A tablet-based app powered by computer vision and machine learning may improve screening for autism, according to a paper in Nature Medicine.

Researchers at Duke University developed the app and used it to assess 475 toddlers. Participants who screened positive for autism had a 40.6% probability of being diagnosed with the condition.

The figure compares favorably to the positive predictive value of a questionnaire currently used to screen for autism, which was 14.6% in another study. The researchers’ app performed consistently across sex, race and ethnicity.