Privacy Policy

1. Who we are

The data controller responsible for this website is FORGE INNOVATION AND VENTURES LTD, registered at Rear Of 5, Norfolk Street, Sunderland, England, SR1 1EA ("we", "us", "our").

For privacy-specific requests, contact us at [email protected]. For general product or app support, see our Support page.

2. What personal data we collect

Depending on how you interact with us, we may process:

• Contact and lead data — name, email address, company or project name, and other details you submit via forms (e.g. budget, role, timelines, free-text descriptions).
• Idea validation / AI assistant — if you use features that submit an idea or problem statement for automated feedback, we process the text you provide together with your name and email where those fields are required for the feature.
• Technical and usage data — such as IP address, device and browser type, approximate location derived from IP, Referrer URL, pages viewed, and timestamps. This may be collected via server logs or analytics tools if enabled.
• Communications — content of emails or other messages you send to us.

3. How we use personal data

We use personal data to:

• Respond to enquiries and operate our studio and venture work;
• Qualify and follow up on partnership or service leads;
• Provide interactive features (including generating guidance via automated processing);
• Improve our website, security, and services, and comply with legal obligations;
• Where permitted, send relevant updates (you can opt out of marketing as described when we contact you).

4. Automated processing and third-party AI

Some features send the information you provide (which may include your name, email, and free-text descriptions of a business idea or problem) to third-party AI service providers (for example Google's Gemini models via the Google Generative AI API) to generate a response. Those providers process the content as instructed by us to deliver the feature and in line with their own terms and privacy policies.

Do not submit special-category data, confidential third-party information, or anything you are not authorised to share. If you are unsure, contact us before using AI-assisted features.

5. Legal bases (UK GDPR)

Where UK GDPR applies, we rely on the following bases as appropriate:

• Legitimate interests — operating our website, responding to enquiries, limited analytics, and fraud prevention, balanced against your rights;
• Contract — where processing is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you or your organisation;
• Consent — where we ask for consent (for example non-essential cookies or certain marketing), you may withdraw consent at any time;
• Legal obligation — where the law requires us to retain or disclose information.

6. Sharing and subprocessors

We share data with service providers who help us host, analyse, secure, or operate our services (including AI inference providers, email, and infrastructure). We require them to protect personal data and use it only for the purposes we specify. We may also disclose information if required by law or to protect rights and safety.

7. International transfers

Some recipients may be located outside the UK. Where we transfer personal data internationally, we use appropriate safeguards (such as the UK IDTA / Addendum or adequacy regulations) where required by applicable law.

8. Retention

We keep personal data only as long as needed for the purposes described, including legal, accounting, or reporting requirements. Retention periods vary by context; contact us for more detail about a specific processing activity.

9. Your rights

Under UK data protection law you may have rights to access, rectify, erase, restrict, or object to certain processing, and to data portability where applicable. You may lodge a complaint with the ICO (ico.org.uk). To exercise your rights, contact [email protected].

10. Cookies and similar technologies

We may use cookies or similar technologies for essential site operation, preferences, or analytics—including Google Analytics (GA4) to understand how visitors use our website. Where non-essential cookies require consent under applicable law, we will obtain consent via a mechanism on the site when implemented. You can control cookies through your browser settings and Google's opt-out tools where available.

11. Children

Our services are not directed at children under 16. If you believe we have collected a child's data, contact us and we will take appropriate steps.

12. Mobile applications

Products we build (for example mobile apps listed on app stores) may collect additional data described in those apps' in-app disclosures and store-specific privacy labels. This policy applies to data collected through this website; app-specific notices may supplement it.

13. Changes

We may update this policy from time to time. The "Last updated" date will change when we publish a new version. Please review this page periodically.