What is the story about?
Pronto, one of India’s fastest-scaling home services startups, is under scrutiny after reports suggested the company has been using household data collected inside customers’ homes for what it describes as “research or statistical purposes”, without clearly defining what those purposes entail.
A review of Pronto’s Privacy Policy reveals language permitting the indefinite use of such data without obtaining additional consent, raising direct questions about whether the company complies with India’s Digital Personal Data Protection Act 2023. Two of Pronto’s main competitors have publicly rejected similar practices in recent days.
When customers book a cleaning service through Pronto, they are consenting to professional household assistance. However, Pronto’s Privacy Policy allows the company to aggregate customer data and use it “indefinitely” for unspecified “research” purposes.
Under India’s data protection law, consent must be purpose-specific. Indefinite research use constitutes a fundamentally different purpose from providing a cleaning service, meaning it would require separate, explicit consent — consent that Pronto’s policy does not appear to obtain.
The relevant section of Pronto’s Privacy Policy states: “In some circumstances, we may aggregate your personal data for research or statistical purposes, in which case we may use this information indefinitely without further notice to you.” The policy does not define what constitutes “research”. It does not identify who receives the data, nor does it explain why indefinite retention is necessary.
The issue appears to stem from the overlap between two distinct purposes. Customers consent to “Professional Services”, including cleaning, laundry, and cooking assistance. At the same time, the policy permits “indefinite research use” for unspecified parties and undefined purposes extending indefinitely. The Digital Personal Data Protection Act requires separate consent for separate purposes. Pronto appears to rely on a single consent mechanism to justify both.
The matter was first reported by Entrackr on 22 May. The report revealed that Pronto had been piloting cameras during service delivery as part of an initiative to generate data for research purposes. Investor documents reviewed by Entrackr indicated that the company had been working with physical AI and robotics laboratories.
Pronto’s workers may not have been explicitly informed that footage was being used for research beyond quality assurance purposes. It also remains unclear what proportion of services involve recorded footage, or whether workers are compensated for data collection in addition to their base pay.
Aayush Agarwal, founder of Snabbit, stated publicly that his company had been approached by several players and had studied how the technology worked, but ultimately chose not to deploy it. Abhiraj Singh Bahl, founder of Urban Company, said his company does not engage in such practices and has no plans to do so. Both competitors are publicly differentiating themselves on privacy grounds.
Pronto launched in May 2025. Founded by 23-year-old Anjali Sardana, the company raised its Series A funding round in August 2025. It reached US$1 million in annual recurring revenue in December 2025. Its Series B round closed in March 2026 at a valuation exceeding US$100 million.
CNBC-TV18 has reached out to Pronto for comment and will update the story when the company responds.
A review of Pronto’s Privacy Policy reveals language permitting the indefinite use of such data without obtaining additional consent, raising direct questions about whether the company complies with India’s Digital Personal Data Protection Act 2023. Two of Pronto’s main competitors have publicly rejected similar practices in recent days.
When customers book a cleaning service through Pronto, they are consenting to professional household assistance. However, Pronto’s Privacy Policy allows the company to aggregate customer data and use it “indefinitely” for unspecified “research” purposes.
Under India’s data protection law, consent must be purpose-specific. Indefinite research use constitutes a fundamentally different purpose from providing a cleaning service, meaning it would require separate, explicit consent — consent that Pronto’s policy does not appear to obtain.
The relevant section of Pronto’s Privacy Policy states: “In some circumstances, we may aggregate your personal data for research or statistical purposes, in which case we may use this information indefinitely without further notice to you.” The policy does not define what constitutes “research”. It does not identify who receives the data, nor does it explain why indefinite retention is necessary.
The issue appears to stem from the overlap between two distinct purposes. Customers consent to “Professional Services”, including cleaning, laundry, and cooking assistance. At the same time, the policy permits “indefinite research use” for unspecified parties and undefined purposes extending indefinitely. The Digital Personal Data Protection Act requires separate consent for separate purposes. Pronto appears to rely on a single consent mechanism to justify both.
Unless you have opted-in and paid for the program personally, the Pro doesn't come to the house with a camera. Opt in is not one time, it has to be affirmed
before each booking. By default there is no camera involved, and when there is, it's impossible to miss. The pilot reaches… https://t.co/Fqnw76Mk4N
— Pronto (@withpronto) May 24, 2026
The matter was first reported by Entrackr on 22 May. The report revealed that Pronto had been piloting cameras during service delivery as part of an initiative to generate data for research purposes. Investor documents reviewed by Entrackr indicated that the company had been working with physical AI and robotics laboratories.
Pronto’s workers may not have been explicitly informed that footage was being used for research beyond quality assurance purposes. It also remains unclear what proportion of services involve recorded footage, or whether workers are compensated for data collection in addition to their base pay.
Aayush Agarwal, founder of Snabbit, stated publicly that his company had been approached by several players and had studied how the technology worked, but ultimately chose not to deploy it. Abhiraj Singh Bahl, founder of Urban Company, said his company does not engage in such practices and has no plans to do so. Both competitors are publicly differentiating themselves on privacy grounds.
Unless you have opted-in and paid for the program personally, the Pro doesn't come to the house with a camera. Opt in is not one time, it has to be affirmed before each booking. By default there is no camera involved, and when there is, it's impossible to miss. The pilot reaches… https://t.co/Fqnw76Mk4N
— Pronto (@withpronto) May 24, 2026
Since this morning, people have reached out asking whether @just_snabbit does anything similar to the recent reports about a competitor recording inside customers' homes.
The answer is clear and unequivocal: We do not.
No customer's home has ever been recorded by us, in any…
— Aayush Agarwal (@Aa_Agarwl) May 24, 2026
Pronto launched in May 2025. Founded by 23-year-old Anjali Sardana, the company raised its Series A funding round in August 2025. It reached US$1 million in annual recurring revenue in December 2025. Its Series B round closed in March 2026 at a valuation exceeding US$100 million.
CNBC-TV18 has reached out to Pronto for comment and will update the story when the company responds.
