Aina, a startup based in Bengaluru, has unveiled an artificial intelligence-enabled ring capable of anticipating user needs, managing applications, and controlling devices. Pre-orders for the gadget are available starting from $399.
Aina, a consumer electronics company that has secured venture funding, was founded by Apurva Shankar, a former hardware vice president at Ultrahuman. The company presented a display ring designed to guess daily activities and control agents, phone apps, Mac computers, and other connected devices. This launch followed 15 months of closed beta testing.
The ring operates on a proprietary context-sensitive operating system. It independently learns user usage patterns, gathering context from their phones, computers, and agents, after which it predicts the three most likely next actions. Users can approve or reject the suggested option simply by swiping up or down with their finger.
Pre-orders open on November 5th, with a special price of $399 for the earliest buyers for a limited quantity. Shipping is planned to begin in January 2027.
The company describes Aina as a new AI interface in the form of a ring that understands user desires. Additionally, users can press and hold the central button to interact with their agents.
Vision for Future Interaction
Shankar stated that they began developing Aina with the conviction that artificial intelligence would evolve from following instructions to anticipating human needs. He noted that this transition has already begun with proactive agents, and agents like Muse, Instinct, and Dots will soon perform hundreds of daily tasks.
He added that today people give commands via text or voice, but in the future, agents will learn to recognize patterns, consider context, and become proactive in almost all interactions, awaiting only user approval. Since one has to choose between options daily, using a phone for every such binary moment is inefficient. Therefore, hardware interfaces different from the phone are being developed for this future, focusing on quick approvals and voice control, and Aina is created precisely for this purpose.
Shankar emphasized that every major shift in computing has occurred through the collaboration of software and hardware. He cited examples: the mouse and graphical user interface led to personal computing, while the touchscreen and App Store led to mobile. Now, with Aina and AI agents, a new era is dawning—personalized computing accessible right at your fingertips.
Ways to Use Aina
Aina Voice
Users can integrate their existing agents through the Aina app and then press and hold the central button to communicate with them. A quick note-taking function is also provided. When an agent requires the user's attention, a notification appears on the screen. A simple swipe up is enough for quick approval. Users can also hold the button to respond with voice. Aina is equipped with a built-in speaker for conversations with AI agents and making phone calls. The user can initiate a call with a voice command and bring their hand to their ear to talk and listen.
Aina Cues:
Aina gathers context from the user's phone, Mac, and agents. It analyzes application usage patterns, location, and calendar details to determine what the user might need next. For example, if the user is heading to work at nine o'clock, Aina saves a shortcut, or 'Cue', for booking an Uber ride, ready just before it is needed.
The Aina Remote feature allows the ring to adapt to the user's current actions and display a live shortcut to control that activity. If music is playing, the ring turns into a music remote control. During a meeting, it becomes a controller for the microphone, camera, and a note-taking tool.
From HCI Lab to Consumer Product
Aina was founded by Shankar in May 2025 as a Human-Computer Interaction lab, where physical interfaces were tested in various scenarios of everyday computing. At the CES exhibition in 2026, the team demonstrated three experimental AI interface concepts. In April, the company introduced Dune—a context-aware three-button keyboard for Mac that adapts its controls to the application being used. Dune was sent to hundreds of early users.
The company tested Aina with a controlled group of private pilot users starting in October, using the feedback received to refine the hardware and user experience before the public announcement.
Aina's availability will be global. At launch, the device supports iOS and Mac. Further information on supported integrations will be announced after sales begin.
