Wearables Industry Report 2026: Nearly 136 Million Devices Shipped in Q2 2025 Alone

Strong Shipments & Smart Capital Power Wearables Growth

The wearables market is scaling into a core layer of digital health, consumer electronics, and enterprise tech. Valued at USD 257.35 billion in 2026, it is projected to reach USD 572.73 billion by 2031, growing at a 17.35% CAGR.

Shipments remain strong, with 136.5 million units delivered in Q2 2025 alone, up 9.6% year over year. Basic earwear leads volumes, while smartwatches hold steady, and newer categories like smart glasses and rings expand from a smaller base.

The ecosystem includes 150 200 companies, employing over 12 million people globally. Despite a modest annual growth rate of 0.75%, innovation remains robust, with 221 300 patents and 14 200 grants awarded. Patent activity is rising at 3.36% annually, led by China and the US.

With 42 200 closed funding rounds and an average investment of USD 45.7 million per round, capital is actively directed toward AI-enabled wearables, biosensors, smart eyewear, and medical-grade devices. Notably, Amazon’s agreement to acquire Bee, a wrist-worn device maker, underscores growing Big Tech interest in expanding personal computing through wearable hardware.

Wearables Market Overview: Growing at ~17% CAGR

As per Mordor Intelligence, the wearable technology market is expected to grow from USD 257.35 billion in 2026 to USD 572.73 billion by 2031 at 17.35% CAGR.

According to our database, the wearables industry comprises 10 348 startups within a broader network of 150 200 companies and employs over 12 million people worldwide. Despite a modest yearly growth rate of 0.75%, the sector reflects structural maturity and large-scale global adoption. Key hubs include the US, India, the UK, Italy, and Canada.

Innovation remains strong, with 221 300 patents and 14 200+ grants awarded. Patent activity is growing at 3.36% annually, led by China (75 450 patents) and the US (51 120), highlighting continued advancements in sensors, AI integration, and smart device technologies.

Worldwide Wearables Forecast by Product

Wearable device shipments reached 136.5 million units in Q2 2025, showing a 9.6% year-over-year increase compared to Q2 2024. Basic earwear remains the dominant category, accounting for 84.9 million units and representing more than 60% of total shipments.

Smartwatches, including both basic and advanced models, delivered a combined 38.3 million units, with basic variants slightly outperforming advanced devices. Wristbands maintained stable demand at 10.9 million units, while newer form factors such as smart glasses and smart rings are gradually expanding from a smaller but growing base.

Novel Startups Contributing to the Market Expansion

Mediventic offers a Smart Medical Vest

Dutch startup Mediventic designs AliteVEST, which is a smart medical vest to continuously monitor vital physiological parameters in real-world conditions.

AliteVEST integrates 40 embedded sensors into a lightweight, flexible shirt that measures seven vital signs in real time. It also combines live readings with historical data to support clinical diagnostics and medical research.

The solution operates as a pocket-sized intensive care unit (ICU) prototype at technology readiness level 5 (TRL 5). This enables long-term, non-intrusive monitoring during daily activities, exercise, and sleep.

The smart medical vest analyzes large data volumes to detect early warning signals, particularly for respiratory issues, and provides actionable insights that show how physical activity impacts patient conditions.

GainGuard creates AI-based Injury Prevention and Sport Enhancement Wearable Tech

Israeli startup GainGuard designs a wearable that uses AI to avoid injuries and improve sports. This device tracks physiological factors at the muscle level in real time. It also monitors trainees continually and streamlines remote supervision by combining a wearable with sensors, an AI-powered mobile application, and cloud analytics.

The AI-powered algorithms analyze movement patterns to produce individualized performance and safety insights. The wearable device provides real-time feedback through quick alerts that highlight poor form and increased injury risk throughout exercises.

Additionally, the wearable device offers thorough reporting, which allows coaches and athletes to assess their progress, spot recurring danger factors, and modify their training or recuperation plans.

The AI-enabled wearable facilitates consistent trainee monitoring across training, rehabilitation, and performance optimization use cases with its Bluetooth Mesh connectivity and user-friendly interfaces.

Aegis Terra specializes in Wearable Communication Systems

Aegis Terra is an Italian startup that creates field-ready wearable and deployable communication technologies. It includes FlexBridge Radio over IP (RoIP) and Field Broadband Transport, which integrate voice, data, and edge computing for mission-critical operations.

The startup ensures interoperability without vendor lock-in by bridging legacy radio technologies with Internet Protocol (IP) networks using an open-architecture approach.

When fixed infrastructure is not available, its wearable communication systems prioritize low size, weight, and power (SWaP) requirements for dependable deployment across body-worn, vehicle-mounted, and quickly built field nodes.

Aegis Terra removes communication silos and enhances situational awareness by turning conventional radio signals into IP packets. This architecture supports defense, public safety, and mission-critical teams in limited and time-sensitive contexts.

