Founded with the vision of transforming sleep technology, DUSQ has developed the world’s first closed-loop sleep regulation system, moving beyond conventional sleep trackers such as Oura, Whoop, and Garmin. Instead of only monitoring sleep patterns, the company has created a system designed to actively regulate sleep throughout the entire sleep cycle.
DUSQ’s behind-the-ear sleep regulation device was developed, tested, and clinically trialled through the company’s in-house sleep laboratory. The product is now being shipped to American backers ahead of its wider United States retail launch planned for September 2026.
The milestone places DUSQ among a select group of Indian consumer hardware companies that have gained significant early traction in the United States market. The achievement comes less than two years after the company secured a three-Shark deal on Shark Tank India.
On Kickstarter, DUSQ has surpassed previous records set by Indian health technology companies on the platform, including Ultrahuman, whose original Ring campaign raised approximately USD 500,000. As the company prepares for its United States retail expansion, it is also strengthening its India-based workforce, with more than 60 open positions across engineering, design, biotechnology, and growth functions.
USQ’s closed-loop sleep regulation system weighs only 12 grams and measures 7.2 millimetres. The device works from the wind-down phase to waking up, sitting behind the ear to monitor the autonomic nervous system in real time.
When sleep disruption occurs, the system responds through adaptive vagus and vestibular nerve stimulation, helping guide the body back into deeper sleep before the user becomes aware of the disturbance.
Unlike existing sleep devices that primarily provide information about previous sleep patterns, DUSQ focuses on influencing sleep quality during the process itself.
The technology behind the system has been developed entirely within DUSQ’s own research infrastructure. The company’s proprietary sleep laboratory has collected more than 50 million physiological data points. DUSQ has completed one clinical trial, with a second trial currently underway, holds CDSCO certification in India, and uses an FDA-cleared stimulation method for insomnia.
The company’s double-blind controlled trials reported a 31 percent increase in deep sleep, a 38 percent improvement in heart rate variability, and a 22 percent reduction in nighttime awakenings.
A key part of DUSQ’s innovation is SQ, or Sleep Quotient, a proprietary measurement system designed to assess the body’s ability to produce sleep. Unlike traditional sleep scores that describe past sleep outcomes, SQ focuses on understanding the body’s sleep capacity.
Developing SQ required integrated expertise across sensor hardware, signal processing, biostatistics, and real-time intervention algorithms, capabilities rarely combined within a single Indian startup.
DUSQ’s United States launch followed more than 2,000 first-generation commercial users in India and a Kickstarter waiting list exceeding 10,000 people. The company’s opening performance of crossing USD 1 million places it among the fastest Indian-founded hardware companies to achieve the milestone on the platform.
The achievement highlights the growing global acceptance of science-driven Indian healthcare technology and demonstrates that India-built medical technology products can compete in highly developed consumer health markets.
“We did not enter a category. We built one. From India. That is what these million dollars represent, not a product win, a category win,” said Dr. Siddhant Bhargava, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of DUSQ, who is also a physician.
“Sleep is too personal to be sold through hype. Most brands borrow desire from culture; we had to build our own. A million-dollar opening tells us people were willing to believe in a future of sleep they had not experienced yet,” said Gursakhi Lugani, Chief Taste Officer at DUSQ.
DUSQ’s seed funding round of approximately USD 3 million was led by Fireside Ventures, one of India’s largest consumer venture capital firms, with participation from Antler India and Climber Capital.
DUSQ Expands Team Ahead of Global Growth Phase
With its United States retail launch approaching, DUSQ is expanding its India-based team through more than 50 open positions across hardware engineering, embedded systems, signal processing, biotechnology, product design, content, growth, customer success, sleep coaching, and operations.
The company is seeking professionals interested in solving complex challenges across emerging fields, including developing closed-loop biological systems, creating content for a new technology category, and supporting users experiencing advanced sleep regulation technology.
“The problems we are solving here do not exist as job descriptions anywhere else. We are building the sensing, stimulation, and intelligence layers simultaneously on real human physiology in real time. If that sounds hard, it is. That is exactly the point,” said Mitansh Khurana, who leads technology at DUSQ.
“Some of the most important problems cannot be solved by engineering alone or science alone. They require curiosity, empathy, and the willingness to work across disciplines. That intersection is where we choose to build every day,” said Shalmali Kadu, who leads product at DUSQ.
Ronak Shah, Growth Advisor at DUSQ, said, “I have helped scale consumer brands to nine figures in revenue, and I have never seen a product where the technology this early actually matches the ambition of the pitch. If you want to build something that has to work, not just look good in a presentation, this is the place to do it.”
DUSQ’s open roles are listed through the company’s careers platform, with a focus on candidates based in India who want to contribute to a product already available in the United States market.
Founded in 2023 by Dr. Siddhant Bhargava, Shalmali Kadu, and Mitansh Khurana, DUSQ is a sleep science and recovery company focused on creating a new category in sleep technology. Built on a regulation-first approach and supported by more than 50 million physiological data points, the company combines neuroscience and hardware innovation to redefine sleep technology. Headquartered in India, DUSQ is preparing for its global expansion beginning with the United States.
The company’s Kickstarter success represents a major milestone for Indian consumer hardware, reinforcing the ability of India-based companies to develop advanced, clinically supported technologies capable of gaining recognition in global markets
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