Terms of Service

1. Acceptance of Terms

By accessing or using GrantBeacon (the “Service”), operated by SplendidBit LLC (“SplendidBit,” “we,” “us,” or “our”), you agree to be bound by these Terms of Service (“Terms”). If you do not agree to these Terms, do not use the Service.

These Terms constitute a legally binding agreement between you and SplendidBit LLC. Please read them carefully before using GrantBeacon.

2. Account Registration & Eligibility

To use GrantBeacon, you must:

• Be at least 18 years of age
• Be authorized to act on behalf of a legitimate organization (nonprofit, charity, or other eligible entity)
• Provide accurate and complete registration information
• Maintain the security of your account credentials

You are responsible for all activity that occurs under your account. You must notify us immediately of any unauthorized use of your account at support@grantbeacon.io.

3. Subscription Plans & Billing

GrantBeacon offers the following subscription plans:

Billing Terms

• All paid subscriptions are billed monthly through Stripe
• Prices are in U.S. dollars and do not include applicable taxes
• Your subscription renews automatically at the end of each billing cycle
• You may cancel at any time; cancellation takes effect at the end of the current billing period
• We do not provide refunds for partial billing periods unless required by law
• We reserve the right to adjust pricing with 30 days' prior notice

4. Free Trial

We may offer free trial periods for paid plans. When a trial is offered:

• Trial duration will be clearly stated at signup
• You will not be charged during the trial period
• Unless you cancel before the trial expires, your subscription will automatically convert to a paid plan
• Trial eligibility is limited to one trial per organization
• We reserve the right to modify or discontinue trial offers at any time

5. AI-Generated Content

By using our AI features, you acknowledge and agree that:

• AI-generated content may contain errors, inaccuracies, or incomplete information
• You are responsible for reviewing and verifying all AI-generated output before submission to any funder
• GrantBeacon makes no representations or warranties regarding the quality, accuracy, or suitability of AI-generated content
• Use of AI features does not guarantee grant approval or funding success
• AI-generated content should be treated as a draft that requires your professional judgment and editing
• We use OpenAI's GPT-4o-mini model; we do not use your data to train AI models

6. Intellectual Property

Our Property

The Service, including its design, code, features, documentation, branding, and all related intellectual property, is owned by SplendidBit LLC and protected by copyright, trademark, and other intellectual property laws. You may not copy, modify, distribute, or create derivative works of the Service without our express written permission.

Your Property

You retain full ownership of all content, documents, data, and materials you upload to or create within GrantBeacon (“User Content”). We claim no ownership rights over your User Content.

7. User Content & License

By uploading or creating content on GrantBeacon, you grant us a limited, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to use, store, process, and display your User Content solely for the purpose of providing, maintaining, and improving the Service. This license ends when you delete your content or close your account.

You represent and warrant that:

• You own or have the necessary rights to the content you upload
• Your content does not infringe the intellectual property rights of any third party
• Your content does not violate any applicable law or regulation

8. Acceptable Use Policy

You agree not to use GrantBeacon to:

• Violate any applicable law, regulation, or third-party rights
• Submit fraudulent grant applications or misrepresent your organization
• Upload malicious software, viruses, or harmful code
• Attempt to gain unauthorized access to the Service or other users' accounts
• Interfere with or disrupt the Service or its infrastructure
• Scrape, crawl, or use automated means to access the Service without permission
• Use the Service for any purpose other than legitimate grant management
• Harass, abuse, or harm other users
• Circumvent usage limits, security features, or access controls

We reserve the right to suspend or terminate accounts that violate this Acceptable Use Policy.

9. Document Storage & Security

GrantBeacon provides document storage as part of our Service. We implement industry-standard security measures to protect your stored documents:

• All documents are encrypted in transit and at rest
• Access is restricted to authorized account holders
• Regular backups are maintained to prevent data loss
• Storage limits are determined by your subscription plan

While we take reasonable precautions to protect your documents, you should maintain your own backups of critical files. We are not responsible for data loss caused by circumstances beyond our reasonable control.

10. Third-Party Data Sources

GrantBeacon integrates data from third-party sources to provide comprehensive foundation research capabilities. By using these features, you agree to comply with the terms of use of these data providers.

ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer

Foundation and nonprofit data displayed in the Funder Search, Funder Profiles, and related features is provided by ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, which processes IRS Form 990 filings. This data is subject to ProPublica's Data Store Terms of Use.

