Insta360 enters gimbal market with 8K Leica-engineered Luna Ultra

The Luna Ultra represents a significant technical escalation in the pocket gimbal category, moving beyond traditional 4K capture into 8K production workflows. By integrating professional color science from Leica and high-bitrate I-Log, Insta360 is targeting hybrid creators who require cinematic fidelity without the footprint of mirrorless rigs. This launch positions Insta360 to capture high-end market share, particularly in regions where competitors face regulatory hurdles. The inclusion of a detachable screen suggests a move toward modular, multi-camera ecosystems for solo operators. Watch for whether regional sales spikes in the U.S. mirror the product's instant sell-out performance seen in initial Shenzhen retail tests.

The launch of the Luna Ultra comes as the handheld gimbal market is projected to reach 14.8 million units by 2026, a 16-fold increase from 2023 levels, per Sigmaintell reports from June 2026. This expansion occurs while the industry undergoes a tiered shift: specialized hardware firms like Insta360 and DJI are moving into the high-end professional space with dual-camera systems, while smartphone manufacturers such as OPPO and vivo are increasingly integrating gimbal-like stabilization into mid-tier handsets to appeal to the burgeoning creator economy.

Insta360’s strategic pivot into gimbals follows a period of financial divergence for the company. Despite revenue surging approximately 75% in 2025 to nearly 10 billion yuan, net profits fell by 6.6% due to a doubling of R&D spending, according to company financial reports from April 2026. Founder Liu Jingkang noted in a shareholder letter that this 'selling more but earning less' phase was a calculated trade-off to fund expansion into new categories, including custom chips and 'photography robots.'

Competitive dynamics also play a role in the Luna Ultra's release timing. Per Reuters and Digital Camera World in mid-2026, rival DJI has faced equipment authorization blocks in the U.S. market since late 2025 following federal regulatory shifts. This has created a vacuum in the premium stabilized handheld segment, allowing Insta360 to aggressively market its Leica-branded solutions to American vloggers. Furthermore, Leica has expanded its own mobile footprint, recently partnering with Xiaomi in May 2026 to integrate Google’s Gemini Omni AI for text-to-video generation, signaling a broader industry trend of merging high-end optics with advanced generative processing.