Lately
Privacy Policy
Last updated: October 9, 2026
Lately reflects your week back to you. This policy explains what we access, what we store, and what we never do, in plain language, with no surprises.
Information we access
To build your recap, the app reads your Calendar events, Photos, and Apple Health data from the recent past, on your device. We request each of these through iOS permission prompts, and you can turn any of them off at any time in your device Settings or in the app.
What we store
We store a basic account identifier, plus the name and email address your sign-in provider shares with us. Your generated recaps, the reflections you write, and the answers you give during setup are backed up to our secure cloud so you can restore them on a new phone. Those setup answers are your birthday, your gender if you choose to share it, what you hope to get from Lately, any mindfulness practices you already have, and how you heard about us. We also keep your time zone and reminder hour, your subscription plan and status, a push notification token so your Sunday recap can reach your phone, and a downscaled copy of each photo that appears in a recap, described below.
How your recap is created
To turn your week into a recap, Lately sends the relevant details over an encrypted connection to our secure backend: your calendar events, Apple Health metrics, the notes you write, and downscaled copies of that week’s photos. That backend uses a third-party AI provider, either Anthropic or OpenAI, depending on the provider Lately has configured to generate the recap. This information is used only to create your recap. It is not used to show you ads, is never sold, and is not used to train AI models. If a photo carries a location, your phone turns it into a neighborhood or city name using Apple’s location services so a day can say where it happened. That lookup happens on your device, and photo coordinates are not sent to our servers.
Photos in your recap
When a recap is generated, we keep a downscaled copy of each photo that appears in it. That is usually ten to thirty photos from a week, not everything the app looked at, and never the full-resolution originals. These copies are private to your account and encrypted in transit and at rest. They are never publicly viewable unless you create a share link, in which case anyone with that link can view the photos in that recap until you revoke it. We keep them so your recap, and any link you choose to share, open instantly. Excluding a photo from your recap deletes our copy of it, and deleting your account deletes all of them. If you have already created a share link that includes a photo, revoke that link to remove the copy behind it.
Analytics and crash reports
To understand how Lately is used and to fix what breaks, the app sends product analytics and crash reports to PostHog, our analytics provider. That covers which screens are opened, actions like finishing setup or watching a recap, and technical details of any crash or error. It also includes a session recording that is masked before it leaves your phone: every photo is replaced with a placeholder and all text is blanked, so the recording shows the flow and the taps, never your memories. Once you sign in, this activity is linked to your account. It is never used for advertising and is never sold.
Service providers we rely on
Lately runs on a small number of service providers that process data on our behalf, under agreements that limit them to providing their service to us: Supabase (sign-in, database, and file storage), Anthropic and OpenAI (photo analysis and recap generation; your recap data is sent to the configured provider), PostHog (analytics and crash reports), RevenueCat (tracks your subscription status using your App Store receipt and an app-specific identifier, never your payment details), and Apple and Google (sign-in). None of them may sell your data or use it for their own advertising.
What we never do
We never sell your data, show you ads, or share your information with third parties for marketing. There are no advertising trackers in the app. The providers described above are service providers working on our behalf, not advertising networks, and nothing follows you across other companies’ apps or websites.
Account and sign-in
We use Sign in with Apple or Google to create your account. We receive a basic identifier and, if you permit it, your name and email address, used only to anchor your account and back up your weeks.
How your data is protected
Data sent between your device and our servers is protected in transit (TLS), and data stored in our cloud is encrypted at rest. Access to your backed-up data is restricted to your authenticated account.
Health data
Apple Health data is used only to add gentle texture to your recap. Like the rest of your week’s details, it is sent securely to our backend and AI provider solely to create that recap. It is never used for advertising, never sold, and never shared for marketing, consistent with Apple’s HealthKit requirements.
Keeping and deleting your data
Your reflections stay until you delete them. To delete your account, open Settings in the app and tap Delete account. That permanently removes your account and everything backed up to it: your reflections, your recaps, your setup answers, the stored copies of your recap photos, and any links you shared along with the photos behind them. It also erases the copy on your phone. It cannot be undone.
Children
Lately is for people 13 and older. It is not directed to children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from them. If the birthday entered during setup shows someone is under 13, the app stops and removes what it has stored. If you believe a child under 13 has given us personal information, contact us and we will delete it.
Changes to this policy
We may update this policy from time to time. We will revise the date above, and for material changes we will let you know in the app.
Contact
Questions about your privacy? Reach us at support@thelately.app.