Muse Wearables, an IIT-Madras incubated startup, has collaborated with the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) to introduce India's first wearable payments ecosystem. This innovative system is powered by Muse Wallet and the RuPay network, offering users a seamless and secure way to make payments.

The core of this ecosystem is the "Ring One," a stylish smart ring developed by Muse, which enables users to conduct transactions by simply tapping the ring on any NFC-enabled point-of-sale (PoS) terminal. This eliminates the need for a phone, card, or wallet, providing a convenient and hands-free payment experience.

Muse Wallet functions as a secure payment platform, allowing tokenized, hardware-level transactions through a secure element embedded within Ring One. Developed in partnership with NPCI and RuPay, it adheres to global EMV and PCI standards. Any RuPay credit or debit card can be converted into a secure digital token and stored within a tamper-resistant secure element chip, ensuring that user credentials remain isolated from phone systems or apps.

K L N Sai Prasanth, Co-Founder and CEO of Muse Wearables, expressed his ambition to challenge foreign tech giants in the digital wallet ecosystem by providing a truly sovereign alternative for India. He emphasized that this launch demonstrates the possibility of building world-class technology within India, with the goal of enabling millions of RuPay cardholders to experience the convenience of wearable payments in the next two years.

Muse Wearables, headquartered in Bengaluru, comprises a 200-member team dedicated to designing innovative, human-centric technology. The company's products are entirely conceptualized, designed, and manufactured in India, embodying the "Make in India, Made for the World" vision.

Muse Wallet is already live in over 40 countries, supporting cards from nearly 600 banks. By bringing its platform to India through RuPay, Muse aims to democratize access to secure and effortless digital payments for millions of users across the country, including those in Tier-II and -III cities. The company has begun onboarding issuing banks onto Muse Wallet with the aim of supporting all issuers in India to make this new form of payment ubiquitous.

The Ring One incorporates several security measures. Payments are only functional when the ring is worn, and removing it instantly disables transactions. If the ring is lost or stolen, the token remains useless without the authenticated context.

Prathyusha Kamarajugadda, Co-Founder and COO of Muse Wearables, highlighted that the company is building India's first Secure Element Tokenisation Platform, enabling users to add any RuPay card and pay instantly with just a tap of their ring.