sapling
Home Terms Privacy
Dashboard →

Terms of Service

Effective September 7, 2026

1. Agreement to these terms

These Terms of Service ("Terms") govern your access to and use of Sapling, an interactive pair-researching CLI for ML researchers and its associated hosted services (the "Service"), provided by Sapling ("we," "us," or "our"). By creating an account or using the Service, you agree to these Terms. If you don't agree, don't use the Service.

2. The Service

The Service includes: a command-line application that runs on your own machine; a hosted proxy that forwards your requests to AI model providers (either through our own provider credentials under your plan, or through your own credentials if you configure "bring your own key," or BYOK); and a dashboard for managing your account, plan, and usage.

Code execution, file edits, and any commands the Service runs happen locally on your own machine or infrastructure. We do not execute your code or access your local files ourselves - the Service's local component does that on your behalf, under your direction and your own machine's permissions.

3. Accounts

You need an account to use most of the Service. You're responsible for keeping your login credentials secure and for all activity under your account. Tell us right away if you suspect unauthorized access.

You must be at least 18 years old, or the age of majority in your jurisdiction, to create an account.

4. Plans, billing, and usage

Some features require a paid plan. Paid plans are billed in advance on a recurring basis through our payment processor (Stripe) and, where applicable, may include metered usage beyond an included allowance. You authorize us to charge your payment method for all fees due.

  • You can view your current plan and usage, and manage or cancel your subscription, from the dashboard's Billing section.
  • Fees are non-refundable except where required by law or explicitly stated otherwise.
  • If a payment fails, we may suspend paid features and revert your account to the free tier until payment succeeds.
  • If you configure BYOK, requests routed through your own key are billed to you directly by that provider, not by us - we don't mark up or bill for BYOK usage.

5. Acceptable use

You agree not to use the Service to:

  • Violate any law, or the rights of any third party;
  • Attempt to gain unauthorized access to the Service, other accounts, or the infrastructure behind it;
  • Abuse, overload, or attempt to circumvent rate limits or usage quotas;
  • Share your account credentials or API access with anyone outside your own use;
  • Use the Service to generate content that is unlawful, infringing, or intended to harm others.

We may suspend or terminate accounts that violate this section.

6. Third-party AI providers

The Service forwards your requests to third-party AI model providers (such as Anthropic, OpenAI, or others we integrate with, or a provider of your own choosing under BYOK). Those providers have their own terms and may process your prompts and generated content according to their own policies. We are not responsible for the availability, accuracy, or behavior of third-party models.

7. Your content

You retain all rights to the code, prompts, and other content you submit through the Service ("Your Content"). You grant us a limited license to transmit, process, and store Your Content solely as needed to operate and improve the Service (for example, forwarding a prompt to a model provider, or storing your research log if you use that feature). We don't claim ownership of Your Content and won't use it to train models without your separate, explicit consent.

8. Intellectual property

The Service itself - the CLI, the hosted proxy, the dashboard, and associated branding - is owned by Sapling and protected by applicable intellectual property laws. These Terms don't grant you any rights to our trademarks or branding beyond what's needed to use the Service as intended.

9. Disclaimers

THE SERVICE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE," WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. We don't warrant that the Service will be uninterrupted, error-free, or that output from AI models will be accurate, safe, or suitable for any particular purpose - you're responsible for reviewing any code, commands, or content the Service produces before relying on or executing it.

10. Limitation of liability

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, SAPLING WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, OR ANY LOSS OF DATA, PROFITS, OR REVENUE, ARISING FROM YOUR USE OF THE SERVICE. OUR TOTAL LIABILITY FOR ANY CLAIM RELATING TO THE SERVICE WILL NOT EXCEED THE AMOUNT YOU PAID US IN THE 12 MONTHS BEFORE THE CLAIM AROSE.

11. Termination

You can stop using the Service and cancel your subscription at any time from the dashboard. We may suspend or terminate your access if you violate these Terms, or discontinue the Service (or parts of it) with reasonable notice where practical.

12. Changes to these terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. If we make material changes, we'll make reasonable efforts to notify you (for example, via email or an in-product notice). Continued use of the Service after a change takes effect means you accept the updated Terms.

13. Governing law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Delaware, USA, without regard to conflict-of-law principles.

14. Contact

Questions about these Terms? Reach us at noah95mitchell@gmail.com or on Discord.

Questions about either of these? Reach us on Discord or at noah95mitchell@gmail.com.