Effective August 12, 2026
Hellos is a personal map and messaging service. Toasty is the AI-powered character you talk with through the service. This policy explains how Hellos ("we," "us," or "our") handles information when you use our website, iOS app, maps, text and iMessage conversations, waitlist, and related services (together, the "Service").
If you message us before you have access, we keep only the phone number or messaging address needed for the waitlist and its status. We discard that message's body and attachments rather than creating an account, conversation history, or AI request. We send one confirmation and may later send an availability message.
We use information to provide and personalize the Service; reply to you; build your private map; recognize and remember places; create relevant suggestions and occasional follow-ups; deliver content you intentionally share with friends; operate the waitlist; maintain security; prevent abuse; troubleshoot; measure basic reliability and feature use; and improve the Service.
We do not use your content to train our own general-purpose AI models, and we do not use precise location, messages, or photos for advertising.
To generate replies, we send OpenAI selected information needed for the current conversation. This can include your message, supported photos, recent conversation context, relevant memories, and place or area names. We do not send raw latitude and longitude coordinates to OpenAI. OpenAI states that API inputs and outputs are not used to train its models by default.
To identify a nearby or newly named place, we may send a search term, latitude and longitude, and search radius to place-data providers such as Foursquare or OpenStreetMap services. We use the result to match a place for your map. We do not give these providers your messaging address or conversation history.
We disclose information only as needed in these situations:
We do not sell or rent your mobile information. No mobile information will be shared with third parties or affiliates for their own marketing or promotional purposes. Text messaging originator opt-in data and consent will not be shared with third parties except messaging providers acting on our behalf to operate the program.
By signing up in our app and texting our number first, you consent to receive conversational messages and occasional follow-up check-ins from Hellos. Message frequency varies. Message and data rates may apply. Reply STOP at any time to opt out, or HELP for assistance.
After STOP, we keep a minimal suppression record so another message does not silently opt you back in. Reply START to explicitly resume messages.
We retain account, conversation, map, photo, and location information while your account is active and for as long as reasonably needed to provide and protect the Service. Technical records may be kept for a shorter period for reliability, security, and abuse prevention. Waitlist contact information is kept until access is offered, you ask us to remove it, or you reply STOP.
You may ask us to access, correct, export, or delete information associated with you by texting Toasty or emailing support@heyhellos.app. We may verify the request using the messaging address associated with the account. Deletion removes the account and associated personal information unless limited retention is reasonably necessary for security, legal obligations, or an opt-out record.
Shared map entries may remain after we remove their link to you. Content you deliberately sent to a friend may remain in that friend's saved copy. Information may also remain briefly in protected backups until those backups rotate.
We do not use third-party advertising trackers or engage in cross-context behavioral advertising, so browser “Do Not Track” signals do not change how the Service operates.
We use reasonable technical and organizational safeguards designed to protect information, including access controls and encryption in transit. No service can guarantee absolute security, especially when content travels through messaging networks or third-party platforms.
The Service is not directed to children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from them. If you believe a child under 13 has provided information, contact us so we can investigate and delete it.
Hellos is operated from the United States. If you use it from another country, information may be processed in the United States and other places where our providers operate.
We may update this policy as the Service changes. We will post the revised version here, change the effective date, and provide additional notice when a change is material.
Questions, privacy requests, or concerns: support@heyhellos.app