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Terms and Conditions

Effective Date: June 7, 2026

These Terms and Conditions ("Terms") govern your access to and use of AcornKB, including our website at www.acornkb.com, desktop application, license services, documentation, updates, support channels, and related services (collectively, the "Service").

The Service is operated by Chenjun Xu, an individual developer doing business as AcornKB ("AcornKB", "we", "us", or "our").

By downloading, installing, purchasing, activating, accessing, or using the Service, you agree to these Terms. If you do not agree to these Terms, you must not use the Service.

1. The Service

AcornKB is a local-first personal knowledge and content organization application. It helps users import, organize, transcribe, summarize, tag, index, structure, and review lawful materials that they own, are authorized to access, or may otherwise lawfully process.

The Service may include features for local knowledge management, local file organization, transcript processing, AI-assisted summarization, knowledge page generation, search, indexing, licensing, updates, and related workflow automation.

AcornKB is not a content scraping service, content downloading service, rights circumvention tool, surveillance service, legal service, medical service, financial service, tax service, investment advisory service, or professional compliance service.

You are solely responsible for how you use the Service and for ensuring that your use of the Service is lawful and permitted by all applicable rules, agreements, and third-party rights.

2. Eligibility

You must be at least 18 years old, or the age of legal majority in your jurisdiction, to use the Service.

If you use the Service on behalf of a company, organization, or other legal entity, you represent and warrant that you have authority to bind that entity to these Terms. In that case, "you" and "your" refer to both you and that entity.

3. Account, License, and Access

Some parts of the Service may require an account, license key, subscription, activation, device authorization, or entitlement check.

You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account credentials, license key, activation information, and billing information. You must not share, resell, transfer, publish, or otherwise make your license key available to unauthorized users.

You are responsible for all activity that occurs through your account, license, device, or installation, unless caused by our breach of these Terms.

We may refuse, suspend, revoke, or limit access to a license, account, trial, or entitlement if we reasonably believe that it has been obtained, shared, used, or attempted to be used fraudulently, abusively, unlawfully, or in violation of these Terms.

4. License to Use the App

Subject to your compliance with these Terms and payment of all applicable fees, we grant you a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, non-sublicensable, revocable license to install and use AcornKB for your personal or internal business purposes.

You may not:

  • copy, modify, adapt, translate, distribute, resell, sublicense, rent, lease, lend, or commercially exploit the Service;
  • reverse engineer, decompile, disassemble, or attempt to derive the source code of the Service, except where applicable law expressly permits such activity;
  • bypass, disable, remove, interfere with, or circumvent license checks, activation controls, device limits, security features, access restrictions, or technical protection measures;
  • use the Service to build, train, benchmark, or support a competing product or service, except where expressly permitted by applicable law;
  • use the Service in a way that violates these Terms, applicable law, third-party rights, or platform rules.

All rights not expressly granted to you are reserved by us and our licensors.

5. Local-First Design and Connected Features

AcornKB is designed as a local-first desktop application. By default, your local knowledge library, local databases, local source files, local transcripts, generated notes, indexes, and related artifacts are stored on your device or in locations you configure.

However, some features may require network access or third-party services. For example, license activation, license verification, trial management, entitlement checks, device limit enforcement, security checks, update checks, payment processing, AI processing, transcription, support requests, diagnostics, and logs may involve transmission of selected information outside your device.

AcornKB does not upload your entire local knowledge library to our servers by default. We do not access your locally stored User Content unless you choose to send it to us, configure a connected feature, configure a third-party provider, request support, or otherwise intentionally transmit that information.

You are responsible for reviewing and complying with the privacy policy, terms, data processing rules, data retention rules, usage limits, and legal requirements of any third-party provider, model provider, transcription provider, API endpoint, platform, or service that you configure or connect.

6. User Content

"User Content" means any content, files, text, audio, video, links, notes, transcripts, summaries, metadata, source materials, generated outputs, prompts, records, documents, or other materials that you upload, import, paste, record, capture, process, store, generate, or otherwise use through the Service.

