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Privacy

Last updated: July 26, 2026

Hearth is an emotionally intelligent AI companion that you can text through iMessage. This Privacy Policy explains what information Hearth receives, why we use it, when we share it, and the choices available to you.

Welcome to Hearth’s Privacy Policy. We believe a companion built around conversation should also be clear about how those conversations are handled. This policy applies when you text Hearth, visit our website, contact us, or otherwise use a product or service that links to this policy (collectively, the “Service”).

1. Who we are

In this policy, “Hearth,” “we,” “us,” and “our” refer to the team and entity that operates the Hearth Service. Hearth provides an AI-powered conversational companion through messaging services, including iMessage.

You can contact us about this policy or your personal information at privacy@hearth.ai.

2. Information we collect

The information we collect depends on how you interact with Hearth.

Information you provide

  • Contact and account information. When you begin texting Hearth, we may receive your phone number, display name, messaging identifier, and information needed to create and maintain your Hearth profile.
  • Conversation content. We receive the messages, prompts, reactions, photos, files, voice notes, and other content you choose to send to Hearth, together with Hearth’s responses. Because Hearth is designed to remember context and respond thoughtfully, conversation content may be associated with your profile.
  • Preferences and memory. You may tell Hearth about your interests, routines, relationships, goals, communication preferences, or other details you would like it to remember.
  • Support and feedback. If you contact us, join research, answer a survey, report a problem, or send feedback, we collect the information you provide in that interaction.

Please do not send information that you do not want Hearth to process. Conversations can naturally include sensitive details—such as information about health, relationships, beliefs, or emotional wellbeing. Where the law treats that information as sensitive, we process it only as permitted by law and, where required, with your consent.

Information collected automatically

  • Message and service metadata. We may collect delivery status, timestamps, interaction history, feature usage, and similar operational information.
  • Device and technical information. When you visit our website or use connected web features, we may receive IP address, browser type, device type, operating system, referring pages, approximate location derived from IP address, and diagnostic data.
  • Usage and reliability information. We collect information about errors, response latency, abuse signals, and how features perform so that we can maintain and improve the Service.

Information from others

We may receive information from:

  • messaging and communications providers that deliver your messages;
  • vendors that help us operate, secure, analyze, and improve the Service;
  • people who contact us about a safety, support, or legal concern involving your use of Hearth; and
  • public sources where permitted by law.

Hearth does not read other conversations on your device or access your contacts merely because you text us. We process the content you intentionally send to Hearth and information made available through the messaging service.

3. How AI processing works

Hearth uses artificial intelligence systems to understand messages and generate responses. To provide the Service, conversation content and relevant context may be sent to AI model providers and infrastructure vendors acting on our behalf.

AI systems can make mistakes, misunderstand context, or produce unexpected responses. We may use automated systems and, in limited circumstances, authorized human review to investigate safety issues, troubleshoot failures, respond to support requests, evaluate quality, and improve Hearth.

We may use conversation data to personalize your experience and improve Hearth. Where required by law, we will ask for consent before using personal information for a materially different purpose. We do not allow service providers to use your personal information for their own independent marketing.

4. How we use information

We use information to:

  1. provide, personalize, and maintain your conversations with Hearth;
  2. remember context and preferences you ask Hearth to retain;
  3. generate, deliver, and improve responses;
  4. authenticate users and maintain account continuity;
  5. monitor reliability, prevent spam, detect misuse, and protect the safety of users and the Service;
  6. provide support and respond to questions, feedback, and requests;
  7. understand how the Service is used and develop new features;
  8. communicate about important product, safety, policy, or service updates;
  9. comply with law and enforce our Terms of Service and Terms of Use; and
  10. establish, exercise, or defend legal claims.

Where applicable law requires a legal basis, we rely on performance of our contract with you, our legitimate interests in operating and improving Hearth, compliance with legal obligations, protection of vital interests, and consent where appropriate.

5. How we share information

We do not sell your personal information for money. We may share information in the following circumstances:

Service providers

We work with vendors that provide AI models, cloud hosting, message delivery, analytics, customer support, security, fraud prevention, and professional services. They may process information only to perform services for us and subject to appropriate contractual obligations.

