Privacy
Last updated October 7, 2026. Plain answers about what Bret keeps and why.
What we store
- Your phone number, your first name, and when you agreed to the terms.
- Messages in groups Bret is in: the text, who sent it, and when. Photos and other attachments are never downloaded; we only note that one was sent, like “[image]”.
- Messages you send Bret directly, and the short notes Bret keeps so it remembers what you told it.
- Decisions: the question, the options, each person's vote, and the result.
- Short notes about each group, like a preference or a plan, so Bret can be useful without rereading everything.
People in a group who haven't signed up still have their phone number stored, plus a name if their phone shares one, so their messages and votes count.
How long we keep it
| Messages, group and direct | 90 days, deleted nightly, unless a message belongs to a decision that is still open |
|---|---|
| Group notes | While the group is active; deleted on “forget this group” or “leave” |
| Your private notes | Until you text “forget me” to Bret directly |
| Decisions | Kept. “Forget this group” drops open ones and removes the question text |
| Sign-in codes | 10 minutes, and we only ever store a scrambled version |
Your direct messages stay private
What you text Bret one on one is never shared with any group and never used in a group reply. If you ask Bret privately about a group, it only answers for groups you are in, and only from that group's own messages. It never passes along anything another person told it privately.
Who processes your data
- Messages are processed by Anthropic's API to generate Bret's replies, under Anthropic's standard API data retention.
- Texts travel through Apple's iMessage or your carrier's SMS, like any other text.
- Our database host (Supabase) and website host (Vercel) store and serve data for us.
We don't sell your data and we don't show ads.
Analytics
We count things like how many messages Bret handled and how many decisions groups made, tied to an internal user id. Analytics never include message text or phone numbers.
Your controls
mute | In a group: Bret stays silent for 24 hours, or until unmute |
|---|---|
forget this group | In a group: deletes that group's messages and notes right away |
leave | In a group: forgets the group and Bret goes silent there for good |
forget me | Texted to Bret directly: deletes your private notes and your direct messages |
Anyone in a group can also just remove Bret's number from it.
Age and location
Bret is for people 18 and older, in the US and Canada during the beta.
Contact
Questions about your data? Reach us at textbret.com.