Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy explains how Storytailor collects, uses, shares, and protects information when you use Hōbi.

Hōbi is built for adults who create or participate in a child's Care Circle. Children do not create Hōbi accounts. Information about a child is provided and managed by adults with access to that child's Circle.

For a plain-language summary of what Hōbi does and does not do with a child's information, see Child privacy.

Storytailor Inc. controls the personal information described in this Policy for Hōbi.

Storytailor Inc.
7135 W 135th, #1074
Overland Park, KS 66223
USA

Privacy questions, rights requests, and questions about child-profile data can be sent to support@storytailor.com. If you are in the EEA or UK, you may use that same contact for privacy questions and requests before or in addition to contacting your local supervisory authority.

We receive information directly from adults who use Hōbi, from other authorized adults in the same Circle, from Apple, Google and device-level services you choose to use, from Storytailor when you choose to sign in with or connect Storytailor, and from the infrastructure and service providers needed to operate Hōbi.

• Directly from you when you sign up, sign in, create or manage a child profile, invite Circle members, capture typed or voice-transcribed moments, upload photos, create Promises or support requests, or contact support.
• From other authorized Circle members when they contribute to a child profile, such as capturing moments, clapping, creating Promises, or coordinating help.
• From Apple, Google and device services when you choose features such as Sign in with Apple, Google sign-in (Android), passkeys, Face ID or biometric lock, push notifications, microphone access and speech recognition for on-device voice transcription, photo selection, or map directions.
• From Storytailor when you choose “Continue with Storytailor” or connect Storytailor in Settings: your verified Storytailor account email and a Storytailor account identifier. When you sign in this way, we use them to create or link your Hōbi account. We keep the Storytailor account identifier, the permissions you granted, and access and refresh tokens on our servers so Hōbi can act on the connections you approve. When you connect Storytailor, Hōbi shows you the Storytailor IDs on your Storytailor account, with their names and characters, so you can choose one.
• From our hosting, storage, authentication, and messaging infrastructure through request logs, authentication events, storage references, push-token records, and service-delivery records.
• On the iPhone app, from analytics, crash diagnostics, and product-interaction telemetry tools that help us keep Hōbi reliable, debug issues, and understand whether important flows are working as expected. The Android app does not include these tools. On Android, diagnostics come only from feedback reports you send, which include the device model, Android version, app version and language, and, for a problem report, a short log of recent app activity.
• From optional connected services you choose to enable, if a future Hōbi feature lets you connect another service to your account or Circle.

We collect information you provide directly when you create an account, sign in, invite others, or use Hōbi features.

• Account information, such as your email address, display name, sign-in method, account email change records, and account security settings.
• Eligibility and setup information, such as your date of birth for the 16+ age gate, birthday update status, and profile photo if you choose to add one.
• Care Circle information, such as your role, permission level, invites, approvals, and membership status.
• Content you choose to submit, including moments, voice transcription text, photos, claps, Portrait interactions, Promises, support needs, and messages you send to us for support.

Adults in a Circle may create and manage child profiles. Depending on the feature, that may include a child's name, date of birth or age, gender field, pronoun context, avatar or profile photo, Circle relationships, moments including voice-transcribed text, Portrait history, Promises, support requests, and invite activity.

Hōbi is designed to minimize identifying data where possible. Children do not create accounts. We do not request precise device location for child profiles, and we strip EXIF location metadata from uploaded photos before storage.

Moments are checked before saving to block clearly inappropriate language and screen for child-safety concerns, and every photo is checked for child safety before it is saved. Both checks run separately from the AI helper consent toggles described below.

If you use Voice-to-Moment, audio is transcribed on your device. Hōbi does not save or send the audio. If you choose to send the moment, the resulting text may be used like any other moment detail.

When you use Hōbi, our systems and service providers may receive technical information needed to operate and secure the service, such as request logs, IP address, device or app metadata, authentication events, push token records, and abuse-prevention records.

