EXEA_LABS
Legal

Privacy Policy

What we collect, why we collect it, and the control you keep over it.

Last updated: July 12, 2026

1. Who we are

Exea Labs (“Exea Labs,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) is an independent, non-commercial research collective. This Privacy Policy explains how we handle information in connection with our website at exealabs.org and its subdomains (the “Site”) and the community activities we organize (together, the “Services”). If anything here is unclear, you can always reach a person at info@exealabs.org.

2. Scope of this policy

This policy covers information we handle through the Site and the Services we run directly. It does not cover the third-party platforms we link to or rely on to operate the community, including Discord, Google Forms, GitHub, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Each of those is governed by its own privacy policy. Once you leave the Site or submit information through one of those platforms, that platform’s terms and practices apply, not ours. Section 8 lists them.

3. Information we collect

We are built to collect as little as we can. The Site has no user accounts, no login, and no advertising trackers. In practice, the information we handle falls into two buckets.

Information you give us

  • Correspondence. If you email us or message us on our community channels, we receive whatever you choose to send, which may include your name, your email address, the content of your message, and anything you attach.
  • Applications and submissions. Proposals, ambassador applications, and requests to join the collective are handled through third-party forms (currently Google Forms) and Discord. Whatever you enter there, such as your name, email, background, and prior work, is passed along to us through those services.

Information we collect automatically

  • Usage and performance analytics. The Site uses Vercel Web Analytics and Vercel Speed Insights to understand aggregate traffic and page performance. According to Vercel, these tools do not use cookies and do not collect personally identifiable information. They process coarse signals such as the page path, the referring page, approximate location at the country or region level, device type, browser, and anonymized performance metrics.
  • Server and hosting logs. Our hosting provider, Vercel, may process the technical data that serving any website involves, such as IP address and request metadata, for security, abuse prevention, and reliability.

We do not knowingly collect sensitive categories of data, such as health, biometric, or precise location data, through the Site, and we ask that you not send that kind of information to us.

4. How we use information

We use information only for a short list of legitimate purposes:

  • To operate, maintain, and improve the Site and the Services.
  • To review applications, proposals, and community participation, and to respond to you.
  • To communicate about the collective, its research, and its events.
  • To monitor aggregate usage and performance so the Site stays fast and reliable.
  • To protect the Site against fraud, abuse, and security threats.
  • To comply with our legal obligations and to enforce our Terms and Conditions.

We do not sell your personal information. We do not use it for behavioral advertising, and we do not share it with advertisers.

Where the EU or UK General Data Protection Regulation applies, we rely on the following legal bases: your consent, which you may withdraw at any time; our legitimate interests in operating, securing, and improving the Services in a way that does not override your rights; and our need to comply with legal obligations.

6. Cookies and analytics

The Site does not set advertising or cross-site tracking cookies, and our analytics providers are configured to work without cookies. Third-party platforms and content you choose to visit, such as Discord, Google, GitHub, Instagram, or LinkedIn, may set their own cookies under their own policies once you are on their services.

7. How we share information

We share information only in these limited situations:

  • Service providers. With the vendors that host and operate the Site and the Services on our behalf, under terms that limit their use of the information to providing those services.
  • Within the collective. Application and proposal materials may be reviewed by the relevant organizers and mentors, solely to evaluate participation.
  • Legal and safety. When we reasonably believe disclosure is required by law, or is necessary to protect the rights, safety, or property of Exea Labs, our community, or others.
  • Successors. In connection with a reorganization or transfer of the Services, in which case this policy continues to govern the information transferred.

8. Third-party services

The Services rely on the independent providers below. Each one processes information under its own privacy policy, and we encourage you to read them:

  • Vercel, for hosting, Web Analytics, and Speed Insights.
  • Google Forms, for proposal and ambassador submissions.
  • Discord, for community, applications, and communication.
  • GitHub, for code and technical collaboration.
  • Instagram and LinkedIn, for our social presence.

We do not control these third parties and are not responsible for their privacy practices. Using them is your choice and is subject to their terms.

9. Data retention

We keep information only for as long as we need it for the purposes described here, or for as long as the law requires. Correspondence and application materials are retained while they remain relevant to the collective and are then deleted or anonymized. Aggregate analytics follow our providers’ retention windows. You may ask us to delete information you have sent us, as described in Section 12.

10. Security

We take reasonable technical and organizational measures to protect information, and we rely on established providers that maintain their own security programs. That said, no method of transmission or storage is perfectly secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security. Please do not send sensitive information to us.

11. International transfers

Exea Labs is an international collective, so our providers may process information in countries other than your own, including the United States. Where the law requires it, those transfers are made under appropriate safeguards. By using the Services, you understand that your information may be processed in these locations.

12. Your rights

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to access, correct, delete, or receive a copy of your personal information, to object to or restrict certain processing, and to withdraw consent. If you are in California, you have the right to know what we collect, to request deletion, and not to be treated differently for exercising these rights. For clarity, we do not sell or “share” personal information as those terms are defined under California law. To exercise any right, email us at info@exealabs.org. We will respond within the time the law allows and may first need to verify your identity.

13. Children and minors

Our community includes students, and some participants may be minors. The Site is not directed to children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you are below the age of majority in your jurisdiction, please take part only with the involvement and consent of a parent or legal guardian. If you believe a child under 13 has given us personal information, contact us at info@exealabs.org and we will delete it promptly.

14. Do Not Track

Because the Site does not track users across other websites, we do not treat browser “Do Not Track” signals differently. Our analytics stay aggregate and non-identifying either way.

15. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we do, we will revise the “Last updated” date shown above, and we will make any material change clear on the Site. If you keep using the Services after an update takes effect, that means you accept the revised policy.

16. Contact us

If you have any question, request, or concern about privacy, email info@exealabs.org. You may also want to read our Terms and Conditions.