Last updated: June 9, 2026
Ashley is a desktop AI companion built with privacy as a design principle. This page explains what data is collected, where it lives, who we share it with, and what your rights are under the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). It applies to the Ashley desktop application and the marketing website you're reading now.
Ashley is a solo indie project operated from Belgium. You can contact us about anything in this policy at ashleyia2c@gmail.com. For questions related to your purchase, our payment processor (Lemon Squeezy) is also available at their own support channels.
Ashley stores the following on your own computer, in %APPDATA%\Ashley\data\ on Windows:
HKCU\Software\Ashley, so the trial period works reliably
Your AI provider API key (xAI, OpenRouter, or none if you use Ollama) is stored encrypted using Windows DPAPI in %APPDATA%\Ashley\key.bin, tied to your Windows user account — it cannot be read from another account or another computer.
Ashley does not upload any of this data to our servers. We never receive your conversations, memories, preferences, keys, or license information. These files stay on your device. Deleting the %APPDATA%\Ashley\ folder erases every trace of your Ashley-side data.
Ashley supports multiple AI providers and TTS engines. You choose which ones to use, and only the ones you explicitly enable receive your data. If you choose 100% local options (Ollama for AI, Web Speech / Kokoro / VoiceVox local for voice), nothing leaves your PC.
If you select xAI as your AI provider, the conversation context is sent directly from your computer to xAI's Grok API, using your own API key. xAI processes the message to generate Ashley's response. This data flow is governed by xAI's own privacy policy. We are not a party to that relationship and do not receive any of that content.
If you select OpenRouter as your AI provider, your messages are sent directly from your computer to OpenRouter's API using your own API key. OpenRouter routes them to whichever underlying model you configured. This is governed by OpenRouter's privacy policy. We never see your messages.
If you select Ollama as your AI provider, the model runs entirely on your computer. No data leaves your machine. No third-party network calls. Your messages, Ashley's responses, and all context stay on your PC.
If you enable ElevenLabs and provide your own ElevenLabs API key, Ashley's text responses are sent directly from your computer to ElevenLabs' API for speech synthesis. Governed by ElevenLabs' privacy policy.
Ashley supports three additional voice engines that run entirely on your machine: Kokoro (local TTS), VoiceVox (local Japanese TTS), and Windows Web Speech (built into the OS). When you use any of these, no voice data leaves your PC.
When you purchase Ashley, Lemon Squeezy processes the payment as the Merchant of Record. They collect your email, billing address, and payment details per their privacy policy. We receive from them only the information needed to deliver your license key: your email and order metadata. We use that email solely to send you your license key and to respond to direct messages.
Ashley's built-in auto-updater contacts GitHub's public Releases API to check for new versions. No authentication is sent. GitHub logs the request per their privacy statement.
While a free trial is active, Ashley occasionally reads the current time from a major public HTTPS server (Cloudflare or Google) by looking only at the standard Date header of the response. No personal data, identifiers, or content are sent — it is a plain anonymous request, used solely to keep the trial clock honest. Licensed (purchased) copies never perform this check.
This landing page does not use analytics, tracking pixels, or third-party scripts. No cookies are set. If that changes, this section will be updated.
Ashley includes a system-control feature ("Actions" toggle) that can open applications, close browser tabs, control system volume, take screenshots, type text, set reminders, and search the web on your behalf. Every such action is triggered by your explicit conversational instruction, and built-in guards sanitize action parameters before anything is executed. Nothing is executed without an instruction from you.
Separately, Ashley has an opt-in screen-vision toggle (the eye icon, off by default). While it is enabled, Ashley may periodically capture a low-resolution screenshot of your screen — and the pet window has its own opt-in observe toggle that works the same way — so she can comment on what you're doing. Any screenshot used for vision analysis is sent to your selected AI provider (xAI / OpenRouter / Ollama) together with your message, under that provider's privacy policy. Screenshots are not stored anywhere except in the temporary conversation context, and turning the toggle off stops all captures immediately.
When you click the microphone button (or use the wake word), your voice is recorded locally and transcribed using Whisper (faster-whisper, runs offline on your computer) — no audio leaves your device. The resulting text is then sent to your selected AI provider as a normal message.
The wake word feature (saying "Ashley" to activate hands-free) uses openWakeWord running entirely on your PC. Audio is processed locally in real-time and discarded immediately. Nothing is streamed to any server. You can disable wake word detection at any time in Settings.
If you are in the EU, you have the right to access, correct, delete, export, or restrict the use of personal data we hold about you. Because Ashley is privacy-minimizing by design, the only data we hold about you on our side is your email address (from the Lemon Squeezy order) and any support correspondence you've had with us. To exercise any right, email ashleyia2c@gmail.com and we will respond within 30 days.
For data held by third parties (xAI, OpenRouter, Lemon Squeezy, ElevenLabs), please contact them directly using the links above.
Order email: retained for as long as required by Belgian accounting law (currently 7 years), then deleted. Support correspondence: retained for 2 years after the last message unless you request earlier deletion.
Data processed by xAI, OpenRouter, Lemon Squeezy, ElevenLabs, and GitHub may be transferred to the United States. These providers contractually maintain EU-compatible safeguards (Standard Contractual Clauses or equivalent). By using Ashley and those services through your own credentials, you authorize this transfer. If you use Ollama and 100% local voice options, no data is transferred internationally — everything stays on your PC.
Ashley is intended for adults. You must be at least 18 years old to use the application, and the app asks you to confirm this during onboarding. We do not knowingly collect data from anyone under 18.
If this policy changes meaningfully, we will update the "Last updated" date at the top. Material changes will be announced in the application and on the website.
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