You retain ownership of your User Content.

You grant us only the limited rights necessary to provide, secure, maintain, troubleshoot, and support the Service when you intentionally submit User Content to us, such as when you contact support, send logs, use a connected feature, or otherwise transmit User Content outside your local device.

You represent and warrant that:

  • you own your User Content, have permission to use it, or may lawfully process it;
  • your User Content and your use of the Service do not violate applicable law, third-party rights, contracts, platform rules, confidentiality obligations, privacy rights, publicity rights, intellectual property rights, or other legal obligations;
  • you have obtained all notices, permissions, and consents required for your use of the Service.

We are not responsible for your User Content, your source materials, or your use of third-party platforms, websites, files, recordings, transcripts, AI providers, or other services.

7. Content Source, Platform Rules, and Recording Consent

You must only use AcornKB with content that you own, are authorized to access, are authorized to use, or may otherwise lawfully process.

You may not use the Service to infringe or violate copyright, trademark, publicity, privacy, confidentiality, trade secret, contractual, platform, database, or other third-party rights.

You may not use the Service for unauthorized scraping, crawling, bulk collection, downloading, copying, automated access, bypassing access controls, bypassing paywalls, defeating technical protection measures, evading login requirements, evading regional restrictions, or violating third-party platform rules.

If you record, capture, transcribe, summarize, process, or analyze audio, meetings, classes, calls, interviews, live streams, browser tabs, videos, or other materials involving other people, you are solely responsible for giving all required notices and obtaining all required consents.

Different jurisdictions have different rules for recording, transcription, privacy, consent, workplace monitoring, educational use, and personal data processing. You are responsible for understanding and complying with the rules that apply to you.

8. AI, Transcription, and Generated Outputs

The Service may generate transcripts, summaries, classifications, tags, knowledge cards, notes, answers, recommendations, indexes, structured knowledge pages, or other AI-assisted outputs.

AI and transcription outputs may be incomplete, inaccurate, outdated, biased, misleading, offensive, or unsuitable for your intended use.

You must independently verify important information against original sources before relying on it.

You must not treat AI outputs, transcripts, summaries, classifications, or generated knowledge pages as professional advice, including legal, medical, financial, tax, investment, accounting, compliance, employment, safety, or regulatory advice.

You are solely responsible for reviewing, validating, editing, approving, and using any AI-assisted or transcription output.

We do not guarantee that AI or transcription outputs will be accurate, complete, reliable, lawful, non-infringing, secure, or suitable for any particular purpose.

9. Prohibited Uses

You may not use the Service to:

  • violate any law, regulation, third-party right, contract, or platform rule;
  • process content that you are not authorized to access, use, record, transcribe, summarize, or store;
  • infringe intellectual property rights, privacy rights, publicity rights, confidentiality obligations, trade secrets, or contractual restrictions;
  • create, store, process, or distribute illegal, exploitative, abusive, deceptive, defamatory, harassing, hateful, sexually exploitative, non-consensual intimate, malware-related, or infringing content;
  • monitor, profile, identify, track, record, or analyze people without lawful authority and required consent;
  • extract, process, or infer sensitive personal information without required consent or lawful basis;
  • bypass, disable, overload, attack, disrupt, or interfere with the Service, our infrastructure, license systems, security systems, or third-party services;
  • bypass license checks, device limits, payment requirements, activation systems, access restrictions, or technical protection measures;
  • abuse free trials, promotions, refunds, chargebacks, subscriptions, licenses, or support channels;
  • use the Service for spam, phishing, fraud, scams, malware, credential theft, unauthorized surveillance, or other harmful activity;
  • use the Service in a way that creates legal, security, operational, reputational, or financial risk for us, our users, our payment providers, our infrastructure providers, or our partners.

We may investigate suspected violations and may suspend or terminate access to the Service if we reasonably believe that you have violated these Terms.