Key terms regarding ProPublica data:

• The data may not be republished in its entirety or distributed on a stand-alone basis
• The data may contain errors and omissions; we do not guarantee its accuracy
• ProPublica is not obligated to update the data
• You may not charge people money to view the data or sell advertising specifically against it

Data Accuracy Disclaimer

Third-party data is provided “as is” without warranties of any kind. We do not independently verify the accuracy of data from external sources. You should verify any important information directly with the source or the organization in question before relying on it for grant applications or other decisions.

11. Service Availability

We strive to maintain high availability of the Service but do not guarantee uninterrupted access. The Service may be temporarily unavailable due to:

• Scheduled maintenance (we will provide advance notice when possible)
• Unplanned outages or technical issues
• Third-party service provider interruptions
• Force majeure events

We do not provide formal Service Level Agreements (SLAs) for Free, Starter, or Pro plans. Enterprise customers may negotiate separate SLA terms.

12. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law:

• SplendidBit LLC shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, including but not limited to loss of profits, data, or goodwill, arising out of or in connection with your use of the Service.
• Our total aggregate liability for any claims arising from or related to these Terms or the Service shall not exceed the total amount of fees you paid to us during the twelve (12) months immediately preceding the event giving rise to the claim.
• For users on the Free plan, our maximum liability shall not exceed fifty dollars ($50).

Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion or limitation of certain damages. In such cases, our liability will be limited to the greatest extent permitted by law.

13. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless SplendidBit LLC, its officers, directors, employees, and agents from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, losses, costs, or expenses (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising out of or related to:

• Your use of the Service
• Your violation of these Terms
• Your violation of any third-party rights
• Content you upload or create using the Service
• Your grant applications or interactions with funders

14. Termination

Termination by You

You may cancel your account at any time through your account settings or by contacting us at support@grantbeacon.io. Cancellation takes effect at the end of your current billing period.

Termination by Us

We may suspend or terminate your account if:

• You violate these Terms or the Acceptable Use Policy
• Your account is used for fraudulent or illegal activity
• You fail to pay applicable fees after reasonable notice
• We are required to do so by law
• We discontinue the Service (with reasonable notice)

Effects of Termination

Upon termination:

• Your right to use the Service ceases immediately
• We will retain your data for a reasonable period to allow data export (see Data Portability)
• Provisions that by their nature should survive termination will remain in effect

15. Data Portability

Upon termination or cancellation of your account, you may request a copy of your data. We will:

• Make your data available for download for 30 days after account closure
• Provide data in a commonly used, machine-readable format (e.g., CSV, JSON, PDF)
• Delete your data from our active systems after the 30-day period, subject to our data retention policy

To request a data export, contact us at support@grantbeacon.io.

16. Governing Law

These Terms shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of California, without regard to its conflict of law provisions. Any legal action or proceeding not subject to arbitration shall be brought exclusively in the state or federal courts located in California.

17. Dispute Resolution

Binding Arbitration

Any dispute, controversy, or claim arising out of or relating to these Terms or the Service shall be resolved by binding arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association (AAA) under its Commercial Arbitration Rules. The arbitration shall be conducted in California.

Small Claims Exception

Either party may bring qualifying claims in small claims court in California, provided the claim falls within the court's jurisdictional limits.

Class Action Waiver

Informal Resolution

Before initiating arbitration, the parties agree to attempt to resolve the dispute informally by contacting each other directly. Either party may initiate informal dispute resolution by sending a written notice to the other party. If the dispute is not resolved within 30 days, either party may proceed to arbitration.

18. Changes to Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. When we make material changes, we will:

• Provide at least 30 days' advance notice before the changes take effect
• Notify you by email and/or by posting a prominent notice within the Service
• Update the “Last updated” date at the top of this page

Your continued use of the Service after the effective date of revised Terms constitutes your acceptance of the changes. If you do not agree to the revised Terms, you must stop using the Service and close your account.

19. Force Majeure

Neither party shall be liable for any failure or delay in performing obligations under these Terms caused by circumstances beyond its reasonable control, including but not limited to: natural disasters, acts of war or terrorism, pandemics, government actions, power outages, internet or telecommunications failures, cyberattacks, or labor disputes.

20. Severability

If any provision of these Terms is found to be invalid, illegal, or unenforceable by a court of competent jurisdiction, that provision shall be modified to the minimum extent necessary to make it enforceable, or if modification is not possible, severed from these Terms. The remaining provisions shall continue in full force and effect.

21. Entire Agreement

These Terms, together with our Privacy Policy, constitute the entire agreement between you and SplendidBit LLC regarding your use of the Service. These Terms supersede all prior agreements, understandings, and communications — whether written or oral — relating to the subject matter herein.

22. Contact Information

If you have questions about these Terms, please contact us: