Privacy Policy
This page is the privacy policy for ChessLLM, a macOS application published by Australware.
Summary
ChessLLM does not run any servers and does not collect, transmit, or store any personal information on infrastructure operated by Australware. The app runs entirely on your Mac. It does communicate with third-party large-language-model (LLM) services that you explicitly configure — and only those services receive any data you generate inside the app.
If you do not configure a cloud LLM provider and instead run a local one (LMStudio, llama.cpp, or Ollama), ChessLLM never makes any external network connection. All traffic stays on your own machine.
What ChessLLM stores on your device
- Your preferences (which LLM provider you've selected, commentary tone,
color you play as, model name and server URLs you've typed in) — stored in macOS
UserDefaults. - Your OpenRouter API key (if you've entered one) — stored in the macOS
Keychain using
kSecAttrAccessibleWhenUnlocked. ChessLLM never writes this to disk in plain text. - The current game's move list — held in memory while the app is running; not persisted between launches.
You can remove all of this at any time by:
- Deleting the API key in Settings (clears the Keychain entry)
- Resetting
UserDefaultsfor the app viadefaults delete com.australware.ChessLLM - Quitting the app (clears the in-memory game)
What ChessLLM sends, and where
When you make a move, ChessLLM may send the current board position (in standard chess FEN notation) and the move history to the LLM provider you have configured. It does this for two purposes:
- Move generation — asking the LLM what its next move is.
- Commentary — asking the LLM to comment on the move that was just played.
The destination depends entirely on the provider you select in Settings:
| Provider | Destination | Network type |
|---|---|---|
| OpenRouter | https://openrouter.ai/api/v1/chat/completions |
Internet (HTTPS) |
| LMStudio | The local URL you configured (default http://localhost:1234/v1) |
Localhost only — never leaves your machine |
| llama.cpp | The local URL you configured (default http://localhost:8080/v1) |
Localhost only — never leaves your machine |
| Ollama | The local URL you configured (default http://localhost:11434/v1) |
Localhost only — never leaves your machine |
No data is sent to Australware. We do not operate any backend, analytics, telemetry, or crash-reporting service.
What the data contains
The requests ChessLLM sends to your chosen LLM contain:
- The current board position in FEN notation
- The list of moves played so far in the current game (UCI notation, plus SAN for commentary requests)
- A short system prompt and user prompt describing what's being asked
- For OpenRouter: an
Authorization: Bearer <your-api-key>header so OpenRouter can authenticate the request
The requests do not contain:
- Your name, email, IP address (beyond what is normally exposed by any HTTPS request you make from your device), location, contacts, or any other personal identifier supplied by us
- Your Mac's serial number, hardware UUID, or any device fingerprint
- Other files on your computer
OpenRouter and third-party processors
If you choose OpenRouter as your provider, your requests are processed by OpenRouter, Inc. and by whichever underlying model provider OpenRouter routes the request to (e.g. Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, Meta, Mistral). Each of those parties has their own privacy policy and data-handling practices. You should review them before using a cloud provider:
- OpenRouter: https://openrouter.ai/terms
- The underlying provider's policy: visible on each model's page in OpenRouter
ChessLLM has no business or data-sharing relationship with these companies. You are the OpenRouter customer; ChessLLM is simply the client you use to send requests against your own account.
If you do not want any data leaving your Mac, choose LMStudio, llama.cpp, or Ollama as your provider and run a local model.
Children
ChessLLM is not directed at children under 13. The "Abusive" commentary tone may produce content unsuitable for younger players (mild profanity, sarcasm). The age rating on the App Store reflects this.
Changes to this policy
If we change what ChessLLM does with your data, this page will be updated and the "Last updated" date at the top will change. Continued use of the app after a change constitutes acceptance.
Contact
Questions about this policy: support@australware.io.