Terms of Service

1. Acceptance of Terms

By accessing or using the FirstAuthor website and application (the "Service"), you agree to be bound by these Terms of Service ("Terms"). If you do not agree to these Terms, you must not access or use the Service. These Terms constitute a legally binding agreement between you and the Provider.

Provider

The Service is operated by Dr. Philipp Münch – AI Software & SaaS (sole proprietorship), Geiselgasteigstr. 46, 81545 München, Germany. As a small business under § 19 UStG, invoices (if any) do not show VAT.

2. Beta Status and Service Description

FirstAuthor is a semantic manuscript editor for scientific writing. The Service includes document editing, real-time collaboration, reference management, and AI-powered writing assistance features.

• No uptime guarantee: We do not guarantee any specific level of availability or uptime during the beta period.
• Feature changes: Features may be added, modified, or removed without prior notice.
• Data persistence: While we implement reasonable measures to protect your data, we cannot guarantee against data loss. You are strongly encouraged to maintain independent backups of all important work.

3. Account Registration

• You must provide accurate and complete information when creating an account
• You are responsible for maintaining the security of your account credentials
• You must notify us immediately of any unauthorized access to your account
• You may not share your account or allow others to access the Service using your credentials

4. Intellectual Property Rights

5. Acceptable Use

You agree not to:

• Use the Service for any illegal purpose or in violation of any laws
• Upload or transmit viruses or malicious code
• Attempt to gain unauthorized access to our systems
• Use the Service to plagiarize or infringe on others' intellectual property
• Share your account with others or use another person's account
• Use automated systems to access the Service without our permission

6. Communications

• By creating an account, you agree to receive service-related emails (e.g., security alerts, billing notifications, important updates)
• Marketing emails require your explicit consent and include an unsubscribe option
• You can manage your email preferences in your account settings

7. AI Features and Author Responsibility

FirstAuthor provides AI-powered writing assistance features including Style Check, AI Suggestions, and Reference Chat. These features are designed to help identify potential issues in your manuscript and suggest improvements—they do not generate manuscript content for you.

• Advisory only: AI suggestions are recommendations, not automated edits. You decide whether to accept, modify, or reject each suggestion.
• Author responsibility: You are solely responsible for the final content of your manuscript. You must verify that your work complies with applicable journal guidelines, publication standards, institutional policies, and other relevant requirements (e.g., ICMJE, COPE, funding agency rules).
• No guarantee of accuracy: AI suggestions may contain errors or may not be appropriate for your specific context, field, or target journal.
• Disable option: You can disable AI features entirely via Settings → Manuscript display → AI assistance. When disabled, no manuscript content is processed by AI services.

8. Payment and Subscriptions

FirstAuthor offers both free and paid subscription plans. Paid plans (Pro, Max) provide additional AI features and usage limits.

• Billing: Subscriptions are billed monthly or annually via Stripe. Prices are displayed in Euros (€) and are subject to change with notice.
• Automatic renewal: Subscriptions renew automatically at the end of each billing period unless cancelled.
• Cancellation: You may cancel your subscription at any time via the subscription management page. Access to paid features continues until the end of the current billing period.
• Refunds: As a general policy, we do not offer refunds for partial billing periods. However, as we are in beta and committed to customer satisfaction, we may consider refund requests on a case-by-case basis at our sole discretion. If you are unsatisfied or believe you were charged in error, please contact us.
• VAT: As a small business under § 19 UStG (Germany), invoices do not include VAT.

For institutional or enterprise pricing, please contact us.

9. Your Responsibility for Backups

You are solely responsible for maintaining backup copies of your manuscripts, notes, references, and any other data you store in the Service. We strongly recommend:

• Regularly exporting your manuscripts using the built-in export features
• Keeping local copies of important documents
• Not relying on FirstAuthor as your sole storage for critical research data

We are not responsible for any loss of data, regardless of cause, including but not limited to software bugs, server failures, security breaches, account termination, or service discontinuation.

10. Limitation of Liability

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW:

• No consequential damages: FirstAuthor shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, including but not limited to loss of data, loss of profits, loss of research, missed publication deadlines, reputational harm, or business interruption.
• Liability cap: Our total aggregate liability for any claims arising from or related to the Service shall not exceed the greater of (a) the amount you paid us in the 12 months preceding the claim, or (b) €100.
• Data loss: We expressly disclaim any liability for loss, corruption, or unauthorized access to your data, whether caused by software defects, security incidents, third-party services, or any other reason.
• AI features: We are not liable for any damages arising from reliance on AI-generated suggestions, including rejected manuscripts, factual errors, or non-compliance with publication guidelines.

Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion of certain warranties or limitations of liability. In such jurisdictions, our liability shall be limited to the maximum extent permitted by law. Nothing in these Terms excludes liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, fraud, or any other liability that cannot be excluded by law.

11. Disclaimer of Warranties

THE SERVICE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO:

• IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT
• ANY WARRANTY THAT THE SERVICE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, TIMELY, SECURE, OR ERROR-FREE
• ANY WARRANTY REGARDING THE ACCURACY, RELIABILITY, OR QUALITY OF AI-GENERATED SUGGESTIONS
• ANY WARRANTY THAT DEFECTS WILL BE CORRECTED OR THAT THE SERVICE IS FREE OF VIRUSES OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS

YOU EXPRESSLY UNDERSTAND AND AGREE THAT YOUR USE OF THE SERVICE IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK. AS A BETA SERVICE, FIRSTAUTHOR IS STILL UNDER DEVELOPMENT AND MAY CONTAIN SIGNIFICANT BUGS OR ERRORS.

12. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless FirstAuthor, its affiliates, and their respective officers, directors, employees, and agents from any claims, losses, or damages arising from your use of the Service or violation of these Terms.

13. Termination

We may terminate or suspend your account at any time for violation of these Terms. You may cancel your account at any time through your account settings. Upon termination, you will have 30 days to export your data before it may be deleted.

14. Governing Law and Jurisdiction

These Terms shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Germany, without regard to its conflict of law provisions.

• Jurisdiction: Any disputes arising from these Terms or your use of the Service shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Munich, Germany.
• Consumer rights: If you are a consumer (not acting for business purposes), you may also bring proceedings in the courts of your country of residence, and mandatory consumer protection laws of your country may apply to the extent they provide greater protection than German law.
• UK users: If you are resident in the United Kingdom, nothing in these Terms affects your statutory rights as a consumer under UK law, including the Consumer Rights Act 2015.
• US users: If you are resident in the United States, you agree that any dispute resolution proceedings will be conducted only on an individual basis and not in a class, consolidated, or representative action.

15. Third-Party Services

The Service relies on third-party providers for hosting, payment processing, AI features, and other functionality. These include but are not limited to Vercel, Stripe, Anthropic, OpenRouter, and Tiptap.

• We are not responsible for any failures, outages, or errors caused by third-party services
• Your use of third-party services may be subject to their own terms and privacy policies
• We do not guarantee the continued availability of any third-party integration

16. Force Majeure

We shall not be liable for any failure or delay in performing our obligations where such failure or delay results from circumstances beyond our reasonable control, including but not limited to: natural disasters, war, terrorism, riots, embargoes, acts of civil or military authorities, fire, floods, pandemics, strikes, power outages, internet or telecommunications failures, or failures of third-party service providers.

17. Age Restriction

The Service is intended for users who are at least 18 years of age. If you are under 18, you may only use the Service with the consent and supervision of a parent or legal guardian who agrees to be bound by these Terms. By using the Service, you represent that you are at least 18 years old or have obtained parental/guardian consent.

18. Export Compliance

You agree to comply with all applicable export and import laws and regulations, including those of the European Union, United States, and other jurisdictions. You may not use, export, or re-export the Service in violation of any applicable laws, including to any country subject to comprehensive sanctions.

19. Changes to Terms

We reserve the right to modify these Terms at any time. We will notify users of material changes via email or through the Service at least 30 days before the changes take effect. Your continued use of the Service after such modifications constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms. If you do not agree to the modified Terms, you must stop using the Service.

20. General Provisions

• Entire Agreement: These Terms, together with our Privacy Policy and any other policies referenced herein, constitute the entire agreement between you and FirstAuthor and supersede all prior agreements, representations, and understandings.
• Severability: If any provision of these Terms is found to be invalid, illegal, or unenforceable, the remaining provisions shall continue in full force and effect. The invalid provision shall be modified to the minimum extent necessary to make it valid and enforceable.
• No Waiver: Our failure to enforce any right or provision of these Terms shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision. Any waiver must be in writing and signed by us to be effective.
• Assignment: You may not assign or transfer your rights or obligations under these Terms without our prior written consent. We may assign our rights and obligations without restriction, including in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets.
• Headings: Section headings are for convenience only and shall not affect the interpretation of these Terms.

21. Contact Information

For questions about these Terms, please contact us at:

Email: muench@hsph.harvard.edu
Address: Dr. Philipp Münch – AI Software & SaaS, Geiselgasteigstr. 46, 81545 München, Germany