We also keep records related to sign-in requests, account email change requests, birthday updates, invite validation, security settings, export and deletion requests, account audit logs, and other actions needed to troubleshoot issues, prevent misuse, and protect accounts.

Hōbi's web pages do not currently set cookies. They may use browser storage, such as local storage or session storage, to remember limited invite or sign-in context so the flow can reopen the app or continue on your device.

On iPhone, Hōbi may also store small files on your device in an Apple App Group so app extensions can work, such as a Help-share snapshot for Messages or recent Circle avatar images for widgets. The Care Circle widget shows child avatars only, not child names or moment text, and Apple redacts those avatars in locked or glanceable contexts. On Android, Hōbi keeps only what the app needs to run in its private storage on your device, such as your sign-in session, the notification registration, app settings, unfinished setup entries such as a child's name, and temporary copies of photos in its cache. None of it is included in device backups or copied to a new phone.

When an admin shares a Help request, Hōbi prepares it (in the iPhone app, a card for Messages or iMessage; on Android, a link through the share sheet), but you choose the recipients and send it yourself. Hōbi does not auto-send messages.

We use information to operate Hōbi, personalize the product for your Circle, protect children and other users, and meet our legal obligations.

Where GDPR or UK GDPR applies, our legal bases generally include performance of a contract with you, our legitimate interests in keeping Hōbi safe and reliable, your consent where you choose optional features or device permissions, and compliance with legal obligations.

• Performance of a contract: creating and maintaining accounts, child profiles, Care Circles, moments, Portraits, Promises, support coordination, and in-app settings.
• Legitimate interests: protecting children and other users, preventing fraud and misuse, enforcing our Terms, providing support, debugging issues, and improving product reliability.
• Consent or device permission: optional photo uploads, microphone access and speech recognition for voice moments, push notifications, Sign in with Apple, Google sign-in, passkeys, biometric lock, share flows, optional connected services, and other permissions you choose to use.
• Legal obligations: age-gate compliance, rights-request handling, law-enforcement responses, recordkeeping, and other obligations that apply to the service.

Hōbi separates AI consent into two layers so you and your Circle can decide together how, or whether, AI helpers are used.

• Account-level toggle (“Hōbi helpers”)controls whether your own moments, voice-transcribed text, and proofread requests can be used by Hōbi's AI helpers. This is off by default and you turn it on yourself.
• Circle-level toggle (“Weekly Portraits”), controlled by the Circle's owner or admin, decides whether the Circle generates the weekly Portrait letter at all.

Both toggles must be on for any of your moments to be used in that Circle's Portrait. If either toggle is off, your moments are not sent to AI providers. If you turn off “Hōbi helpers” later, your prior contributions stop being used going forward.

When AI helpers are on, we may send relevant information such as moment details, voice transcription text after you choose to send it, proofread text you ask Hōbi to review, moment categories, invite text, limited child-profile context, and recent Portrait context to those providers. Today, Hōbi's AI stack may include providers such as Anthropic and OpenAI. We use those providers to operate Hōbi features, not to sell your data or turn your child's moments into advertising products.

When a weekly Portrait is created, or when someone listens to a Portrait that doesn’t have a recording yet, Hōbi also prepares a recorded reading of the letter for “Listen to this letter.” To make it, we send the text of the letter, which includes your child’s first name, to Story Intelligence, a Storytailor service. Story Intelligence uses OpenAI to run a safety check on the text and ElevenLabs to turn it into audio. We send only the letter and its language, not photos, email addresses, or other account details.

Story Intelligence does not keep the letter text. Once the audio is made, we copy it into Hōbi’s own private storage and ask Story Intelligence to delete its copy. The recording is available only to members of that child’s Circle, through short-lived links. If no recording is available, the letter is read aloud with your device’s built-in voice instead. The Android app reads the letter aloud with your device’s built-in voice.

If you leave AI helpers off, Hōbi uses local or deterministic fallbacks for those optional features instead and does not send moment text, voice transcription text, or invite text to those providers. Hōbi also does not send proofread text to those providers unless you turn helpers on and ask Hōbi to proofread it. Photos are checked for child safety either way, as described below.

