Privacy policy

1Scope

This policy applies to the Merlin application for iPhone, its related services, these Merlin webpages, and communications with Antar Labs LLC about Merlin, collectively the "Services." Antar Labs LLC is the controller of personal information covered by this policy where applicable data protection law uses that term.

Merlin reads books, articles, PDFs and notes aloud with a voice that runs on your iPhone. Most of what Merlin works with never leaves your phone; this policy says exactly what does.

2Personal information we collect

We collect the little that an optional account and an App Store purchase require, and the messages you send us. We do not collect your reading.

What stays on your iPhone

The books, articles, PDFs and notes you add, the audio Merlin makes from them, your reading position, bookmarks, listening statistics, the voices you keep and your settings are stored on your device. Speech is synthesized on the device by a voice model Merlin downloads once; nothing you read or listen to is uploaded to us or to anyone else. Deleting the app deletes this content.

Information you provide

• Account information, if you choose to sign in with Apple: the identifier Apple assigns to you for Merlin, your email address or the Hide My Email relay address you chose, and your name if you shared it. Signing in is optional; Merlin works without an account.
• A first name, if you type one on the name page or in Settings, so the app can greet you. It is stored with your account when you have one.
• Communications: the feedback, bug reports and other mail you send us. The mail Merlin starts for you includes the app version, build, iPhone model and iOS version under your message so a problem can be found.

Information from other sources

Apple supplies the account identifier, email address and sign-in information made available when you use Sign in with Apple. We do not receive your Apple Account password.

Our purchase provider supplies subscription records: the plan purchased, trial eligibility, purchase, renewal, cancellation and refund dates, and subscription status, together with an anonymous purchase identifier that is linked to your account when you sign in. Apple handles payment details; we never receive your payment card number.

Information collected through use of the Services

Merlin contains crash-reporting software and no analytics software, and shows no advertising. When the app connects to a service — Apple for purchases, our account and purchase providers, the model host for the one-time voice download, or a website whose address you pasted so the app can fetch the article — that service receives your IP address and connection information, as any server does. If you have chosen in iOS Settings to share diagnostics with app developers, Apple may provide us with crash reports that contain no personal content.

Crash reports

When Merlin crashes, freezes, is stopped by iOS, or shows you an error message, the app sends a report to our crash-reporting provider so we can find and fix the fault. A report contains the technical details of the failure, the iPhone model and iOS version, the app version, an identifier the app makes for this installation, and the steps taken in the app just before the failure — for example, that a book was imported, a chapter was played, or a page of the welcome was reached. Those steps name the kind of thing you did, never the content: no title, author, address, text or audio of anything you read is ever included, and no email address or name is sent. When you are signed in, the report carries your account identifier, so a fault can be matched to a support request from you.

Crash reporting records no screenshots, no recordings of your screen, and no measurements of how you use the app between failures. It is not advertising and is not shared with anyone but the provider that processes it for us.

3Use of personal information

We use personal information for the following purposes:

• Keep your Merlin Pro purchase with your account, so it follows you to a new phone or a reinstall.
• Remember your name across devices and sign-ins.
• Manage subscriptions, restore purchases and provide access to paid features.
• Find and fix crashes, freezes and errors in the app.
• Respond to support requests, feedback and privacy requests.
• Protect accounts, prevent abuse and comply with legal obligations.

We do not sell personal information or share it for cross-context behavioral advertising. Merlin does not display third-party ads, does not track you across other companies' apps and websites, and does not send your content to any artificial-intelligence service: the voice is made on your device.

4Disclosure of personal information

We share personal information in the following circumstances:

• With service providers that help us manage accounts, process subscriptions and report crashes. Accounts and the name you give are held by our authentication and database provider on servers in the United States. Purchase records are processed by our subscription provider. Crash reports are processed by our crash-reporting provider, Sentry, on servers in the United States. Each receives only the information relevant to the service it provides.
• With Apple when you use Sign in with Apple and when you make an App Store purchase. Their handling of account and payment information is governed by Apple's own privacy policy.
• With the host that serves the voice model, which receives an ordinary download request when Merlin fetches the model the first time, and with the websites you ask Merlin to fetch articles from, which receive an ordinary page request.
• With professional advisers, or when reasonably necessary and lawful to comply with legal obligations, respond to valid legal requests, protect people, prevent fraud or defend legal claims.
• In connection with a merger, acquisition or other business transfer, subject to applicable law and continued protection of your information.
• At your direction or with your consent.

We require providers acting on our behalf to use information only for authorized purposes and to protect it at least as well as this policy and applicable Apple privacy requirements do. Nothing you read is shared publicly or with other Merlin users.

