Swan’s AI-Powered Smart Mirror Is Like Having a Celeb Makeup Artist and Dermatologist Right on My Vanity
Here’s the deal.
For years, beauty tech has been booming. At the moment, it’s a nearly $8 billion industry, but by 2033? Expect that number to look closer to $353 billion. It’s funny when you think back a decade or so; trying on different lipstick shades by uploading a stagnant photo to Maybelline or L’Oréal’s website felt revolutionary. In 2026, we have pre-programmed press-on nails with an accompanying app that puts 400 colors at your fingertips (literally) and flat irons made of glass and LED lights that straighten hair effectively at just 300 degrees. When you think about it, it’s pretty wild how far we’ve come.
Recently, I had the chance to get my hands on a piece of beauty tech that's making waves in editor circles. Called SWAN, it’s an AI and VR-powered smart mirror that brings medical-grade skin scanners and professional makeup artists into your personal bathroom. The mirror itself is pretty large, measuring over 15 inches high, and there are three brightness levels, which let me dissect (and, frankly, pick at) my skin in a crystal-clear reflection. Comparable vanity mirrors fall around the $600 mark. (I’m the queen of rationalizing purchases, FYI.)
The price tag isn’t cheap—you’re looking at $795—but the silver lining is you get access to essentially four different platforms. In my opinion, the most useful and unique is the SmARt Makeup Artist. TL;DR: the mirror scanned my face and analyzed my facial proportions, lip shape, and eye shape before prompting me to select a tutorial personally designed by Allen Avendano, Carolina Gonzales, or Fiona Stiles.
There’s a ton to choose from—party looks, office looks, daytime glam—but I personally find myself following the Sun-Kissed Glow tutorial from Avendano the most. In fact, the mirror even taught me how to contour. I’ve always struggled with contour placement, going too high, too low, too much. But the Swan mirror actually highlights exactly where you should place the product, in both width and length, directly on your face. It’s kind of like a really, really advanced Snapchat filter.
Samantha Holender using the makeup feature on the Swan mirror.
If you’re not a makeup person, the mirror also has three other functionalities worth checking out. There’s a marketplace that features brands like Chantecaille and Giorgio Armani, with a checkout feature accessible directly in the app. There’s a Routine Builder function that helps identify the products you use the most or are lacking in your routine. And then there’s an AI Skin Analyzer that can track skin concerns like redness and dark spots. It’s not nearly as advanced of read as what you would get from an in-office VISIA scan, but it is a fun feature to check your skin progress weekly.
More than anything, though, this mirror is a nice reminder that a beauty routine should be a ritual. And while there’s always going to be a place and time for a five-minute face, logging my skin progress and following makeup tutorials in the morning reminds me just how grounding a beauty routine is supposed to be.
Shop Swan
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