1. The Empirica Framework

When you install and use the Empirica CLI, all data is stored locally on your machine:

• SQLite database — Sessions, goals, findings, calibration data stored in .empirica/sessions/sessions.db
• Git notes — Epistemic state attached to your commits, local unless you explicitly push
• Configuration files — Workflow protocols, breadcrumbs, and session state in .empirica/
• Qdrant vectors — Semantic search index, runs locally if enabled

No data is transmitted to the developers or any third party. There is no telemetry, crash reporting, or usage analytics in the framework.

2. Optional External Services

Two optional features make external calls, only when you explicitly configure them:

• Embedding providers — If you enable semantic search, text snippets are sent to your configured embedding provider (Ollama local, Jina AI, or Voyage AI) to generate vector embeddings. This is controlled by the EMPIRICA_EMBEDDINGS_PROVIDER environment variable. Ollama runs entirely locally.
• Qdrant server — If you configure a remote Qdrant instance (via EMPIRICA_QDRANT_URL), vector data is sent to that server. By default, Qdrant runs locally on your machine.

You control whether any external calls are made. By default, Empirica makes zero network requests.

3. The Website

The getempirica.com website:

• Does not use cookies
• Does not use analytics or tracking scripts
• Does not collect personal information
• Is a static site with no server-side processing

4. Contact & Email

If you email us at [email protected], we will use your email address only to respond to your inquiry. We do not maintain mailing lists or share contact information with third parties.

5. Git Notes & Shared Repositories

Empirica stores epistemic state (session narratives, calibration data, findings) in git notes. If you push these notes to a shared repository, other collaborators with access to that repository can see this data. This is by design — it enables knowledge transfer between AI agents working on the same codebase. If you prefer to keep epistemic data private, do not push git notes to shared remotes.

6. Third-Party Platforms

Empirica integrates with AI platforms (Claude Code, Gemini CLI, etc.). Your interactions with these platforms are governed by their own privacy policies. Empirica does not intercept, log, or transmit your conversations with these platforms beyond what is stored locally in your session database.

7. Children's Privacy

Empirica is a developer tool and is not directed at children under 16. We do not knowingly collect information from children.

8. Changes to This Policy

We may update this policy to reflect changes in the framework or legal requirements. Changes will be posted on this page with an updated date.

9. Contact

For privacy-related questions, contact us at [email protected].