Terms of Service

1. Acceptance

By creating an account or using Smirk ("the App"), you agree to these Terms of Service ("Terms"). If you do not agree, do not use the App. These Terms constitute a legally binding agreement between you and Smirk ("we," "us," "our"), operated from the Netherlands.

2. Age Requirement

Smirk is for users aged 18 and older. By creating an account, you confirm that you are at least 18 years old, and you agree that the information you give us about your age is accurate. We rely on that confirmation and on the app's store age rating. We reserve the right to suspend or terminate any account where we have reason to believe the user is under 18.

3. Account

• You must provide accurate information when creating your account.
• You are responsible for maintaining the security of your account credentials.
• One account per person. Shared or automated accounts are not permitted.
• You may delete your account at any time through the App (Profile → Delete Account). Deletion is permanent and removes all your data within 30 days.

4. What Smirk Is (and Isn't)

Smirk is an AI-powered social skills practice tool. Important clarifications:

• All characters in the App are AI-generated. You are never talking to a real person, and there is no way to reach another user or any other human being through the App.
• The characters' images and voices are AI-generated. They are not photographs or recordings of real people.
• Smirk is not a dating app, matchmaking service, or social network.
• Smirk is not therapy, counseling, coaching by a qualified professional, or a substitute for professional mental health services.
• AI-generated scores and feedback are informational only and should not be taken as professional advice.
• Conversations are simulated practice scenarios, not real social interactions, and success in the App does not predict any outcome in real life.
• If you are experiencing a crisis or need immediate support, please contact your local emergency services or a crisis helpline (e.g. 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline in the US, 113 Zelfmoordpreventie in NL, or your country's equivalent).

5. AI Content, Voice and Images

The App uses artificial intelligence to generate character responses, spoken audio, imagery, coaching suggestions, and performance scores.

• AI-generated content may occasionally be inaccurate, inappropriate, or unexpected despite our safety measures.
• We apply instruction-level safety rules and filtering, but we cannot guarantee that all AI output will be appropriate, accurate, or suitable for you.
• You must consent to AI processing during registration. See our Privacy Policy, AI Processing section for what is sent and to whom.

Voice input

• Voice input is optional and off by default. You can turn it on or off at any time in the App.
• When you hold the talk button, your device records a short clip and sends it to a third-party speech to text provider, which returns text. The recording is not stored by us. Only the text is kept, as an ordinary message.
• You may only record your own voice. Do not record any other person, and do not submit audio you do not have the right to submit.
• Voice features depend on your device, your connection and third-party services, and may be unavailable, delayed, or inaccurate. Speech is transcribed automatically and may be transcribed incorrectly. You can always type instead.

Characters and likeness

• Characters, their names, biographies, scenes, images and voices are fictional and AI-generated. They are not intended to depict, and should not be understood as depicting, any real person, living or dead. Any resemblance is unintentional and coincidental.
• If you believe any character image or voice resembles a real person in a way that concerns you, contact us at [email protected] and we will review it promptly.
• You may not present AI-generated content from the App as a recording of, or statement by, a real person.

6. Acceptable Use

You agree not to:

• Use the App for any illegal purpose
• Attempt to extract, reverse-engineer, or replicate our AI prompts or systems
• Use the App to generate harmful, abusive, sexual-with-minors, or otherwise exploitative content
• Record any person other than yourself, or submit audio, text or other material you do not have the right to submit
• Circumvent energy limits, scoring systems, subscription gates, or other App mechanics through technical means
• Create multiple accounts to abuse trials, promotional offers, or usage limits
• Use automated tools, bots, or scripts to interact with the App
• Attempt to access other users' data or the App's infrastructure without authorization
• Resell, redistribute, or make the App or its output available to others as a service

We may suspend or terminate your account for violations of these rules.

Your conduct outside the App

Smirk is practice. What you do in the real world is entirely your own responsibility. You agree that you alone are responsible for how you behave towards other people, that you will respect their boundaries and their right to end any interaction, and that you will comply with all applicable laws. Nothing in the App is an instruction, encouragement, or endorsement to approach, follow, pressure, film, or record anyone. We are not responsible for your conduct or its consequences.

7. Subscriptions & Purchases

Subscriptions

• Smirk requires a paid subscription. Subscriptions are sold and billed through the Apple App Store or Google Play Store, not by us directly.
• Subscriptions auto-renew for the same period unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current billing period.
• You can manage or cancel subscriptions through your device's subscription settings, not within the App.
• Prices are displayed in your local currency and may vary by region. We may change prices for future billing periods, and where required we will tell you in advance.
• Plans may include an introductory free trial. The length that applies to your plan and region is the one shown on the purchase screen and in the store at the time you subscribe. If you do not cancel at least 24 hours before the trial ends, it converts to a paid subscription automatically.