Voice audio itself is not sent to Anthropic, OpenAI, or Hōbi servers. Only the text you choose to send may be used for categorization or other moment features.

Separately, moment text is checked for child-safety concerns with Hōbi's own fixed rules, not AI. The check runs on your device, and for some requests also as a server-side text classification on Hōbi's servers. It runs on text only, never on audio, and no text is sent to an AI provider for this check.

Every photo you add to Hōbi, including moment, profile, child, and Circle photos, is checked for child safety before it is saved. This check runs whether Hōbi helpers are on or off. It is a safety step, separate from the optional AI helpers.

For this check, Hōbi's servers send a copy of the image, and nothing else, to OpenAI's moderation service, which looks for content that isn't safe for a child's Circle. We do not send names, account or Circle details, moment text, or location with it. If you have turned Hōbi helpers on, the image also goes to an OpenAI model for a broader safety check.

OpenAI does not use these photos to train its models. For the broader check, OpenAI may keep the request for up to 30 days to monitor for abuse, or longer where the law requires it or to prevent harm. Photos flagged as abusive may be retained by OpenAI for safety review.

Hōbi does not store the result of the check in your account, unless you send us feedback about it. Our server logs record the outcome of each check, never the image. A photo that passes is stored with your Circle’s content. When a child’s Circle is deleted, its photos are removed from storage. When you delete your account, the photos you added are removed, along with the photos in the Circles you own. When a moment is deleted, or a photo is removed from a moment, the photo is hidden from the Circle, but a copy can remain in storage.

When something doesn't feel right for the Circle, Hōbi gently steps in. You can tell us if we got it wrong, and we'll learn from it.

• AI-generated output is used to synthesize information adults choose to capture in Hōbi.
• We may change AI providers or models over time while keeping the same service purpose and safety rules.
• Hōbi does not use automated decision-making that produces legal or similarly significant effects about you or a child.

Hōbi may offer optional connected services, such as letting you connect an assistant or another service to Hōbi. These services are off by default.

If you choose to enable a connected service, Hōbi will show a separate permission screen explaining which Circle, data, and actions the service can access and how to revoke that access. We do not treat your general use of Hōbi, or your Portrait consent, as permission for a connected service.

If a Circle owner connects a child’s Storytailor ID in Settings, Hōbi receives that Storytailor ID’s name, avatar character, age band, and reading profile. The Storytailor ID’s name and character are visible to that child’s Circle. Unless the owner turns off “Send story prompts,” Hōbi sends Storytailor the category of each new moment as a story theme, never the moment text. When someone taps “Turn this into a story,” Hōbi sends Storytailor the moment sentence as the adult reviewed it, with the child’s name replaced by their Storytailor ID name or a placeholder such as “our explorer,” the character they chose, and a coded reference to the adult who asked, which does not include their name or contact details.

We share information only as needed to run Hōbi, honor your Circle settings, comply with law, or protect children, users, and the service.

• With other authorized members of a child's Circle, according to their role and permission level.
• With service-provider categories that help us operate Hōbi, such as hosting, database, authentication, storage, email delivery, push-notification, and AI providers, and, for the iPhone app only, analytics and crash-reporting providers.
• Current providers or infrastructure may include Supabase, SendGrid, Apple services you choose to use, Google services you choose to use (Google sign-in and Firebase Cloud Messaging for notifications on Android), Anthropic, OpenAI, Story Intelligence (a Storytailor service), and ElevenLabs. The iPhone app also uses Sentry (crash reporting) and TelemetryDeck (product analytics); the Android app does not include crash reporting or analytics tools.
• With Apple, Google and device-level providers when you use Sign in with Apple, Google sign- in, passkeys, Face ID or biometric lock, notifications, or on-device speech features, and with the map app you choose (Apple Maps in the iPhone app) when you ask for directions to a place.
• With optional connected services you choose to enable, only within the permissions you approve for that service.
• With professional advisors, counterparties to a business transfer, or authorities when required by law or reasonably necessary to protect children, users, Storytailor, or others.

If you are a California resident, you may have rights to know, access, correct, delete, and obtain a portable copy of personal information, to opt out of sale or sharing, to limit the use of sensitive personal information in certain circumstances, and to be free from discrimination for exercising those rights.

Hōbi does not sell personal information and does not share personal information for cross-context behavioral advertising. We also do not use or disclose sensitive personal information for purposes that would trigger a California right to limit beyond what is necessary to provide Hōbi.

• Request methods: You can use Hōbi account controls, including export and deletion tools when available, or email support@storytailor.com. Because Hōbi operates online and has a direct relationship with users, these are our designated request methods.
• Verification and timing: We may verify your identity or authority before acting on a request. We aim to respond within applicable law, generally within 45 days for verified California requests.
• Categories collected in the preceding 12 months may include identifiers; account and profile records; age, date-of-birth, and gender fields you choose to provide; moments, voice transcription text you choose to send, photos, Portraits, Promises, support requests, and invite activity; internet or other electronic network activity; location text you explicitly enter for event-based features; and inferences reflected in Portrait outputs.
• Categories disclosed for business purposes in the preceding 12 months may include the categories above, disclosed to authorized Circle members and service-provider categories such as hosting, storage, authentication, email delivery, notification, and AI providers. We have not sold personal information or shared it for cross-context behavioral advertising.

If you are in the EEA or UK, you may have rights to access, correct, erase, restrict, or object to certain processing, receive a portable copy of certain personal information, withdraw consent where processing depends on consent, and lodge a complaint with your supervisory authority.

Where information is not collected directly from you, we generally receive it from authorized adult account holders, other Circle members, Apple, Google or device services you choose to use, and the service providers that help operate Hōbi.

• You can request access, correction, export, deletion, restriction, or objection by using Hōbi account controls when available or by contacting support@storytailor.com.
• We may need to verify your identity or authority before acting on a request, and we may retain limited information where required for security, fraud prevention, backup restoration, legal compliance, or dispute resolution.
• We aim to respond within applicable law, generally within one month for EEA and UK rights requests, subject to extensions permitted by law.

Hōbi is designed for adults. Children under 13 do not create Hōbi accounts. Adults provide and manage child information within the service.

The adult account holder or other authorized adult managing a child profile may review, correct, export, or delete that child-profile information through Hōbi controls or by contacting support@storytailor.com. If you believe a child profile was created or shared without appropriate authority, contact us.

We keep information for as long as reasonably necessary to provide Hōbi, maintain records, protect the service, and comply with legal obligations.

Retention periods vary by data type. For example, account, Circle, and child-profile data may remain while the relevant account or profile is active, while security logs, invite records, deletion or export requests, and abuse-prevention records may be kept for a different period when reasonably necessary.

• When you delete your account or a child profile, we delete or deidentify associated information unless we need to keep some of it longer for security, fraud prevention, backup restoration, dispute resolution, or legal compliance.
• For how to delete your account, in the app or by email, and exactly what is deleted and kept, see Delete your account.
• We do not keep child-profile information indefinitely when it is no longer reasonably necessary for Hōbi's purposes.

Hōbi and our service providers may process information in the United States and other countries that may have different data-protection laws from the country where you live.

When applicable law requires it, we use reasonable contractual, technical, and organizational safeguards designed to protect personal information transferred across borders.

We use reasonable administrative, technical, and organizational safeguards designed for the sensitivity of Hōbi data. Those safeguards include access controls, infrastructure security, and product features intended to minimize unnecessary child-data exposure.

No system can promise perfect security. If you believe your account or a child profile has been accessed improperly, contact us right away.

We may update this Privacy Policy over time. When we do, we will update the in-app date and may provide additional notice when appropriate.

Questions about privacy or child data on Hōbi can be sent to support@storytailor.com.