Ethics of algorithmic invasiveness in beauty apps: an online experimental survey of public perspectives

The rise of beauty apps with artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities has transformed how users perceive, evaluate, and engage with their and others’ appearance. While such apps offer entertainment, concerns persist about their ethical implications and psychological effects. In this study, we focus on the concept of algorithmic invasiveness – defined as the tendency of AI algorithms to increasingly influence and integrate into our daily lives. Using a conjoint survey experiment, we empirically assess public attitudes and social acceptability of beauty app functionalities with varying degrees of invasiveness, from removing blemishes to collecting medical data. Results show that functionalities with high degree of algorithmic invasiveness, such as AI-generated attractiveness rankings, are viewed as significantly less socially acceptable than less invasive functionalities. However, acceptability depends on context: functionalities tied to commercial applications, like personalised product recommendations, are often deemed less problematic despite similar data-use practices. User demographics and attitudes further shape perceptions. Older adults display greater acceptance of highly invasive functionalities compared to younger users. Participants with higher self-objectification or positive views of AI show increased tolerance of invasive functionalities. These findings highlight how both technological design and user predisposition influence both ethical attitudes and preferences in beauty-related technologies. This study showcases how we can elicit moral intuitions about new technologies by exploring how the public form preferences around specific functionalities. Moreover, it provides novel insight about how individuals make normative distinction between degrees of invasiveness, contributing to broader discourse about responsible AI design and digital well-being.