Will AI Replace Dermatologists? La Roche Posay's SpotScan+ App Analyses Your Skin In 3 Selfies!
In what feels like a huge innovation within the beauty space, La Roche Posay have launched their SpotScan+ App. Powered by AI & developed by dermatologists, it promises to analyse your skin in just three selfies!! While the app provides convenience and instant analysis, it does raise an important question: is this a genuinely helpful tool for skincare, or could it potentially be risky, paving the way for AI to replace dermatologists?
La Roche Posay pride themselves as a brand that are committed to making dermatological skincare accessible, so the SpotScan+ app feels like a great move in terms of providing skincare advice more widely. Described as ‘your free coaching app for blemish-prone skin’, the app technology is able to detect visible blemishes and assess your skin over the phone. It then provides a personalised report, highlighting areas of concern and offering advice on what products might be suitable to address those issues.
Putting it to the test, I made sure to take clear photos of my skin and within seconds it had generated a morning and evening skincare routine. Just make sure to take clear photos as poorly lit or low quality images could lead to inaccuracies.
The app then provides a morning and evening skincare routine. It also doesn’t automatically apply La Roche Posay products to your routine, just a general guide of what to use and in which order so you can use products you already have at home.
I think a major positive of this app is that if you have any minor concerns about your skin, but don’t feel it warrants a trip to the dermatologist, it does provide great skincare advice and recommendations that could help. This is also a great alternative for people that may feel too anxious to use in-store skin scanners that are available across multiple skincare brands, as often you may feel obliged to purchase a product at the end of your visit.
I think for me, this is a tool I will integrate into my routine to elevate my skin journey and I like that I can receive advice from a company that works with professional dermatologists.
As the app notes, seeing a dermatologist is not something that can be replaced as they of course have the training and expertise to be able to assess your skin thoroughly, prescribe any treatment etc. So to be clear, La Roche Posay are not advising you use the app as your sole skincare advice, but the app is developed in partnership with leading dermatologists and it does provide great general advice.
In my opinion this is a brilliant free resource that can be used to build a morning and evening skincare routine if you are not sure where to begin with skincare or how to address minor concerns. I was surprised with how accurate it was when it assessed my skin as the recommendations were in line with what facialists have told me.
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