AI photo calorie apps underestimate meal energy by about a third

NIH researchers photographed 102 meals of known composition and ran them through the photo features of Appediet, MyFitnessPal, Lose It! and Cal AI. Every app came in low, missing 252–345 kcal per meal on average and about 30 g of fat. The findings were presented as a conference abstract and are not yet peer-reviewed.

• Cal AI underestimated energy by 345 kcal per meal on average, Appediet by 252 kcal
• All four apps missed roughly 30 g of fat per meal
• Lose It! and Cal AI also underestimated carbohydrates by about 14 g
• Results are a NUTRITION conference abstract, not a peer-reviewed paper