Gem Packs

• Gem packs are one-time consumable purchases.
• Gems are virtual currency with no real-world monetary value and cannot be exchanged for cash.
• Unused gems remain in your account indefinitely but are forfeited upon account deletion. Refunds for unused gems are available where required by applicable consumer protection law.

Refunds

Refund requests are handled by the Apple App Store or Google Play Store according to their respective policies. We do not process refunds directly.

8. Intellectual Property

• The App, including its design, code, AI systems, prompts, character archetypes, and content, is owned by us and protected by intellectual property laws.
• You retain ownership of what you write and say. By using the App, you grant us a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to process your messages and, where you use voice input, your recordings, for the sole purpose of providing the service to you: generating responses, transcribing speech, scoring, and producing feedback. This licence ends when the content is deleted.
• You confirm that you have the right to submit what you send, and that it does not infringe anyone else's rights.
• You may not copy, modify, distribute, or create derivative works based on the App without our written permission.

9. Disclaimers

The App is provided "as is" and "as available" without warranties of any kind, express or implied, including but not limited to:

• Accuracy or quality of AI-generated content, scores, coaching, imagery, speech, or transcription
• Uninterrupted, timely, secure, or error-free operation, including the availability of voice features
• Fitness for a particular purpose
• That using the App will improve your real-world social outcomes, or produce any result at all

The App is an entertainment and self-improvement tool. It is not, and must not be relied on as, medical, psychological, therapeutic, or legal advice. If you are struggling with anxiety, distress, or your mental health, please speak to a qualified professional.

Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits any right you have under mandatory consumer protection law that cannot be excluded or limited.

10. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, we shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, or any loss of profits or revenues, whether incurred directly or indirectly, or any loss of data, use, goodwill, or other intangible losses resulting from:

• Your use of or inability to use the App
• Any AI-generated content, suggestion, score, image, voice, or transcription
• Any action you take, or decide not to take, in the real world
• Unauthorized access to or alteration of your data
• Any act or omission of a third-party service the App depends on

Our total liability for any claim arising from these Terms or the App shall not exceed the amount you paid us in the 12 months preceding the claim, or €100, whichever is greater.

Some jurisdictions do not allow certain exclusions or limitations of liability, so parts of this section may not apply to you. Nothing here limits liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, for fraud, or for anything else that cannot be limited by law.

11. Termination

We may suspend or terminate your access to the App for violation of these Terms, with reasonable notice except in cases of serious or repeated violation. Upon termination, your right to use the App ceases immediately. Sections 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, and 15 survive termination.

12. Governing Law & Disputes

These Terms are governed by the laws of the Netherlands. Any disputes arising from these Terms or the App shall be resolved in the courts of the Netherlands, unless mandatory consumer protection laws in your jurisdiction require otherwise.

For EU consumers: you may also use the European Commission's Online Dispute Resolution platform at ec.europa.eu/consumers/odr.

13. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless Smirk and its operators from and against any claims, damages, losses, liabilities, costs, and expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising from:

• Your use or misuse of the App
• Your violation of these Terms
• Your violation of any applicable law or third-party rights
• Content you submit through the App

14. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. Material changes will be communicated through the App or by email. Continued use of the App after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms.

15. General

• Changes to the App: We may add, change, suspend, or remove features at any time, including AI models, voices, characters, and providers. Where a change materially reduces what a paid subscription gives you, you may cancel through your store as described in Section 7.
• Third-party services: The App depends on services we do not control, including app stores, payment processing, and AI providers. We are not responsible for their availability or their acts and omissions.
• Severability: If any provision of these Terms is found unenforceable, the rest remains in full effect and the unenforceable part applies to the maximum extent permitted.
• No waiver: If we do not enforce a provision, that is not a waiver of our right to enforce it later.
• Assignment: You may not transfer your rights under these Terms. We may transfer ours to a successor in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets.
• Events outside our control: We are not liable for failure or delay caused by events beyond our reasonable control, including outages at our providers.
• Entire agreement: These Terms and the Privacy Policy are the entire agreement between you and us about the App, and replace any earlier version.
• Language: These Terms are written in English. Any translation is provided for convenience, and the English version governs.

16. Contact

For questions about these Terms:

Email: [email protected]
Operator: Smirk, Netherlands