AI Valley Privacy Policy

Effective Date: [January 01, 2026]
Last Updated: [January 01, 2026]

AI Valley ("AI Valley," "we," "us," or "our") values your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard information when you interact with our websites, events, hackathons, community platforms, and related services (collectively, the "Services").

By using our Services, you agree to the practices described in this Privacy Policy.

1) Information We Collect

We collect information you provide directly, information collected automatically, and information from third parties you choose to use with AI Valley.

A. Information you provide to us

Depending on how you engage with AI Valley, you may provide:

Identity and contact details

• Name (first/last), display name
• Email address
• Discord user ID and username
• Profile photo / avatar URL

Event and community participation

• Event registration details (including RSVP status, attendance/check-in, and responses to registration questions)
• Survey and onboarding responses (e.g., interests, skills, goals, dietary restrictions, t-shirt size, "how did you hear about us")

Hackathon and project submissions

• Project title, description, team name
• Submission links (e.g., Devpost link), demo links, GitHub links, slide deck links, "try it out" links
• Team membership and roles
• Technologies used ("built with")
• Track/category participation and sponsor/partner interest responses (e.g., whether you opt in to share info with sponsors or indicate interest in a sponsor track/program)

Documents

• If you choose to provide them, we may store references/links to documents such as resumes, portfolios, or slide decks.

Consents

• Photo/video consent
• Marketing communications consent
• Consent to share information with sponsors/partners (where applicable)

B. Information collected automatically (website analytics)

When you visit our websites, we may collect information automatically through cookies and similar technologies, including via Google Analytics:

• IP address (or truncated IP where configured)
• Device and browser information
• Approximate location (derived from IP)
• Pages visited, links clicked, referral URLs
• Date/time of visits and general usage patterns

C. Information from third-party platforms

We may receive information from platforms you use to engage with AI Valley, such as:

• Luma (event registration and check-in information, and registration form responses)
• Discord (your Discord user ID, server participation signals, and community interactions as permitted by Discord and by your settings)
• Hackathon submission platforms (e.g., Devpost or similar tools you use to submit projects, if applicable)

2) How We Use Your Information

We use your information to operate and improve AI Valley, including to:

• Run events and hackathons (manage registrations, check-ins, communications, schedules, judging workflows, and announcements)
• Support community building (match collaborators/mentors when applicable, personalize experiences, understand member interests)
• Process and display submissions (project pages, demo days, judging materials, track participation)
• Provide updates and communications (event reminders, community updates, newsletters—subject to your preferences and applicable law)
• Measure and improve performance (analytics, troubleshooting, understanding what's working)
• Maintain safety and integrity (detect fraud, prevent abuse, enforce policies, protect the community)
• Comply with legal obligations (tax, accounting, responding to lawful requests)

3) How We Share Your Information

We do not sell your personal information.

We may share information in the following circumstances:

A. Service providers

We share information with vendors who help us operate our Services, such as:

• Event registration and ticketing tools (e.g., Luma)
• Analytics providers (e.g., Google Analytics)
• Form and scheduling tools (e.g., Google Forms, Calendly, if used)
• Infrastructure and storage providers (e.g., hosting, databases)

These providers may process information only to perform services for us.

B. Sponsors, partners, and recruiting access (opt-in where applicable)

Some AI Valley events and hackathons involve sponsors and partners. We may share limited participant information with sponsors/partners only:

• when you explicitly opt in (e.g., "share with sponsors" consent), or
• when it is necessary to administer a sponsor-specific track/prize you entered (and we will aim to minimize sharing), or
• when information is already public as part of your project submission page/links.

If you do not opt in, we will not share your personal contact information with sponsors for recruiting purposes.

C. Public or semi-public sharing within AI Valley experiences

Depending on the context (e.g., hackathon showcases), certain information may be visible to other participants or attendees, such as:

• Project title, description, demo links, and team name
• Public social links you provide (e.g., GitHub) if included in submissions

D. Legal and safety

We may share information if we believe it is necessary to:

• comply with applicable law or legal process
• protect the rights, safety, and security of AI Valley, our community, or others
• investigate potential violations of our terms or policies

E. Business changes

If AI Valley undergoes a reorganization, merger, acquisition, or transfer of assets, information may be transferred as part of that transaction, subject to appropriate protections.

4) Cookies and Analytics

We use cookies and similar technologies to operate our websites and understand usage. We use Google Analytics to help us measure traffic and improve content.

You can control cookies through your browser settings. You may also be able to use Google's tools to opt out of certain analytics tracking where available.

5) Data Retention

We retain information for as long as reasonably necessary to:

• operate AI Valley (events, hackathons, community support)
• maintain historical participation records (e.g., attendance, submissions, achievements)
• comply with legal obligations and resolve disputes
• enforce our policies

We may de-identify and aggregate data (e.g., event counts, participation trends) and retain it for longer periods.

6) Your Choices and Rights

Depending on your location, you may have rights to:

• request access to the personal information we hold about you
• request correction or deletion
• object to or restrict certain processing
• withdraw consent where processing is based on consent

Marketing emails: You can unsubscribe using the link in our emails.

Privacy requests: Contact us using the details below.

We may need to verify your identity before responding.

7) Children's Privacy

AI Valley is not intended for children under 13 (or under the minimum age required by local law), and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children.

8) Security

We take reasonable administrative, technical, and organizational measures to protect personal information. However, no method of transmission or storage is 100% secure.

9) International Users

AI Valley may process and store information in the United States and other jurisdictions where our service providers operate. By using our Services, you understand that your information may be transferred to and processed in locations that may have different data protection laws than your country.

10) Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will update the "Last Updated" date and, when appropriate, provide additional notice.

11) Contact Us

For privacy questions or requests, contact:

AI Valley
Email: community@aivalley.io
Subject line: "Privacy Request"