Merkx Privacy Policy

Last updated: 5 May 2026

Merkx ("we", "our", "us") is an AI companion app built by Chukwuemeka Udemezue. This Privacy Policy describes what information we collect, how we use it, and the choices you have. We are committed to keeping your data safe, minimal, and yours.

1. Information we collect

• Account information: name, email address, and authentication identifier from Apple or Google when you sign in.
• Conversations: the messages you send to Merkx and Merkx's responses, including text and voice transcripts.
• Voice recordings: audio of voice calls with Merkx, stored briefly for transcription, summary generation, and (with your enrollment) speaker verification.
• Memories you share: facts, names, dates, preferences and other personal context you tell Merkx, which we store so Merkx can remember you across conversations.
• Usage data: diagnostics such as crash reports, error logs, and feature-usage events used to improve the app.
• Subscription information: billing status from Apple, Google or our payment processor. We do not store credit-card numbers.

2. How we use your information

• To provide, operate and personalize Merkx.
• To remember context across conversations so Merkx can respond meaningfully to you over time.
• To process voice calls and chat messages through our AI providers (Anthropic, ElevenLabs, OpenAI).
• To analyze and improve the safety, quality and reliability of the service.
• To process payments and manage subscriptions.
• To respond to support requests and to comply with legal obligations.

3. Sharing of information

We do not sell your personal data. We share data with these categories of providers, only as needed to run Merkx:

• AI providers (Anthropic, OpenAI, ElevenLabs) — to generate Merkx's responses and voice. Conversations are not used by these providers to train their public models.
• Infrastructure providers (Render, AWS) — for hosting and storage.
• Payment processors (Apple, Google, Flutterwave) — to process subscription payments.
• Authentication providers (Apple, Google) — for sign-in.
• Legal authorities — only when required by law or to protect rights, safety and property.

4. Your rights and choices

• Access & export: email hello@merkx.ai for a copy of your data.
• Delete your account: in the app, go to Profile → Privacy & Security → Delete Account. Your account is queued for deletion and permanently removed after 30 days. You may cancel within that window by signing back in.
• Forget specific memories: ask Merkx in chat ("forget that I said...") or remove them in the Memory Vault.
• Withdraw consent: stop using Merkx and delete your account at any time.
• Decline tracking: Merkx does not use third-party advertising trackers. We will not show the App Tracking Transparency prompt unless that ever changes.

5. Data security

Conversations are encrypted at rest using Fernet symmetric encryption. Connections use TLS. Authentication tokens are stored in Keychain on your device. We restrict employee access to production data on a need-to-know basis. No system is 100% secure, but we take this seriously.

6. Data retention

• Active accounts: data is retained while your account is active.
• Deleted accounts: data is permanently deleted within 30 days of deletion request, except where we are required by law to retain it longer.
• Voice call recordings: kept for 30 days then deleted, unless you disable recording in the app.
• Backups: deleted records are removed from rolling backups within 90 days.

7. Children

Merkx is not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe a child has provided us information, contact hello@merkx.ai and we will delete it.

8. International data transfers

Merkx is operated from Nigeria with infrastructure providers located in the United States and the European Union. By using Merkx you consent to your information being processed in these jurisdictions.

9. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will post the updated version at this URL with a new "Last updated" date. Material changes will be communicated via in-app notice or email.

10. Contact

For privacy-related questions, contact:
Chukwuemeka Udemezue
hello@merkx.ai

— Merkx, made with care.