5Your choices

• Account: signing in is optional. You can skip it on the welcome screens with "Not now" and sign in later from Settings, or never. Sign out or delete the account at any time in Settings.
• Notifications: Merlin asks for permission only if you turn on the reminder before a free trial ends. Manage it in iPhone Settings.
• The voice download: Merlin downloads its voice model once, over Wi-Fi only, and tells you its size first. You can delete it or download it again in Settings → Storage; a lighter built-in voice reads meanwhile.
• Live Activities: while Merlin prepares a book or runs a sleep timer, that progress may appear on your Lock Screen or in the Dynamic Island. Manage Live Activities in iPhone Settings.
• Articles: pasting a link asks Merlin to fetch that page. Nothing is fetched that you did not ask for.
• Crash reports: they are sent automatically unless you turn off “Share crash reports” in Merlin's Settings, under Preferences, which stops them at once. If you would rather we held no crash reports from you, email us and we will delete those we can match to your account or your request.

Merlin does not access your camera, microphone, photos, contacts or location. You do not need an account to buy or use Merlin Pro.

6Retention of personal information

We retain personal information for as long as needed for the purposes described in this policy. Retention depends on the type of information, whether your account is active, unresolved support requests or disputes, and legal or security requirements.

• Your account and the name stored with it remain until you delete the account.
• Purchase, support and security records may be retained to handle refunds, resolve disputes, prevent fraud or meet legal obligations.
• Mail you send us is kept as long as needed to respond and to improve Merlin.
• Crash reports are kept by our crash-reporting provider for 90 days and then deleted, unless we have saved one to keep working on the fault it describes.
• Some information may remain in backups after deletion from active systems until the backups are replaced, subject to applicable deletion requirements.

Content on your iPhone is under your control and is removed by deleting it in the app, by signing out (which clears Merlin on that phone), or by deleting the app. Copies in your own device backups are not affected.

7Deleting data and your account

To delete your account, open Settings in Merlin, choose Account under "You," select "Delete account" and confirm. Merlin asks Apple to confirm it is you, deletes the account and the name stored with it from our systems, asks Apple to disconnect Sign in with Apple for Merlin, and clears the books, audio and settings on that phone. Deletion requires an internet connection.

Signing out also clears Merlin on that phone, as if it had just been installed, but keeps the account. Uninstalling Merlin removes everything stored on the phone and does not delete an account.

If you cannot access the app or the account, email support@antar.dev and we will verify your request and delete the information associated with you as required by law. We will explain any information we must retain.

Deleting the app or your Merlin account does not cancel an App Store subscription. Your Merlin Pro purchase belongs to your Apple Account, not to the Merlin account. Manage or cancel it through Apple's subscription settings. Apple may retain its own purchase records.

8Your privacy rights

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to access your information, receive a portable copy, correct inaccuracies, request deletion, restrict or object to processing, withdraw consent, or appeal our response to a request. You may also have rights concerning targeted advertising, sale or profiling with significant effects; we do none of these.

Send a request to support@antar.dev with "Merlin privacy request" in the subject and enough information to identify your account and what you want us to do. Do not send a password or payment card information. We may ask for reasonable verification, or for proof that an authorized agent can act for you, and use that information only for verification.

We respond within the period required by the law that applies to your request and explain any permitted extension or denial. To appeal, reply to our decision or email us with "Privacy appeal" in the subject. You can also complain to your local data protection authority or state attorney general. We will not discriminate against you for exercising privacy rights.

California residents may have additional rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act, where it applies. The sections above describe the categories of information we collect, their sources, and how we use and disclose them.

9International users

For people in the European Economic Area and the United Kingdom, our legal bases for processing personal information are providing the service under our agreement with you, complying with legal obligations, and our legitimate interests in security, support and keeping the app working, which is the basis for crash reports, subject to your rights. Creating an account is your choice, and you can withdraw from it by deleting the account.

Antar Labs LLC is based in the United States. We and our providers process information in the United States and other countries where we or they operate, which may have different privacy laws. When a transfer requires safeguards, we use the safeguards required by applicable law, such as an adequacy decision or approved contractual protections. Contact us for information about the safeguards applicable to your data.

10Information security

We use safeguards designed to protect personal information, including encryption during transmission and restrictions on access. The account provider verifies sign-ins with Apple's own tokens; Merlin never sees or stores a password. No method of storage or transmission is completely secure.

Protect your device and your Apple Account, and contact us if you suspect unauthorized access to Merlin. If a security incident requires notice under applicable law, we will provide that notice.

11Children's privacy

Merlin is not directed at children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe a child has provided personal information to us, contact us so we can investigate and delete it as required. A child may listen to books on a parent's phone; the account and any purchase belong to the adult whose Apple Account they are made with.

12Website preferences and third-party links

You can read these pages without an account. We and our website providers may process your IP address, browser information, pages requested and access records to deliver and protect the website. These pages do not use advertising trackers. The website may remember your display preference on your device.

External links take you to services governed by their own notices. Opening a mail link uses your chosen email service. Those services' separate activities are outside our control.

13Policy changes and contact information

We may update this policy as Merlin or legal requirements change. We will update the date above and provide additional notice of material changes where required. If a new use of information requires consent, we will request it before that use.

For privacy questions, access, correction, deletion or an appeal, contact:

Mail started from inside the app — feedback, bug reports and the note you can leave when uninstalling — goes to developer@antar.dev, which reaches the same people.