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Over a decade ago, the 1st working prototype of Aina was developed at IISc by Apoorv as part of his CAD coursework. This version of Aina was a ring designed for women's safety. It gradually evolved into a ring which could predict what users wanted and control the smartphone. He spent months working through the engineering challenges. A year later, he co-founded LazyCo with Yogansh Namdeo. In 2019, they'd raised nearly $40k from 166 backers on Kickstarter for the original Aina ring (similar form factor but very different functionality). LazyCo was too early for its time, COVID disrupted the business momentum and the team had a shoestring budget of ~₹70 lakhs of grant funding Ultrahuman acquired LazyCo. Apoorv joined as VP of Hardware > Developed UH’s 1st ring in 2022 - the iconic R1 ring which won the Red Dot Design Award in 2023 > Developed Ring AIR in 2023 - their flagship unit (selling 50k units per month at peak) > Established UH’s in-house manufacturing capabilities UH’s hardware pedigree & design aesthetic has spawned multiple companies e.g. Abhishek Sahu who started Dreamspan, Anant Sharma who started Moware etc. When I spoke to Apoorv last year, he shared one key lesson from his UH experience: “If you're serious about software, you have to build your own hardware.” He is a man with deep conviction. In 2025, he stepped out of UH to pursue a question that had occupied him for nearly a decade: what is the most natural interface between humans and computers? He didn't go back and rebuild his old ring. Instead, he took a 1st principles customer discovery led approach which led to 3 launches at CES 2026: (a) Radiance, a dedicated controller for video meetings. (b) Shift, a physical button to trigger AI-agent workflows. (c) Dune, a context-aware three-key keyboard that changed its functions depending on what you were doing. Dune resonated most. The team shipped 500 units and gathered feedback from early adopters. They explored multiple form factors and ended up identifying the ring with a screen as the only practical solution. Apoorv's original insight has survived all these years: the fastest, most effortless actions are often tiny movements of the human body. But, a LOT has changed since. AI now understands far more context. Software agents can increasingly act on our behalf. Apoorv now has years of experience building and manufacturing consumer hardware at scale. This time around, the timing might just be right. Apoorv is also much better capitalized: Aina has raised $5.5m from Info Edge, 360 ONE & a roster of fantastic Angel investors. Apoorv’s bet is that as AI makes software intelligent and proactive, we'll spend less time telling computers what to do and more time making quick decisions about what they propose. It is always delightful to see a founder overcome adversity, find success in his next act & now pursue his life’s work. Aina’s 148 second feature video is 148 months of Apoorv’s life, soul & hardwork: