Privacy Policy

1. Who we are

batko.ai is operated by Puddle Pod Pty Ltd (ABN 89 652 445 451), an Australian company. We provide founder tools, AI-powered features, analytics, coaching resources, and community for startup founders and leaders. When we say “we”, “us”, or “our”, we mean Puddle Pod Pty Ltd. When we say “you”, we mean you, the person using our platform.

You can contact us at hello@batko.ai.

2. Information we collect

We collect the following types of information:

• Account data - name, email address, password (encrypted), company information, LinkedIn profile URL, and other details you provide during registration or onboarding.
• Form submissions - information you submit through our newsletter signup, contact forms, investor expression of interest forms, and partner applications.
• Payment data - payment information is processed by Stripe. We do not store your card details. We retain transaction records (amount, date, subscription status) for billing and compliance purposes.
• Usage data - page views, feature interactions, button clicks, navigation patterns, and how you use our tools and services.
• Device and technical data - IP address, browser type and version, device type, operating system, screen resolution, and referring URL.
• AI tool inputs - pitch content, business profiles, chat messages, and other content you submit to our AI-powered features. This data is processed to deliver the tool functionality you requested.
• Session recordings - we collect anonymised recordings of how you interact with our platform (mouse movements, clicks, form inputs with text redacted) for UX improvement. These recordings do not capture sensitive field contents like passwords or payment details.

3. How we use your information

We use your information to:

• Deliver our services - operate your account, process payments, provide access to tools and features.
• Power AI features - process your inputs through AI models to generate pitch feedback, co-founder matches, business analysis, and other AI-driven outputs.
• Improve our platform - analyse usage patterns, identify bugs, test new features, and improve the user experience.
• Communicate with you - send account notifications, respond to enquiries, deliver newsletters you have subscribed to, and share product updates.
• Ensure security - detect and prevent fraud, abuse, and unauthorised access.
• Comply with legal obligations - meet tax, accounting, and regulatory requirements.

4. Legal basis for processing (GDPR)

If you are in the European Economic Area or the United Kingdom, we process your data on the following legal bases:

• Consent - for marketing emails, newsletters, and optional cookies. You can withdraw consent at any time.
• Contract - to deliver paid services, manage your account, and process transactions.
• Legitimate interest - for analytics, platform security, fraud prevention, and improving our services. We balance our interests against your rights and only process data where the impact on you is minimal.

5. Who we share your data with

We do not sell your personal information. We share data only with the following sub-processors, each of which is necessary to operate our platform:

6. International data transfers

We are based in Australia, and some of our sub-processors are located in the United States and other countries. When your data is transferred outside of your jurisdiction, we rely on appropriate safeguards including Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) approved by the European Commission, the sub-processor's compliance certifications, and contractual obligations to protect your data. We ensure that all transfers comply with applicable data protection laws.

7. Data retention

We retain your data for the following periods:

• Account data - retained for as long as your account is active, and deleted within 30 days of a deletion request.
• Usage and analytics logs - retained for 12 months, then deleted or anonymised.
• Payment records - retained as required by Australian tax law (generally 5 years).
• AI tool inputs - retained only as long as necessary to deliver the tool output, unless you have an active account and the data is part of a saved project.
• Session recordings - retained for up to 12 months.

8. Your rights

Depending on where you are located, you have the following rights:

GDPR (EEA and UK)

• Right of access - request a copy of the data we hold about you.
• Right to rectification - ask us to correct inaccurate data.
• Right to erasure - ask us to delete your data.
• Right to data portability - receive your data in a structured, machine-readable format.
• Right to restriction - ask us to limit how we process your data.
• Right to object - object to processing based on legitimate interest, including profiling.

CCPA (California)

• Right to know what personal information we collect, use, and disclose.
• Right to delete your personal information.
• Right to opt out of the sale of personal information. We do not sell your personal information.
• Right to non-discrimination for exercising your privacy rights.

Australian Privacy Act

• Right to access the personal information we hold about you.
• Right to request correction of inaccurate information.
• Right to complain to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) if you believe we have breached your privacy.

To exercise any of these rights, email us at hello@batko.ai or use the account settings within the platform. We will respond within 30 days.

9. Cookies

We use cookies and similar technologies for authentication, analytics, and to remember your preferences. For a detailed breakdown of the cookies we use and how to manage them, see our Cookie Policy.

10. Children's privacy

batko.ai is not directed at individuals under the age of 16. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If we become aware that we have collected data from a person under 16, we will delete it promptly. If you believe a child has provided us with personal information, please contact us at hello@batko.ai.

11. Changes to this policy

We may update this privacy policy from time to time. Changes will be posted on this page with an updated “Last updated” date. If we make material changes that affect how we handle your data, we will notify you by email or through a notice on the platform.

12. Contact

If you have questions or concerns about this privacy policy or how we handle your data, contact us at hello@batko.ai.

Puddle Pod Pty Ltd
ABN 89 652 445 451
Victoria, Australia