Privacy Policy — Builder Mate

Who we are

Builder Mate is operated by BuilderMate Limited, a company registered in New Zealand (“we”, “us”). We are responsible for your personal information under the Privacy Act 2020. You can reach us at contact@buildermate.co.nz.

What we collect

Account details: your name, email address, phone number and company name. Your password is handled by our sign-in provider, Amazon Cognito; we never see it.
Communications you bring into Builder Mate: recordings of calls and voicemails to your Builder Mate number, voice memos you record, emails and attachments from an email account you connect, and photos, screenshots and files you upload.
Information about the people you work with: those communications include names, phone numbers, email addresses and what your customers, subcontractors, suppliers and consultants said.
Work Builder Mate prepares: transcripts, to-do items, schedule entries, reminders and drafts, and the corrections you make to them.
How you use Builder Mate: which suggestions you choose and how you change drafts, so it can learn your way of working.
Technical information: sign-in times, device and browser type, IP address and error logs, used to keep the service secure and working.
Early-access requests: the name, email, company and phone number you give us on this website.

This website does not use analytics or advertising cookies. The Builder Mate app stores a sign-in token in your browser or phone so you stay signed in.

How we use it

To provide Builder Mate: transcribe recordings, work out what each message means and which job it belongs to, and prepare reminders, follow-ups and drafts for you.
To personalise it to you: your project names, contacts, trade words and habits. Words Builder Mate learns from your corrections are shown to you and can be undone.
To keep accounts and data secure, and to fix problems.
To answer support requests and contact you about your account or early access.
To improve Builder Mate, as limited in the next section.

We do not sell your information, and we do not use it for advertising.

How AI is used

Builder Mate uses AI models from OpenAI to transcribe recordings and understand messages. We send only what is needed for each task. OpenAI’s policy is not to use data sent through its API to train its models.
Your content stays yours. Customer names, prices, and what is said in your calls, memos and emails are used only for your own account. They are never used to train AI models that other users share.
Structural data — for example the type of request, which suggestion was chosen, or what kind of correction was made — contains no customer content and may be used to improve Builder Mate for everyone.
AI can get things wrong. Builder Mate shows what it understood and where it heard it, so you can check and correct it. Nothing is sent to anyone in your name without your approval.

Call recordings and the people you deal with

Callers to your Builder Mate number hear a short notice that the call is recorded when it connects. Because Builder Mate also holds information about your customers and other contacts, you are responsible for letting them know you use it, as the law requires. We recommend a one-time written notice, for example in your contract or start-of-work email.

Where it’s stored and how it’s protected

Your information is stored with Amazon Web Services in its Auckland region, in New Zealand. It is encrypted in transit and at rest, and access is limited to the people and systems that need it to run Builder Mate.

Some of our service providers process information outside New Zealand, as listed below. When we send information overseas, we use providers that are required to protect it with safeguards comparable to New Zealand’s Privacy Act.

Service providers

Provider	What for	Where
Amazon Web Services	Hosting, storage and sign-in	New Zealand
Twilio	Phone calls, voicemail and call recording. Recordings are removed from Twilio once they are safely copied to our storage.	Australia
OpenAI	Transcription and understanding messages	United States
Google or Microsoft	Your email account, only if you connect it	Where your email account is held
Zoho	Our own email, when you write to us	Australia

We may also disclose information if the law requires it, or to protect someone’s safety.

Google user data

If you connect a Google account, Builder Mate reads the emails and attachments needed to organise your work and sends only the emails you approve. Builder Mate’s use and transfer of information received from Google APIs will adhere to the Google API Services User Data Policy, including the Limited Use requirements. Google user data is not used for advertising, is not sold, is not used to train shared AI models, and is not read by people unless you ask us to, it is needed for security, or the law requires it.

How long we keep it

Work records are kept while your account is open. Records for finished projects move to archive storage instead of being deleted, because questions about building work can come up years later.
Non-work content, such as a personal email, is not turned into work and is deleted after 30 days. Spam is not stored.
Early-access requests are kept until your account is set up or you ask us to remove them.
When you close your account, we delete your information, except anything we must keep by law.

Your choices and rights

You can ask us for a copy of your personal information, ask us to correct it, ask for an export of your data, or ask us to close your account and delete your information. Email contact@buildermate.co.nz from the address you sign in with.

If you’re not happy with how we handle your information, please tell us first. You can also complain to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner.

Children

Builder Mate is a tool for businesses and is not intended for anyone under 16.

Changes to this policy

We’ll update this page when our practices change, and tell you directly about any significant change before it takes effect.

Contact

BuilderMate Limited, New Zealand
contact@buildermate.co.nz