Privacy Policy

Last updated: 11 July 2026

OpenPulse (Pty) Ltd (“OpenPulse”, “we”, “us”) is a South African company building a political intelligence platform. This policy explains what personal information we collect, why, and how it is protected, in line with the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (POPIA).

OpenPulse is currently in private testing ahead of a February 2027 public launch. This policy reflects our practices today and will be updated as the platform develops.

WHAT WE COLLECT

Access requests. If you request access to OpenPulse, we collect your name, email address, and a description of your intended use, plus your organisation and role title if you provide them.

Account information. If you are granted access and sign in, our authentication provider (Clerk) holds your name, email, and login credentials. We store your name, email, plan, and account status.

Platform usage. If you use the OpenPulse intelligence agent (“Pulse”), we store the text of your queries, the platform’s responses, and which political entities you ask about, so the agent can maintain context across a conversation and so we can improve the service. We also store which entities and topics you choose to monitor.

We do not collect analytics, tracking cookies, or your IP address through our website.

HOW WE USE THIRD-PARTY PROCESSORS

OpenPulse relies on external service providers to operate. Some of these providers are located outside South Africa. The table below lists what we use and what is sent to each.

• Clerk (identity and authentication) — your name, email, and login credentials
• Supabase (database hosting) — all information described above
• Resend (email delivery) — your name, email, and message when you request access, or when we send you an alert
• Google Gemini, Groq (AI query processing) — the text of questions you ask the Pulse agent, in order to generate a response
• OpenAI (AI embeddings) — text used to power search and retrieval within the platform
• Anthropic (AI report generation) — content used to generate intelligence briefs
• Vercel, Upstash (hosting and caching infrastructure)

Some of these providers process information outside South Africa. Where this occurs, we take reasonable steps consistent with POPIA’s requirements for cross-border transfer, and we are in the process of formalising these arrangements as OpenPulse moves toward public launch. If you have questions about a specific transfer, contact us using the details below.

IMPORTANT: DO NOT SUBMIT SENSITIVE PERSONAL INFORMATION IN QUERIES

Because questions asked to the Pulse agent are processed by AI providers to generate a response, please do not include sensitive personal information about yourself or others (such as identity numbers, health information, or financial details) in your queries. OpenPulse is designed to analyse public political information — news coverage, public statements, and public electoral data — not private personal records.

YOUR RIGHTS

Under POPIA, you have the right to access the personal information we hold about you, request correction of inaccurate information, request deletion of your information, and object to certain processing. To exercise any of these rights, contact us at the email address below.

DATA RETENTION

We retain your information for as long as your account is active, or as long as needed to respond to an access request. You may ask us to delete your data at any time.

SECURITY

We use industry-standard security practices, including encrypted connections, access controls, and restricted database permissions, to protect the information we hold.

CHANGES TO THIS POLICY

We may update this policy as OpenPulse develops. Material changes will be reflected here with an updated date.

CONTACT US

For any privacy-related question or request, contact: privacy@openpulse.co.za