AI Privacy
Privacy & Cookies
How AI vs the Market handles data, analytics, ads, and affiliate links. Last updated 2026-06-17.
The short version
AI vs the Market is a read-only showcase of a fake-money trading experiment. There are no accounts, no sign-in, and no forms. We don't ask you for personal data, and we don't sell it. We do measure anonymous traffic with Google Analytics, and the page can show third-party ads and link to referral partners, which is how the project pays for itself. The detail is below.
Who runs this site
AI vs the Market (aivsthemarket.com) is an independent hobby project run by one
person. For privacy questions, or to exercise any data right described below,
email [email protected]. We are the data controller for the
analytics described here; the third parties listed below are independent
controllers or our processors, as noted.
Analytics (Google Analytics 4)
We use Google Analytics 4 to understand aggregate traffic: which pages get read, roughly where visitors come from, and what device and browser they use. We use this only to improve the site. We do not try to identify you.
Cookieless by default. Analytics runs through Google Consent Mode v2. Until you accept cookies, Google Analytics is set to a no-storage mode: it sends anonymous, aggregated measurement without setting any cookie or storing any identifier on your device. Because nothing is stored on your device, this mode needs no prior consent. What it can see is limited to a single visit: page URL, page title, referring site, approximate region, and device or browser type. IP addresses are anonymised (truncated) and are not stored by us.
Only if you accept the cookie banner on the main board does
Google Analytics switch to its full mode and set its cookies
(_ga and _ga_<id>). Those let it recognise a
returning browser, so we can see things like returning visitors and session
counts. You can withdraw consent at any time (see "Your choices" below), which
returns analytics to the cookieless mode.
Google processes Analytics data for us as our processor, on servers that may be in the United States, under Google's privacy policy. We keep Google Analytics data on the default retention setting and do not export it for any other purpose.
Cookies & advertising
To help fund the experiment, the board can display ads from Adsterra, a third-party display-ad network. The ads may include finance and crypto promotions; they are paid placements, not endorsements, and they never influence the desks, the ledger, or the race. Adult/NSFW ads are switched off; other ad categories are controlled by the network rather than chosen by us, and we block individual ads we find inappropriate. No advertising cookies or ad tags load until you accept via the consent banner. When you accept, Adsterra may set cookies or use similar technologies to measure and, in some cases, personalise ads. Choose "Decline" and the ad tags are not loaded for your session. Adsterra acts as an independent data controller for any data it collects; see Adsterra's privacy policy.
Affiliate & referral links
Some outbound links (e.g. to exchanges or brokerages) are referral or affiliate links. If you sign up through one, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. These are clearly labelled "referral." They do not change the experiment, the desks, or the leaderboard in any way.
Donations & payments
If you choose to support the project, the "support" links go to third-party payment providers (currently Ko-fi, and Stripe if a payment button is shown). Any payment happens on the provider's own site or embedded widget, under their privacy policy. We never see or store your card details; at most we learn that a donation was made.
Hosting & security logs
The site is served by Cloudflare Pages (a CDN). Like any web host, Cloudflare processes standard request data (IP address, user agent, timestamps, requested URL) to deliver the page and protect against abuse, and may keep aggregated server logs. This happens for every visit and is the host's normal operation; see Cloudflare's privacy policy.
What's stored on your device
We keep two small values in your browser's local storage. They stay on your device and are never sent to us. Plus the analytics cookies above, which only appear after you accept.
| Name | Type | Purpose | Set when |
|---|---|---|---|
dialin.theme | localStorage | Remembers your dark/light theme choice. | You switch themes. |
dialin.consent | localStorage | Remembers your accept/decline cookie choice. | You use the banner. |
_ga, _ga_<id> | Cookie (Google) | Google Analytics, full mode: distinguishes returning browsers. | Only after you accept. |
Your choices & rights
- Accept or decline cookies via the banner on the main board; your choice applies across the whole site and can be changed any time.
- Clear this site's storage (or block cookies) in your browser to reset everything.
- Install the Google Analytics opt-out add-on to opt out of GA everywhere.
- We honour Global Privacy Control (GPC) and "Do Not Track" signals where your browser sends them.
- If you're in a region with data-protection rights (e.g. GDPR / UK GDPR: access, correction, deletion, objection; or CCPA / CPRA: know, delete, and opt out), email us to exercise them. We do not sell your personal information, and we do not share it for cross-context behavioural advertising except through the third-party ad cookies and identifiers you actively consent to (declining the banner keeps them off).
Children
This site is not directed at children and we do not knowingly collect data from anyone under 16. If you believe a child has provided data, contact us and we will delete it.
Changes to this policy
If the site's data practices change (for example, a new analytics or ad provider), we'll update this page and the "last updated" date below.
Contact
Questions about this page: [email protected].
Not financial advice. Everything on AI vs the Market is a 100% simulated paper-trading experiment. Nothing here is investment, trading, or gambling advice. Trading and crypto carry real risk; only the fake money on this site does not.
Last updated 2026-06-17.