Facial EMG vs. facial expression analysis Facial EMG (electromyography) is often considered better than facial expression analysis for detecting subtle emotional responses because it measures muscle activity directly rather than relying on external visual cues. Here’s why:

1. Precision and Sensitivity

• Facial EMG detects even the tiniest changes in muscle activity that may not manifest as visible facial expressions.
• This makes it ideal for capturing subtle emotions or micro-expressions that facial expression analysis might miss.

2. Overcoming Masked or Neutral Faces

• People may consciously or unconsciously suppress their facial expressions, creating a neutral or deceptive outward appearance.
• EMG can still pick up underlying muscle activity, revealing hidden emotional responses.

3. Quantitative Data

• EMG provides quantifiable output (e.g., measurements of muscle activity), offering a precise and measurable indicator of emotional response.
• Facial expression analysis typically involves qualitative or algorithmic classification of emotions, which can be less precise.

Facial EMG is thus better suited for high-precision, research-driven applications where detecting small emotional shifts matters. Until now facial expression analysis has been considered more practical for real-world scenarios requiring scalability and non-invasiveness. The Moveris solution, however, provides the scalability and non-invasiveness that marketers seem to prefer, making facial EMG the obvious choice when measuring audiences’ emotional responses to message exposure.