AI Use Policy

Our approach to AI

Truffle Hog uses artificial intelligence to work faster and smarter, but every piece of work we deliver is directed, reviewed and approved by a person on our team. This policy explains how we use AI, how we protect your data, and what you can expect from us.

We believe AI is a tool that supports human creativity and judgement, not a replacement for it. We publish this policy so our clients, partners and audiences can trust how their work and information are handled.

How we use AI

We use AI in two areas: running our business, and creating work for clients.

Internal operations. AI helps us with tasks such as:

• Summarising meetings, research and briefs
• Drafting internal documents, proposals and reports
• Analysing campaign performance data and spotting trends
• Scheduling, project management and administrative work

Client work. AI may support us in:

• Brainstorming ideas, angles and campaign concepts
• Drafting copy for websites, blogs, social media, emails and ads
• Creating or editing images, graphics and video
• Keyword research, SEO recommendations and content optimisation
• Audience research and performance reporting

AI gives us a starting point or speeds up repetitive steps. Strategy, creative direction and final decisions always stay with our team.

Human oversight and quality

No AI-generated content reaches a client or goes live without human review. Before anything is delivered, a member of our team:

• Checks facts, statistics, claims and sources for accuracy
• Edits for brand voice, tone and audience fit
• Reviews for bias, sensitivity and anything that could mislead or offend
• Confirms the work meets the brief and the client's brand guidelines

AI tools can make mistakes or produce outdated information. Our team is accountable for the final output, not the tool.

Data privacy and confidentiality

We treat client information as confidential, whether or not AI is involved. When we use AI tools:

• We do not enter personal data, customer lists, passwords or financial details into AI tools.
• We do not share confidential client information (unreleased products, pricing, strategy) with AI tools unless the tool is approved for business use and does not use our inputs to train its models.
• We prefer business or enterprise versions of AI tools that offer stronger privacy and data-retention controls.
• We comply with applicable data protection laws, including GDPR, and our Privacy Policy.

If a client asks us not to use their information with any AI tool, we will honour that request.

Transparency

We are open with clients about our use of AI. If you want to know whether AI was used on a specific project, and how, just ask and we will tell you.

Where a platform, regulation or advertising standard requires AI-generated or AI-altered content to be labelled (for example, realistic synthetic images or video on social and ad platforms), we will label it or advise you on how to do so. We will never present AI-generated people, testimonials or reviews as real.

Originality and ownership

We take steps to make sure the work we deliver is original and safe to use:

• We do not prompt AI tools to copy or imitate a specific artist, writer, brand or copyrighted work.
• We check content for plagiarism and close similarity to existing material where appropriate.
• We use AI image and video tools whose terms permit commercial use.

Ownership of deliverables is set out in our client contracts. Copyright law on AI-generated material is still developing and varies by country, so purely AI-generated elements may not be protected by copyright in the same way as human-created work. Meaningful human editing and creative input, which is part of our process, strengthens your rights in the final work.

What we will not do

We will not use AI to:

• Create deepfakes or impersonate real people without their explicit consent
• Write fake reviews, testimonials or endorsements
• Produce misleading, deceptive or discriminatory content
• Generate spam or mass low-quality content designed to manipulate search rankings
• Make decisions about people (such as hiring) without human judgement

Tools and training

We only use AI tools that have been reviewed and approved by Truffle Hog management. Before approving a tool, we check its data handling, privacy terms and commercial-use rights. Approved tools currently include Gemini, Claude, ChatGPT, Canva, Shopify and Klaviyo.

Our team receives guidance on responsible AI use, including how to protect client data and how to review AI output. Staff may not use unapproved AI tools for client work.

Your choices as a client

You decide how much AI is used in your work. If you prefer that we limit or avoid AI on your projects, tell us at the start of the engagement and we will agree on an approach in writing. Some services may take longer or be priced differently without AI support, and we will be upfront about that.

Updates and contact

AI technology and the laws around it change quickly. We review this policy at least once a year and update it when our tools or legal requirements change. The date at the top of this page shows when it was last updated.

Questions about how we use AI? Contact us at info@truffle-hog.com.