Legal and safety reasons

We may disclose information if we reasonably believe it is necessary to:

  • comply with law, legal process, or a valid government request;
  • protect the rights, safety, and security of Hearth, our users, or others;
  • investigate fraud, abuse, security incidents, or violations of our terms; or
  • respond to an emergency involving a risk of death or serious physical harm.

Hearth is not an emergency service and does not continuously monitor conversations. If you or someone else is in immediate danger, contact local emergency services.

Business transfers

If Hearth is involved in a merger, financing, acquisition, reorganization, bankruptcy, or sale of assets, information may be transferred as part of that transaction. We will take reasonable steps to require the recipient to honor this policy or provide notice of material changes.

With your direction

We may share information when you ask us to, authorize a connection, or otherwise consent.

Aggregated or de-identified information

We may use and share information that has been aggregated or de-identified so that it cannot reasonably identify you. We will not attempt to re-identify it except as permitted by law.

6. Message delivery and third-party services

Hearth is delivered through messaging platforms and communications providers. Your use of iMessage and your Apple device is also governed by Apple’s own terms and privacy practices. Apple may process information independently from Hearth.

Once a message is delivered to Hearth, it must be processed by our systems and service providers to generate a response. The privacy and security properties of a device-to-device conversation may therefore differ from a conversation with an automated service.

Apple and iMessage are trademarks of Apple Inc. Hearth is not sponsored by, endorsed by, or affiliated with Apple Inc.

7. Data retention

We keep personal information only for as long as reasonably necessary for the purposes described in this policy, including to provide conversation continuity, comply with law, resolve disputes, enforce agreements, and protect the Service.

Retention periods vary based on the type of information:

  • conversation content and memory may be retained while your Hearth profile is active so the Service can maintain context;
  • technical logs and security records are generally retained for a shorter operational period unless needed to investigate an incident;
  • support, transaction, and legal records may be retained as required for business and legal obligations; and
  • limited information may be retained after deletion where necessary for fraud prevention, safety, legal compliance, or the establishment or defense of claims.

You may request deletion as described below. When information is deleted, it may remain temporarily in encrypted backups until those backups are overwritten through our normal cycle.

8. Security

We use administrative, technical, and organizational safeguards designed to protect personal information. These measures may include access controls, encryption in transit, monitoring, vendor reviews, and limiting employee access according to role.

No system is completely secure. You are responsible for protecting access to your device, phone number, Apple account, and messages. Please contact us promptly if you believe someone has accessed your Hearth conversations without permission.

9. International data transfers

Hearth and its service providers may process information in countries other than the country where you live. Those countries may have different data protection laws. Where required, we use approved transfer mechanisms and contractual safeguards intended to protect personal information.

10. Your choices and rights

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to:

  • access or receive a copy of personal information we hold about you;
  • correct inaccurate information;
  • request deletion of personal information;
  • object to or restrict certain processing;
  • withdraw consent where processing is based on consent;
  • receive portable data in a commonly used format;
  • appeal a decision we make about a privacy request; and
  • complain to your local data protection authority.

You may also ask Hearth to forget particular details, stop texting Hearth, or block the Hearth conversation through your messaging app.

To submit a privacy request, email privacy@hearth.ai. We may need to verify that the phone number or account involved belongs to you. Authorized agents may submit requests where permitted by law, but we may require proof of authorization.

We will not discriminate against you for exercising a privacy right.

11. United States state privacy disclosures

Some U.S. state laws provide additional rights regarding access, correction, deletion, portability, and the use of sensitive personal information.

Hearth does not sell personal information for money. We also do not use personal information for cross-context behavioral advertising. If our practices change, we will update this policy and provide any legally required choices before the change applies.

12. Children’s privacy

Hearth is not intended for anyone under 18, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 18. If you believe a child has provided personal information to Hearth, contact privacy@hearth.ai so we can investigate and take appropriate action.

13. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy as Hearth evolves. We will post the revised version with a new “Last updated” date and provide additional notice when required by law. If a change materially affects how we use personal information already collected, we will provide notice before the change takes effect where required.

14. Contact us

Questions, concerns, and privacy requests can be sent to:

Hearth Privacy Team
privacy@hearth.ai

Please include enough information for us to understand your request, but do not send highly sensitive information by email.