Policy · August 2026

How I use AI, and how your data is protected

I use AI tools in my work, openly. They make me faster at producing documents, analysis and plans, which means more of what you pay for goes on judgement rather than typing.

This is the same standard I would set for any business I advise: not a claim of good behaviour, but a written control you can hold me to.

The principle

AI does the drafting. The thinking, decisions and accountability are mine. Nothing produced with AI assistance reaches you without being read, corrected and approved by me, and everything I deliver I stand behind personally, however it was produced.

The tools

I use paid, business-grade AI services under commercial terms which include a commitment that your data is not used to train their models. I do not use free or consumer-tier AI accounts for client work, and I do not use tools whose data-handling terms I have not read.

What goes in, and what never does

Working material may include the general shape of your business: how many devices, what tools you run, how a process works, and the kind of detail you would share with any consultant. Where a name adds nothing, I anonymise it.

The following never go into an AI tool, under any circumstances: passwords, keys and credentials of any kind; personal data about your staff or customers beyond names and business roles; financial account details; and any document you have told me is off limits. If I am unsure which side of the line something sits on, it stays out.

Separation and storage

Each client engagement is kept separate. Your material is not mixed with other clients’ work, is not stored in personal accounts, and is protected with the basics I would insist on for you: strong authentication, encrypted devices and access limited to me.

Your choices

AI-assisted delivery is disclosed in my engagement terms, and you can exclude specific workstreams from it entirely. Just tell me which. If you want to see this policy applied to a specific piece of work, ask, and I will show you how it was produced.

Questions about any of it are welcome at any time. I would rather have that conversation early than have you wonder.

Why I work this way

My whole approach, in this practice and in the product business I am building, comes down to one idea: claims are cheap, evidence is what counts. That applies to your IT provider, to your insurance renewal, and equally to me. This policy exists so that my use of AI is something you can inspect rather than something you have to take on trust.