1. Agreement to these Terms
These Terms of Service ("Terms") govern your access to and use of StartupAccelerator — the website at startupaccelerator.dev, including the project directory, community leaderboard, comments, maker profiles, the weekly newsletter, and every related feature (together, the "Service"). By using the Service you agree to these Terms. If you do not agree, do not use the Service.
The Service is operated by the StartupAccelerator team ("we", "us"). We run the Service together with the r/startupaccelerator community on Reddit; Reddit itself is a separate service under its own terms.
2. The Service
StartupAccelerator is a launch and discovery platform: founders submit projects, we review submissions before anything is published, approved projects receive a public profile and appear in the directory and rankings, community members vote and comment, and each week we editorially select projects for the newsletter. We may change, suspend, or discontinue any part of the Service at any time.
3. Accounts
Signing in uses Google OAuth only — we never see or store a password. You must provide accurate identity information, you may hold one account, and you are responsible for activity on your account. You must be at least 16 years old (or the age of digital consent where you live) to create an account.
4. Your submissions and the license you grant
You retain all ownership of the content you submit — project names, pitches, stories, images, comments, and profile information ("Your Content"). By submitting, you grant us a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to host, store, reproduce, adapt (for formatting), publish, publicly display, and distribute Your Content on the Service, in the newsletter, and in promotion of the Service (for example, social posts featuring your launch). This license lasts as long as Your Content is on the Service, plus a reasonable period for backups and archived newsletter issues, which remain publicly readable.
You represent that Your Content is yours to submit, is accurate, and does not infringe anyone's rights or any law. We may decline, edit for presentation, or remove any submission at our discretion — publication is editorial, never guaranteed.
5. Community rules
You agree not to: misrepresent a project or your identity; manipulate votes, rankings, streaks, or badges (including vote rings, multiple accounts, or automation); post unlawful, infringing, deceptive, or abusive content; scrape or bulk-harvest personal data from the Service; probe, disrupt, or overload the Service; or use it to send spam. We may rate-limit, remove content, restrict features, or terminate accounts to protect the community.
6. Voting, rankings, and gamification
Voting is one vote per member per project, and votes are final once cast. Votes from makers with an approved project may carry additional weight. Displayed rankings and counts are computed from community activity and may include editorial adjustments and anti-abuse corrections. Badges, streaks, and the Founder ID card are informational features computed from your activity; they carry no monetary value and may change as the Service evolves.
7. Featured placement and sponsorship
Directory listing, community ranking, and editorial newsletter picks are free. Featured placement on the landing page and newsletter sponsorship are paid options arranged separately in writing; commercial terms (pricing, duration, invoicing) are agreed per engagement. Paid placement is always visually identified, never alters community vote counts, and remains subject to these Terms and our editorial standards.
8. The newsletter
The weekly newsletter is double opt-in and free. Every issue includes a one-click unsubscribe, and past issues remain publicly readable in the archive. Subscribing to the newsletter is independent of holding an account.
9. Our intellectual property
The Service — its design, code, branding, badges, and editorial content other than Your Content — is owned by us or our licensors. We grant you a limited, revocable, non-transferable right to use the Service as intended. The "Featured on StartupAccelerator" embed badge may be used only by the project it was issued to, linking back to that project's live listing.
10. Third-party services and AI features
The Service links to third-party sites (including project websites and Reddit) that we do not control and are not responsible for. Some features use automated AI assistance — submission triage, category suggestions, and the optional launch-brief tool. AI output is a working draft, may be inaccurate, and is not advice; you are responsible for anything you do with it.
11. Termination
You may stop using the Service at any time and may request account deletion by contacting us. We may suspend or terminate access, remove content, or decline service where these Terms are violated, where the law requires, or to protect the Service and its users. Sections that by their nature survive termination (licenses for archived issues, disclaimers, liability limits, governing law) survive.
12. 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. Project listings are content submitted by their founders: a listing, ranking, badge, or featured slot is not our endorsement, investment advice, or a guarantee of any project's quality, safety, or legality. We do not warrant uninterrupted or error-free operation.
13. Limitation of liability
To the maximum extent permitted by law, we are not liable for indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, or for lost profits, revenues, data, or goodwill, arising from or related to the Service. To the same extent, our total aggregate liability for all claims relating to the Service is limited to the greater of the amount you paid us in the twelve months before the claim or fifty euros (€50). Nothing in these Terms excludes liability that cannot be excluded by law, including for wilful misconduct or gross negligence.
14. Indemnity
If you use the Service in breach of these Terms or infringe someone's rights with Your Content, you agree to indemnify us against third-party claims, damages, and reasonable costs (including legal fees) arising from that breach or infringement.
15. Changes to these Terms
We may update these Terms as the Service evolves. The effective date above always reflects the current version, and material changes will be announced on the Service before they take effect. Continued use after a change takes effect means you accept the updated Terms.
16. Governing law and disputes
These Terms are governed by the laws of the country in which the Service operator is established, excluding its conflict-of-law rules, and disputes belong to the competent courts of that country — without prejudice to mandatory consumer-protection rights in your country of residence. EU residents may also use the European Commission's online dispute resolution platform.
17. Contact
Questions about these Terms: info@raptorlabs.dev.