HeHealth’s AI app that displayed ‘dick pics’ for STDs has been shut down

Calmara app powered by HeHealth AI claimed“Our innovative AI technology delivers fast, confidential, and scientifically validated sexual health screenings, providing peace of mind before diving into intimate encounters,” but has now been shut down following a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) investigation.

The app asked daters to send dick pics to check for sexually transmitted infections, promising “clear, science-backed answers about your partner’s sexual health status,” according to one report. FTC Letter dated July 11th. The letter lays out some of the agency’s concerns with the information HeHealth relied on for its claims, including one that it could detect more than 10 sexually transmitted infections with accuracy up to 94 percent.

The FTC notes that HeHealth paid several study authors, that the main study cited by the company only evaluated four types of STDs instead of 10, and that the data used to train the AI ​​model included images from users who had never had one. diagnostic test to confirm the results. .

The HeHealth app, which uses the same AI, has marketed itself more as an initial step for individuals before connecting with a medical provider.

The company has agreed to shut down both apps by July 15, and the Calmara website and links to the HeHealth app appear to be offline. The company also agreed to delete all personal customer information obtained through payment apps or vendors and to ask those vendors to delete any of their customer data, the FTC said.

“The hard-working FTC team is so committed to protecting consumers that they are even willing to scroll through pages of dick pics to protect Americans from AI scammers,” said a source familiar with the matter, who granted anonymity because they were not authorized to comment. officially about the investigation, said On the edge.

The FTC issued a civil investigative demand (similar to a subpoena) seeking information about Calmara’s advertising claims and privacy practices and notified HeHealth that it is illegal to make health benefit claims without “credible scientific evidence.”

HeHealth did not immediately respond to a request for comment from On the edge.

The FTC said it would not pursue the investigation since HeHealth agreed to those terms and because of “the small number of users and sales of Calmara in the U.S.” the public interest may require.”