Frequently asked questions

Frankie is for anyone navigating pregnancy in Australia. Whether you're receiving care from a midwife, GP, obstetrician, or a combination of these, Frankie works with your care model. It's for first-time parents and experienced ones. It's for people who have straightforward pregnancies and those managing complications. Frankie adapts to your pregnancy, whatever it looks like. It's even for partners who want to understand what's happening. Essentially, if you're pregnant (or supporting someone who is) and you'd like personalised information, clarity on medical jargon, organised records, and support between appointments, Frankie is for you.

Ask Frankie anything pregnancy-related. Symptoms, what your test results mean, whether something is normal, how to prepare for appointments, what to expect during labour, how your body is changing, medications, nutrition, exercise, emotional wellbeing, your birth preferences, concerns about your baby. It's all fair game. Ask Frankie to explain medical jargon in plain English or to give you the stats on items of interest to you. The more specific you are, the more tailored Frankie's response becomes.

ChatGPT is a general-purpose AI. It knows a little about everything but isn't specialised in pregnancy. It also doesn't know your pregnancy, so it gives generic answers or forces you to enter lots of repetitive information to get the responses you want. Frankie is built specifically for pregnancy and grounded on Australian Pregnancy Care Guidelines. More importantly, Frankie learns about you. It knows your medical history, your concerns, and your care context. ChatGPT treats every conversation as new. With Frankie, you don't have to re-explain your situation. Frankie also won't sell your data or use your conversations to train other AI models. Your data is not Frankie's business model.

Yes. Frankie is built specifically for pregnancy and grounded on evidence-based maternity guidance for your care country (for example Australia's Pregnancy Care Guidelines, or equivalent US/UK/NZ/Canadian sources). Unlike generic AI or internet searches that combine information from many sources of varying quality, Frankie stays oriented to reputable pregnancy care guidance. That said, Frankie isn't a replacement for your care team: it's a resource for understanding more and feeling better prepared. Always confirm important findings with your midwife or doctor.

Frankie learns about your unique pregnancy from the moment you join. It remembers your trimester, your care type (whether you're seeing a midwife, GP, or obstetrician), your medical history, any complications, and what matters to you personally. Every answer you get is tailored to your situation and exactly where you are in your pregnancy. No more generic pregnancy information. If you ask about exercise, Frankie considers your specific health profile and how many weeks pregnant you are. If you ask about medications, it knows what you're already taking. You don't have to re-explain your pregnancy every time you ask a question. That's what makes Frankie different: it gets to know you.

Frankie is constantly learning about you and your pregnancy context from the moment you join. When you set up Frankie, you tell it your due date, what type of care you're receiving, any medical conditions, previous pregnancies, and your concerns. As you chat, Frankie learns more: what you've uploaded (scans, test results, letters from your doctor), what you ask about, and what matters to you. This creates a complete picture of your unique pregnancy and what you care most about. The more you use Frankie, the smarter and more personalised the support becomes. When you photograph a scan or blood test result, Frankie references that context in future conversations. If you are particularly anxious about something, Frankie learns this and knows to tailor information so that it addresses that need.

Weeks before an appointment, you might think of questions or concerns. You often forget them by the time you arrive. Frankie collects these: your worries, your observations, things you want to discuss. As your appointment approaches, Frankie organises them into clear, relevant questions mapped to that specific appointment. You can share that plan with your partner or care team, or just use it to guide yourself in-session. You walk in with clarity, and your care team knows what's on your mind.

Yes. Once Frankie has organised your questions into an appointment plan, you can share it directly with your care provider. Many midwives and doctors appreciate this. It shows you're engaged and it makes the appointment more efficient. You can share via email, SMS, or print it out. Some care providers might add their own notes to the plan, or they might just use it as a reference. Either way, you walk in with clarity, and your care team knows what's on your mind.

No more wondering what a medical term means or losing important papers. Simply photograph any pregnancy document (a scan, blood test result, letter from your doctor, your birth plan, anything) and upload it to Frankie. Frankie automatically organises it, stores it securely, and provides a plain-English summary of what it says. Instead of digging through emails or stacks of paper, everything is in one place, explained clearly. You can search by date, type, or content. You can share documents with your partner or care team.

Yes. When you upload a scan (ultrasound, growth scan, or other imaging), Frankie summarises what the radiologist found in plain English. You still always need to confirm findings with your care provider, but you go into that conversation understanding what the document appears to be showing, rather than trying to decode medical terminology on the fly. This is especially valuable for complex findings or if English isn't your first language.

