p/ming-zhao
You are unique, your skincare should be too.
Jack Smith
PROVEN Skincare — Personalized, data-powered skincare as individual as you
Featured
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Personalized skincare based on 27 factors about you, your skin, & lifestyle.

Winner of MIT’s AI Technology of the Year award, Proven analyzed 4000 scientific papers & 20Mn skin reviews.

Your products are formulated by Stanford scientists & dermatologists.

Replies
Ryan Hoover
I've seen an influx of personalized health and beauty products lately. Is this inspired by advancements in tech or a behavior shift from consumers?
Ming S. Zhao
@rrhoover Thanks for your question and thanks for a great platform 😊! It's an interesting question, there does seem to be an influx of personalized products, especially in subcategories such as hair care. I would say that advancements in technology, consumer recognition of the benefits of tailored products and acceptance of the direct-to-consumer approach, along with advances in manufacturing/ supply chain consumer all contribute to the shift. The direct-to-consumer model, which cuts the middle dealer of retailers, allows brands to have direct interactions with consumers. And from there, a next logical step is to increase the level of direct interaction, from just tastes and decorative elements, to needs/ fundamentals/ underlying differentiators. So we have the grandfathers of D2C brands of Dollar Shave and Warby to thank for starting the fire. Another key shift is advancements in manufacturing and logistics. For us, as a small startup, with currently low order volumes yet ultra-high SKU numbers, we were nevertheless able to establish a partnership with a leading FDA-Accredited US laboratory to craft our formulations, something that just a few years ago, would have been unheard of for the industry, which thrives on volumes and uniformity. So I credit the entire eco-system advancing, and seeing the potential for personalization, for enabling the shift as well. I truly believe that personalization will be the future of all of consumer goods, not just in personal care but all things that touch our every day lives, because once you try personalized products and experience personalized service, there's no going back. So this is just the happy beginning ✨
Nomiku

this is so cool!! I can't believe they've launched officially!!

Pros:

personalized for me, high quality ingredients, beautiful, refillable

Cons:

none

Gaganpreet
Great product, looking forward to the international shipping too (Netherlands).
Stella Lim
@_gagan Hi Gaganpreet, thank you for your interest! We're working on expanding our reach, and have already received a few inquiries from the Netherlands. Please stay tuned for when we launch our products overseas.
Taurean Bryant
With a name like Proven, is there anything on your site that talks about the claims made in clear language? Phrases like "formulated to remove toxins" is off-putting, I don't know what that's supposed to actually mean.
Ming S. Zhao
@_taurean Thanks for your question Taurean - and glad you like our name! We're called PROVEN because our products are made after having analyzed 4,000 scientific journal articles about skin, and more than 20Million consumer reviews about skin products - we then worked with the head of dermatology at Stanford university to select ingredients and formulate the products based on who you are, your skin, your skin goals and location. Much of the scientific underpinnings for our ingredient selection is heavily technical, and hence we've tried to use as much plain and layman's language as we can in describing the products and what they do. Thanks for your feedback on this language, we can make them a bit more easy to understand as well.
Naomi Assaraf 🔥
I'm 42, and I've been using the Proven 3 for about a month now: The cleanser, SPF day cream with anti-oxidants, and my skin firmness night cream. My skin looks so much better—the difference in my skin's elasticity and hyper-pigmentation is very noticeable! Thank you, Proven!!!
Tyrel Johnson

I love what PROVEN has created! No more off-the-shelf skincare that was made with scale and profit as the main focus. Everyone's skin and lifestyle is different, so why should our skin CARE be the same? I definitely recommend it. Once you try it, you won't be switching back to anything else.

Pros:

High-quality, clearn ingredients + personalized for me + sleek packaging

Cons:

