>_ Privacy Policy
Last updated: March 14, 2026
1. The Preamble (A.K.A. "Listen Up")
This Privacy Policy ("Policy") governs the collection, use, and protection of personal information by Founder Mode Coffee ("we," "us," "the Company," or "the greatest coffee brand in the history of Silicon Valley") through our website at foundermodecoffee.com ("the Site") and our command-line interface tool ("the CLI").
Let me be unequivocally clear: we take your privacy more seriously than most founders take their cap tables. And that is saying something. By using this Site, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agreed to this Policy. If you haven't read it, that's on you — but frankly, you should. It's one of the better things written this decade.
2. Information We Collect
We collect information the way a great venture capitalist collects deal flow — selectively, strategically, and with impeccable taste. Specifically:
- Email Addresses. When you join our waitlist, we collect your email address. This is not because we enjoy hoarding personal data like some sort of digital dragon. It's because we need to tell you when your coffee is ready. It's called "running a business."
- IP Addresses. When you use our CLI tool's
pingcommand, we collect your IP address for the sole purpose of approximate geolocation. We display this on a globe on our website because, frankly, it looks incredible. We do not store precise locations. We couldn't find your house if we wanted to — and we don't want to. We're busy roasting coffee. - Usage Data. Standard server logs, analytics, the usual. Nothing that would make Edward Snowden lose sleep.
3. How We Use Your Information
Your data is used exclusively for the following purposes, each of which is, in my professional legal opinion, entirely reasonable and borderline generous:
- To send you emails about our coffee, launches, and updates.
- To display anonymized, approximate ping locations on our very cool 3D globe.
- To improve our Site and services in ways that will make you say, "Wow, these people really know what they're doing."
- To comply with legal obligations — because unlike some companies I could name, we respect the rule of law.
4. What We Do NOT Do
Allow me to be absolutely, unambiguously, crystalline clear about what we do not do with your information:
- We do not sell your data. Not to advertisers, not to data brokers, not to anyone. The very notion is beneath us.
- We do not share your data with third parties for their marketing purposes. We are a coffee company, not a surveillance apparatus.
- We do not use your data to train AI models. We have standards.
- We do not track you across the internet. We have better things to do, like sourcing single-origin beans from Ethiopia.
5. Data Storage & Security
Your data is stored in a secure, encrypted PostgreSQL database hosted by Neon — a serverless database provider that, I must say, is doing quite well for itself. All data is transmitted over TLS. We employ industry-standard security practices because we are not amateurs.
That said, no method of electronic storage is 100% secure. If someone tells you otherwise, they are either lying or selling something. Probably both. We do our absolute best, and our absolute best is better than most.
6. Third-Party Services
We use the following third-party services, each of which has been vetted with the rigor of a Series A due diligence process:
- Vercel — hosting. They're good at what they do.
- Neon — database. Serverless Postgres. Elegant.
- Resend — transactional email. Because your welcome email should actually arrive.
- ip-api.com — IP geolocation. Approximate coordinates only. We couldn't pinpoint your location any more than you could pinpoint product-market fit on day one.
7. Cookies
As of this writing, we do not use cookies. Zero. None. The only cookies in this operation are the ones our interns bring to the office, and those are not subject to GDPR. If that changes in the future, we will update this Policy accordingly, because we are professionals.
8. Your Rights
Regardless of your jurisdiction, you have the following rights, and we will honor them with the speed and decisiveness of a founder who just got a term sheet:
- Access. You can request a copy of any data we hold about you.
- Deletion. You can request that we delete your data. We will comply promptly. No hard feelings. It's not personal; it's protocol.
- Correction. If your data is inaccurate, tell us and we'll fix it.
- Opt-Out. Every email we send includes an unsubscribe link. One click and you're out. We won't chase you. We have dignity.
To exercise any of these rights, email us. We'll handle it faster than a YC batch goes through office hours.
9. Children's Privacy
Our services are not directed at individuals under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect data from children. If you are under 13, please go enjoy your childhood. The grind will still be here when you're old enough to drink coffee.
10. Changes to This Policy
We reserve the right to update this Policy at any time. When we do, we will revise the "Last updated" date at the top of this page. We encourage you to review this Policy periodically. Not because it's going to change dramatically — we're not pivoting our privacy practices every quarter like some companies pivot their entire business model — but because staying informed is what smart people do.
11. Contact
If you have questions, concerns, or simply wish to compliment the quality of this Privacy Policy, you may reach us at @foundermodecoffee on X. We will respond with the urgency and eloquence this matter deserves.
This Privacy Policy is effective as of March 14, 2026. It was drafted with the precision of a term sheet, the clarity of a cap table, and the confidence of a man who has built — and I cannot stress this enough — multiple companies.