The architecture does so by enabling secure, end-to-end speech and data transmission via analog radios, land mobile radio (LMR), cellular networks, and mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs).

SpineWise design Workplace Ergonomics Wearables

Belgian startup SpineWise provides wearables for workplace ergonomics that are backed by a motion analysis Pro https://www.spinewise.be/enKit and a Case workflow that automatically analyzes and displays gathered data on an online dashboard.

The wearables contain body-worn sensors that are made for simple installation and long-term comfort to monitor posture and physical strain during routine job tasks. These sensors continuously track movements and provide real-time vibration feedback to minimize hazardous postures and repeated actions as they happen.

A centralized dashboard receives all of the collected data that lets enterprises examine postural patterns, hazardous concerns, and the results of interventions.

Moreover, the startup enables focused ergonomic activities that improve workplace well-being and lessen musculoskeletal strain by combining organized experimentation, ongoing monitoring, and prompt corrective feedback.

Care Watch provides a Wearable Health Monitoring Device

CareWatch, an Irish startup, delivers a wearable health monitoring device and a remote monitoring platform.

The solution enables care teams to perform remote patient monitoring (RPM) using current procedural terminology (CPT) codes. The integrated wearable device and RPM platform provide real-time patient data and event alerts through a wearable and monitoring app. It sends text notifications to on-call or on-site physicians and caregivers to support timely clinical decisions.

CareWatch integrates patient data into PointClickCare (PCC) for billing teams to classify monitored interactions as RPM visits and process Medicare or Medicaid (CMS) claims using the appropriate CPT codes.

Innovations that Matter: AI & Biosensors Top the List

Drawing on metrics such as company activity, employee strength, and sector growth, we pinpointed three wearables trends and innovations shaping the market.

AI-powered Wearables consists of 2500 companies and 315 800 professionals worldwide. A growth rate of 7.18% per year suggests steady market development as opposed to quick saturation. These wearables process sensor data in real time and provide adaptive insights for productivity tracking, fitness improvement, industrial safety, and health monitoring. The AI-enabled wearables function as autonomous decision-support tools rather than passive data collectors, which enhances their function in the consumer, healthcare, and business markets.

Wearable Biosensors includes over 140 businesses and 5400 workers globally. Also, this segment exhibits an annual growth rate of 11.68%. Biochemical and physiological signals, including metabolic indicators, hydration markers, and glucose levels, are measured by wearable biosensors. This segment drives the adoption of noninvasive monitoring across sports science, preventive medicine, and healthcare. It supports improved condition management, earlier detection, and data-driven personalization.

Medical Wearables consists of 1100 businesses and 83 500 employees. An annual growth rate of 4.63% signals stable adoption rather than rapid experimentation. Medical wearables with an emphasis on clinically relevant applications, including heart rhythm tracking, remote patient monitoring, and post-acute care management. These gadgets integrate into healthcare delivery models, enable continuous monitoring beyond clinical settings, support data-driven clinical decisions, and improve long-term patient outcomes.

Funding Scenario: Major Acquisitions & More

Our data indicates strong and sustained capital activity in the wearable segment. The average investment amount stands at USD 45.7 million per fundraising round, reflecting mid- to late-stage scaling efforts.

The ecosystem includes over 29 300 active investors and more than 42 200 closed funding rounds, supporting 12 300+ companies. This breadth of participation highlights the segment’s maturity and cross-sector appeal, spanning consumer electronics, health tech, AR/VR, and smart retail applications.

At the top end, leading investors have collectively deployed more than USD 25.2 billion across wearable-focused companies, signaling concentrated capital flows into high-growth platforms.

For example, L Catterton led a Series A extension that brought CIONIC’s funding to USD 12 million to advance its Neural Sleeve mobility device powered by neuromodulation.

Strategic acquirers are also active: Amazon agreed to acquire Bee, a developer of wrist-worn devices, reinforcing Big Tech’s interest in personal computing hardware.

Institutional capital is flowing into global wearable brands as well. Abu Dhabi Investment Authority invested USD 500 million in Lenskart through a mix of primary and secondary capital, supporting its smart eyewear and retail-tech expansion.

Meanwhile, Sequoia Capital China co-led a Series B round in Sesame to back voice-enabled wearable hardware, and Walmart agreed to acquire Memomi to strengthen its AR-driven virtual eyewear try-on capabilities.

Bachbone of the Research

Built on proprietary data from the StartUs Insights Discovery Platform, this report utilizes AI-powered monitoring of 9M+ companies, 25K+ technologies, and 150M+ patents and market publications. The platform provides robust firmographic intelligence to identify innovation leaders and ecosystem shifts.

Our analysis focuses on wearable technology’s evolution over the past five years. We assessed company counts, annual growth, media activity, patent filings, market maturity, global search dynamics, funding activity, leading countries, and emerging subtrends.

Continuous data updates allow for deeper benchmarking and comparative insights. To broaden the perspective, we also reviewed authoritative external market research and forecasts.