartwatch in ring form, but the software is still being built, so its daily use is not yet clear.

What to watch

Whether the software gets better after launch.
Whether people will buy extra gadgets to manage several AI agents.
How the ring compares with rival smart rings and with the price increase to $499.
Whether shipping starts on time in January 2027.

Glossary

Aina: A hardware startup that makes the AI ring, a smart ring for controlling apps and AI agents.
Mirage: An earlier three-key controller from Aina that presses buttons in apps on a Mac.

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