On a bright summer day, your phone heats up in your hand — for sure annoying, but nothing unusual. But now, imagine its case puckering, reddening, and blistering like human skin left too long in the sun.

It’s unsettling, but this case is less about practicality than it is about sending a message. It’s the latest creation by Marc Teyssier, a French designer known for pushing the boundaries of interactive technology. His new invention, the Skincase, mimics human skin so closely it can sunburn — on purpose.

“By creating a tangible, visceral reaction to UV exposure,” Teyssier explained, “the Skincase not only raises awareness of Sun safety but highlights how Sun protection is an undeniable priority.”

When Your Phone Gets a Sunburn Before You Do

Developed in collaboration with the British Skin Foundation and telecom company O2, the Skincase is both a scientific device and a startling piece of performance art. Its outer layer looks and feels like human epidermis, down to the fine texture. But its most startling feature is what happens when it’s left out in the sun.

Just like our own skin, the Skincase reacts to ultraviolet radiation. After enough exposure, the synthetic skin darkens, wilts, and even appears burned. The goal is to turn your phone into a visual alarm for skin safety. As Teyssier puts it, “Our phones are objects we don’t expect to change and to react in a humane way.”

Skin cancer is no trivial issue. In the U.S., one in five Americans will develop it by the age of 70. Sunburns, especially repeated ones, are the main risk factor. Yet public behavior around sun safety remains troublingly carefree.

A 2020 National Health Interview Survey found that only 12.3 percent of adult men and 29 percent of women use sunscreen when outdoors for more than an hour. Even more striking: a survey by the American Academy of Dermatology revealed 27 percent of respondents only used sunscreen when others reminded them. That number climbed to 37 percent among Gen-Z. Another poll from the Orlando Health Cancer Institute discovered 14 percent of people under 25 mistakenly believe daily sunscreen use is more harmful than sun exposure.

Against this backdrop, a flesh-colored phone case that “burns” begins to make sense, like a weird painting that suddenly becomes interesting after a museum guide explains ‘what went on inside the artist’s head’. As bizarre as it sounds, Teyssier argues it’s an attempt to make health warnings impossible to ignore.

Touch and Creep Factor

Teyssier isn’t new to this territory. In 2019, he debuted a phone case made of artificial skin that could sense being pinched, stroked, or tickled. This new Skincase builds on that foundation, both technically and conceptually.

The earlier skin case was made of a mesh of stretchable copper wire that sits between two layers of silicone. This configuration allows the case to detect gestures and pressure changes. This earlier version of the skin-tech interpreted different types of touch as emotional signals. A hard squeeze, for instance, signified anger. A tap meant attention-seeking. A gentle stroke conveyed comfort. “I wanted to pinch my phone,” said Teyssier of his initial idea.

What’s next? Teyssier says the team aims to increase realism by embedding hair (please don’t) and even temperature sensitivity. He’s also worked on a robotic smartphone finger that allows your device to crawl across a table.

At first glance, the Skincase seems like a horror show wrapped around a gadget. But beneath the unsettling surface is a serious question: What does it take to change behavior?

In a world where many ignore basic sun safety, maybe a grotesque little sunburned smartphone is just the kind of jolt people need.