10. Paid Plans, Free Trials, Renewals, and Cancellation

Some features require a paid plan, subscription, license key, trial license, activation, or other entitlement.

Prices, plan features, subscription period, device limits, renewal terms, free trial terms, and applicable taxes or fees will be shown at checkout, on the pricing page, or in the applicable product page.

AcornKB may offer a 30-day free trial. Unless canceled before the trial ends, the free trial may convert into a paid annual subscription at the price shown at checkout or on the applicable product page.

If your plan renews automatically, you authorize recurring charges until you cancel. You are responsible for canceling before the end of the trial period or before the next renewal date if you do not want to be charged.

Cancellation stops future renewals. Unless otherwise stated in our Refund Policy or required by applicable law, cancellation does not automatically refund fees already paid.

You can cancel through the billing portal, the instructions provided in your receipt email, Paddle support channels where applicable, the app if available, or by contacting us at support@acornkb.com.

11. Paddle and Payment Processing

Payments for the Service may be processed by Paddle, which may act as the merchant of record, reseller, payment processor, tax calculation provider, invoicing provider, subscription management provider, and refund handling provider for purchases of the Service.

Paddle may process your payment information, billing information, tax information, invoice information, subscription status, refund requests, and related transaction data according to Paddle's own terms and privacy notices.

Where Paddle processes your purchase, your transaction may be subject to Paddle's buyer terms, refund policy, and support procedures in addition to these Terms.

If there is a conflict between these Terms and Paddle's terms regarding payment processing, taxes, invoicing, chargebacks, statutory withdrawal rights, or refund administration, Paddle's applicable terms may control for the payment transaction.

You must provide accurate, complete, and current billing information. We and our payment providers may suspend, cancel, or refuse access to paid features if payment is not received, is reversed, is charged back, is suspected to be fraudulent, or cannot be verified.

12. Refund Policy

Refunds are handled according to our Refund Policy, available at www.acornkb.com/refund-policy.

Where your purchase is processed by Paddle, refund requests may also be subject to Paddle's buyer terms and refund policy.

Unless required by applicable law or stated in our Refund Policy, purchases, subscriptions, renewals, and license fees are not automatically refundable.

Refunds may be declined where there is evidence of fraud, refund abuse, chargeback abuse, trial abuse, license abuse, violation of these Terms, or other manipulative behavior.

Nothing in these Terms limits any mandatory refund, withdrawal, cancellation, or consumer rights that you may have under applicable law.

13. License Keys, Device Limits, and Activation

License keys, activations, subscriptions, and entitlements are personal or organization-specific and may be subject to device limits, plan limits, expiration dates, trial restrictions, feature restrictions, and periodic verification.

AcornKB may contact our license server to activate, verify, refresh, enforce, or manage your license, device limit, plan, trial status, subscription status, and entitlement information.

We may suspend, revoke, refuse activation, or limit a license if we reasonably believe that it:

  • is fraudulent, stolen, leaked, resold, shared, or abused;
  • is used beyond permitted device or user limits;
  • was obtained through abuse of a trial, promotion, refund, or chargeback;
  • is associated with unpaid fees, failed payments, disputes, or chargebacks;
  • is used to bypass payment, licensing, access controls, or security systems;
  • is used in violation of these Terms.

14. Updates, Changes, and Availability

We may provide updates, bug fixes, patches, security updates, compatibility changes, feature changes, or new versions of the Service.

Some updates may be required for security, license verification, compatibility, continued functionality, or access to connected services.

We may modify, suspend, limit, or discontinue any part of the Service at any time. We may also change or remove features, integrations, providers, supported platforms, operating system requirements, or documentation.

We are not responsible for downtime, data loss, third-party provider outages, model provider changes, platform restrictions, API changes, local environment failures, operating system changes, browser changes, hardware failures, network issues, or user misconfiguration.

You are responsible for maintaining backups of your local data, User Content, source materials, local databases, generated outputs, and related files.