None

Liz Hausle
I can't find the promo code for $25 off. Did you use it?
Joseph McElroy
Looks fantastic guys! Hope you will ship internationally soon!
Ming S. Zhao
@phoey1 Thanks Joseph! We're working on that and will update you as soon as we turn on that feature!
Nicole Shariat Farb
I like the concept but looks like they were quite inspired by our work at Shero Science . . they're tag line is even the same as ours.
Ming S. Zhao
@nicolefarb I had not heard of shero, great to know that there're other female entrepreneurs trying to change the skin care industry!
Ming S. Zhao
👐 So excited to share PROVEN with the PH community! 🍻 We are on a mission to bring data and technology to improve everyday lives for people - starting with giving folks good skin for life. 🕺 A bit about us: my cofounder, Amy, is a computational physicist from Stanford who held the world record for conducting largest computational simulation in science 🤓😎. I’m a business and startup jack-of-all-trades. We were united by our frustrations with our skin and with the skincare industry, and by a desire to use technology to improve skincare. A pet project of hers that used data to find the solution to her own skin issues turned into what we now call the Skin Genome Project, winner of MIT’s AI Technology of the year award for 2018, and the the underlying database that powers all of Proven’s products. Proven’s skin care products are: ✨Effective: Powered by data, the right ingredients are chosen for you out of 21,483 in our database, and formulated by Stanford skin scientists ❄️Personalized: Tailor-made for you based on more than 27 of your skin and life vitals ☔️ Safe. 100% clean and nontoxic ingredients. 🥧 Easy. No 19-step routines for good skin, everything you need is in a personalized, 3-step system. Checkout Proven's free personalized skin assessment, and try Proven with an exclusive PH perk. Just use the code PHVIP to check out with a discount. Feel free to ask me or our team with any questions!
IIIax Dellai
This seems like a great product - it's a shame that after spending 10 minutes answering lots of questions I was prompted for a US postcode hence not being able to continue... Maybe you should state at the beginning of the process that the service is only available in the USA 😭
Ming S. Zhao
@iiiaxdellai Sorry for that experience! Let me try to add the fact that it's the US only for now so you won't feel like you've wasted time. The reason we're US only for now is that we take in local weather data, including UV exposure, pollution/ smog levels, hardness of municipality water, into account when formulating our products. And hence for those pieces of info, we don't yet have reliable sources all around the globe. But we are working on it! And I'd be happy to update you as soon as we have them - where are you based please?
IIIax Dellai
@proven Thanks for your reply, no worries at all. I'm writing from the UK 👋🇬🇧 - your service looks grand
Ming S. Zhao
@iiiaxdellai Noted lllax, we've actually had quite a few folks inquire from the UK, so it is on our priority list!
Xepa777
This is literally the most romantic anniversary present for my fiance that I could think of LOL.
Ming S. Zhao
@xepa777 Don't forget yourself - men's skin needs TLC too 😊
Michelle Zaffino

This past year my skin is clearer, more balanced, and hydrated without being greasy, all from the nautural ingredients found in Proven. Try it and see for yourself.

Pros:

As an early user of Proven, I've seen the results.

Cons:

None

Egle Padeginskaite
When is it available worldwide? I went through the questions until I hit the zip code question and was not able to finish the process. I am in Europe. Otherwise, really cool stuff! 😉
Ming S. Zhao
@eggliokas Thank you for the comment! We will be opening up international shipping shortly, and would love to let you know when we do!
Anna Filou
It’s been about a year since the product was posted and I don’t think you ship to locatio outside the US yet, right? I’d love to be able to try PROVEN in Europe 😊
Shay Sa
I've been on the customization train for a while and have to say Proven's approach actually works - they know my skin better than I do! They've removed a lot of frustration from my shopping and decision process.
Ronnie Zwane
proven can you speak an language that you can talk because its a bit hard like that so is there anything can you do in your culture site
Stella Lim
@ronnie_zwane Hi Ronnie! Thanks so much for your feedback. Your thoughts allow us to continuously improve the experience on our site. We'll be sure to look into making the language a bit easier to understand.
Dan (Co-founder of Inpooling)
Definitely a disruption! How are you dealing with data privacy and security? Since a big amount of personal data will be collected for personalization (including genetic info), as potential customer, I really hope this product can respect my privacy from day 1.
Ming S. Zhao
@inpooling Great question - all of our data is anonymized and aggregated to ensure privacy, and we do not sell or rent data to anyone.
Dan (Co-founder of Inpooling)
@proven Thanks for the response! Not sure how you deal with anonymization and personalization at the same time. But it is worth the time to discuss with your development team and security expert early on your journey.
---eightyfive
Do you guys ship to Germany? I need this for my wife! 😅
Ming S. Zhao
@patrick_sbosny Sorry, we don't yet ship to Germany - but will shortly.
Bruno Nascimento
@proven anywhere we can signup to be alerted? I'm really curious about how you're going to deal with all the bureaucracy required for selling in Europe with so many combinations.
Che Yu Linn
Neat idea. It may be time to stop sneaking in my wife's skincare.
Stella Lim
@johnnyy Thanks Che Yu! It all starts with our free personalized skin assessment. We factor in your skin, genetic background, lifestyle, and environmental factors to truly customize your skincare.
Tashie M Amaral

It’s the smartest skin care line I’ve ever found. Combining data, science, lifestyle and environmental factors. It’s a must try.

Pros:

smart technology. Takes into account tour local pollution, humidity, water content, UV rays and your screen time! It’s so comprehensive

Cons:

None so far