Medical appointments can feel overwhelming. It is common to leave an appointment feeling unclear what was discussed. With Frankie, you can record your appointments (with your care provider's permission). Frankie automatically transcribes the recording and creates a summary: key points, findings, action items, and next steps. Instead of trying to remember everything your doctor said or frantically writing notes, you can focus on interacting with your care team, knowing you will have a clear record you can review later, share with your partner, or reference before your next appointment. This is particularly valuable for complex appointments where a lot of information is discussed or when you are feeling overwhelmed.

We know how personal pregnancy data is. That's why we have designed Frankie with privacy at the forefront, from the start. Your account is stored in our database, which is SOC 2 and ISO 27001 certified (the security standards used by healthcare organisations). We host Frankie on Australian servers. We follow Australian privacy laws. You can delete your data at any time.

Only you have access to your pregnancy information by default. If you choose to share specific information with your partner, you control exactly what gets shared and when. You can share appointment plans and other information with your midwife or doctor, if/when you decide to. Your data is stored securely, but you're in control of who sees what. We don't access your personal pregnancy details unless you contact support and explicitly ask us to help with something. Your privacy defaults are private. Sharing is always your choice.

No. Your pregnancy data, your conversations, and your documents will never be used to train AI models. We don't sell your data. Your information is yours alone. This is different from many general AI tools that use your conversations to improve their models or sell ads. With Frankie, what you share stays private and is used only to provide you with better, more personalised support. If we ever wanted to use anonymised data to support research into improving pregnancy care, we'd ask your permission first.

No. Frankie is designed to support you between appointments and answer questions you might otherwise sit with alone, especially the midnight ones or the things you're embarrassed to ask. Your midwife, GP, or obstetrician are your primary care providers. They can examine you, and they make clinical decisions. Frankie is there for the gaps: clarifying what your doctor said, exploring your concerns before an appointment, helping you prepare for appointments, birth, or anything else on your mind. Think of Frankie as your informed assistant, not your care provider.

Frankie is designed to help you understand what's happening and know what to do next, including when it is time to call your care team. If you describe something that needs urgent attention, like severe pain, heavy bleeding, or signs of preeclampsia, Frankie will clearly tell you to contact your care team or seek emergency support. Frankie is there to help you recognise when it is time to seek help and encourage you to seek it.

Contact your care team if you have concerning symptoms, unusual bleeding, persistent pain, fever, signs of infection, vision changes, severe headaches, or anything that feels wrong. While Frankie can help you understand when something needs attention, your care team should always be your first port of call for medical concerns. Trust your instincts. If you think something warrants professional evaluation, reach out.

However often feels right for you. But we do recommend using Frankie as your daily pregnancy assistant to help further customise the support. Rather than bouncing around different search providers and apps, just open Frankie and ask for what you need: what to expect this week, how big is my baby, is this food safe. Ask about symptoms, explore concerns, or prepare for appointments. That said, you can use as you choose. Some people may use it heavily in early pregnancy and taper off as they feel more confident. There's no right frequency. Frankie is here when you need it. If you're worried about something at 3am, it's there. If you go weeks without opening it, that's fine too. Use Frankie as much or as little as makes sense for your pregnancy and your peace of mind.

Yes. Pregnancy can be a shared experience, and Frankie helps you share it on your terms. When you set up Frankie, your partner can create their own account linked to yours. You choose what gets shared automatically (everything, nothing, or specific categories), or you can manually share individual items (e.g., a scan summary, an appointment plan, a message from your doctor). Your partner gets their own dashboard with the information you've shared, so they stay informed without having access to anything you want to keep private.

Frankie is a paid service. This enables us to prioritise high quality, safe responses to your questions and enables robust protection of user privacy. And, it enables us to avoid the business model of selling user information to advertisers. We offer two tiers: Essential and Premium. Both include personalised chat, document management, appointment preparation, and recording transcription. Premium adds deeper features and higher limits. Check the Frankie app for current subscription prices.

Yes. Reduced pricing is available for those in-need. Charging for Frankie enables us to ensure quality of responses and protect user privacy. But, Frankie exists to support people. So, if affordability is a barrier, contact us at hello@frankieapp.org to apply for reduced pricing or discuss options.

Yes. We're committed to supporting you through the entire journey. Chat and document analysis will continue to support you through any questions you have following birth, be it about your recovery, breastfeeding, baby health, mental wellbeing, and more. You can manually add appointments and create transcripts. However, we intend to provide more specialised postpartum features in the coming months.