15. Privacy

Our Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, disclose, and protect information. By using the Service, you also agree to our Privacy Policy, available at www.acornkb.com/privacy-policy.

Because AcornKB is a local-first application, much of your knowledge content may remain on your device by default. However, connected features, license checks, payment processing, AI providers, transcription providers, support requests, diagnostics, and third-party integrations may involve transmission of information outside your device.

You are responsible for reviewing the privacy policies and data practices of any third-party services that you configure or use with AcornKB.

16. Security

We take reasonable measures designed to protect the Service and our systems. However, no software, local application, network connection, storage system, AI provider, payment provider, or digital service can be guaranteed to be completely secure.

You are responsible for securing your device, operating system, browser, accounts, API keys, provider credentials, local files, backups, and network environment.

You must not attempt to probe, scan, test, bypass, disable, or interfere with the security, licensing, access controls, or technical protections of the Service.

If you believe you have discovered a security issue, please contact us at support@acornkb.com.

17. Third-Party Services and Integrations

The Service may interoperate with third-party websites, platforms, AI providers, transcription providers, model APIs, browsers, extensions, payment providers, operating systems, file systems, databases, or other third-party services.

We do not control third-party services and are not responsible for their availability, security, accuracy, terms, policies, pricing, data practices, model behavior, output quality, or continued compatibility.

Your use of third-party services is governed by their own terms and policies. You are solely responsible for obtaining any required accounts, API keys, permissions, licenses, consents, and authorizations.

We may add, change, suspend, or remove third-party integrations at any time.

18. Intellectual Property

The Service, website, software, documentation, designs, user interface, workflows, trademarks, logos, trade names, graphics, text, code, models, templates, and related materials are owned by us or our licensors and are protected by intellectual property and other laws.

Except for the limited license expressly granted in these Terms, these Terms do not transfer any ownership or intellectual property rights to you.

You may not remove, obscure, or alter any copyright, trademark, attribution, or proprietary notices in the Service.

If you provide feedback, suggestions, ideas, bug reports, feature requests, or other comments about the Service, you grant us a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free right to use, copy, modify, distribute, and otherwise exploit that feedback for any purpose without restriction or compensation, unless prohibited by applicable law.

19. Copyright and Rights Complaints

If you believe that content made available through our website or Service infringes your rights, please contact us at support@acornkb.com.

Your notice should include sufficient information for us to evaluate the claim, including:

  • your name and contact information;
  • identification of the work or right allegedly infringed;
  • identification of the allegedly infringing material;
  • an explanation of why you believe the use is unauthorized;
  • a statement that the information you provide is accurate;
  • any other information required by applicable law.

Because AcornKB is a local-first tool, we may not host or control User Content stored locally on a user's device. We may be unable to remove content that is not stored on our systems.

20. Suspension and Termination

You may stop using the Service at any time.

We may suspend, terminate, revoke, or limit your access to the Service, license, account, support, updates, or connected features if we reasonably believe that:

  • you violated these Terms;
  • you failed to pay applicable fees;
  • your payment was reversed, charged back, disputed, or suspected to be fraudulent;
  • your license, trial, account, or subscription is being abused;
  • your use of the Service creates risk for us, other users, third-party providers, payment providers, or rights holders;
  • we are required to do so by law, court order, payment provider requirement, platform rule, or third-party service requirement.

Upon termination, your right to use the Service will stop. You remain responsible for any fees, obligations, or liabilities incurred before termination.

Sections that by their nature should survive termination will survive, including sections concerning ownership, User Content responsibility, prohibited uses, payments, refunds, disclaimers, limitation of liability, indemnity, governing law, and disputes.

21. Disclaimers

The Service is provided "as is" and "as available."

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, we disclaim all warranties, express, implied, or statutory, including warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, title, non-infringement, accuracy, availability, security, reliability, and uninterrupted operation.

