Google introduces AI health tool to identify skin, hair, and nail issues

Google has introduced a new AI health tool known to help identify different skin, hair, and nail issues using AI and a smart phone camera. This AI feature is not yet available on Android phone. The tool is not intended to provide a diagnosis nor be a substitute for medical advice as many conditions require clinician review, in-person examination, or additional testing like a biopsy. However, they plan to give clients the access to authoritative information so that they can make a more informed decision about the next step.

As mentioned by Google in their press release, this dermatology assist tool is a web-based application to make it easier to figure out what might be going on with the skin. Plans are being laid to launch the pilot later this year. With the support of easy features, the tool can be used in two ways, i.e., first depending on the concern, take three images of either the skin, nail, or hair from different angles and second respond to questions pertaining to the time when the issue occurred, skin type and related symptoms. Based on the information submitted, the AI tool will further pull from a knowledge pool of 288 skin conditions to offer potential conditions to match the criteria. What’s more, the tool also factors in sex, race, skin type and age to derive specific results. It is reportedly known that while the tool has received clinical validation in the EU and is ‘marked as a class I medical device’, it has not been evaluated by the US FDA for safety or efficacy.