Proxy acquires smart ring startup Motiv to bring digital identity to wearables

The goal is to allow wearables to interface with the physical world, replacing keys, cards, badges, apps and passwords that people typically use to interact with physical objects in the world. Motiv's smart rings use miniaturized circuits that biometrically authenticate users and connects them to the devices around them.

Motiv shipped about 80,000 smart rings worldwide and invested about USD 25 million in developing the smart ring technology. Proxy intends to expand into the wearables market and the acquisition accelerates that timeline by at least a year, according to the company.

Under the agreement, Proxy will acquire Motiv’s entire technology portfolio including patents and it will retain a majority of Motiv’s employees.

In the next few weeks, Proxy plans to add support to the identity signals in the next-generation rings to enable touchless workplace experiences.