We do not warrant that:

  • the Service will be error-free, secure, uninterrupted, accurate, complete, or reliable;
  • AI, transcription, search, indexing, classification, or generated outputs will be accurate, complete, lawful, non-infringing, or suitable for your use case;
  • the Service will preserve, recover, or back up your data;
  • the Service will remain compatible with any operating system, browser, platform, provider, API, model, website, extension, or third-party service;
  • defects or errors will be corrected;
  • third-party services will remain available, compatible, secure, or unchanged.

You use the Service at your own risk.

22. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, we will not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, exemplary, punitive, or enhanced damages, including lost profits, lost revenue, lost business, lost data, lost content, business interruption, reputational harm, loss of goodwill, cost of substitute services, or failure to achieve expected results.

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, our total liability for all claims relating to the Service will not exceed the greater of:

  • the amount you paid us for the Service in the 12 months before the event giving rise to the claim; or
  • USD $100.

The limitations in this section apply to all theories of liability, whether based on contract, tort, negligence, strict liability, warranty, statute, or otherwise, even if we have been advised of the possibility of damages.

Nothing in these Terms limits liability that cannot be limited under applicable law, including mandatory consumer rights.

23. Indemnity

You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless AcornKB, its owner, employees, contractors, service providers, licensors, partners, and affiliates from and against any claims, damages, losses, liabilities, costs, and expenses, including reasonable attorneys' fees, arising from or related to:

  • your User Content;
  • your use or misuse of the Service;
  • your violation of these Terms;
  • your violation of applicable law;
  • your violation of third-party rights;
  • your use of third-party platforms, providers, APIs, models, files, recordings, or services;
  • your failure to obtain required notices, permissions, consents, or authorizations.

We may assume exclusive control of the defense of any matter subject to indemnification, and you agree to cooperate with our defense of such claims.

24. Export, Sanctions, and Compliance

You must comply with all applicable export control, sanctions, trade, anti-corruption, anti-money laundering, privacy, data protection, consumer protection, and other laws and regulations.

You may not use, export, re-export, import, sell, transfer, or provide access to the Service in violation of applicable sanctions, export controls, embargoes, or restricted party rules.

You represent that you are not located in, organized under the laws of, or ordinarily resident in any jurisdiction where use of the Service is prohibited by applicable law, and that you are not listed on any applicable sanctions or restricted party list.

25. Consumer Rights

Nothing in these Terms limits any mandatory consumer rights that you may have under the laws of your country or region.

Some jurisdictions do not allow certain exclusions, limitations, disclaimers, or restrictions. In those jurisdictions, the relevant provisions of these Terms apply only to the maximum extent permitted by law.

26. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time.

If changes are material, we will provide reasonable notice through the website, app, email, checkout page, account page, or another appropriate channel.

The updated Terms will be effective as of the effective date stated in the updated version, unless otherwise required by law.

Your continued use of the Service after the updated Terms become effective means that you accept the updated Terms. If you do not agree to the updated Terms, you must stop using the Service.

27. Governing Law and Disputes

These Terms are governed by the laws of the United States, without regard to conflict-of-law rules.

Any dispute arising out of or relating to these Terms or the Service will be resolved in the courts located in Seattle, United States, unless applicable law requires otherwise.

Before filing a claim, you agree to first contact us at support@acornkb.com and attempt to resolve the dispute informally.

28. Miscellaneous

These Terms, together with our Privacy Policy, Refund Policy, and any applicable checkout terms, constitute the entire agreement between you and us regarding the Service.

If any provision of these Terms is found to be invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions will remain in full force and effect.

Our failure to enforce any provision of these Terms is not a waiver of our right to do so later.

You may not assign or transfer these Terms without our prior written consent. We may assign or transfer these Terms in connection with a merger, acquisition, reorganization, sale of assets, change of control, or operation of law.

Headings are for convenience only and do not affect interpretation.

29. Contact

For questions about these Terms, contact us at:

AcornKB Operated by Chenjun Xu, an individual developer Business contact address available upon lawful request. Email: support@acornkb.com Website: www.acornkb.com