Keep them afloat through homework

1. Agreement to Terms

These Terms of Service ("Terms") form a legally binding contract between you and Buoy LLC ("Buoy," "we," "our") governing your use of the Buoy website, mobile application, email processing service, push notifications, and related features (the "Service").

By signing up, accessing, or using Buoy, you agree to these Terms and our Privacy Policy. If you don't agree, you may not use the Service.

Accounts created by businesses or organizations: If you're creating an account on behalf of a company or organization, you represent that you have authority to bind that entity to these Terms.

2. Service Description

2.1 What Buoy Does

Buoy is a homework visibility tool for families with school-age children. It helps parents see what's happening with their kids' schoolwork without constant nagging. Here's how it works:

Email Forwarding and AI Parsing:

You forward school-related emails to your unique Buoy email address
Our AI (powered by Anthropic's Claude) parses the email to extract assignments, tests, and due dates
Information appears in your Buoy dashboard organized by child
You receive push notification digests about upcoming deadlines

Screenshot and Manual Entry:

You can screenshot school portal pages (Canvas, Google Classroom, etc.)
Our AI extracts assignments and due dates from the images
Kids can also add assignments directly

The Dashboard:

The Glance: A quick overview of all your kids showing what's due, upcoming tests, and new items
The Briefing: An AI-generated summary for each child explaining what's coming and what might need attention
Calendar View: A monthly view showing assignments and tests by date

Optional Kid Signals:

Kids can mark completed assignments as Easy, Okay, or Hard
This helps parents know when to check in without asking "How's homework going?"
This feature is optional and not required for the core functionality

The Goal: Help parents see what's coming before the 9pm meltdown. A lifeline, not a leash.

2.2 What Buoy Is Not

Buoy is a personal family tool, not:

A surveillance or monitoring tool (we don't track location, screen time, or messages)
A direct integration with school systems (you control what information comes in)
An enterprise-grade scheduling system
A HIPAA-compliant medical platform
A babysitter or parental supervision replacement

2.3 Beta and Experimental Features

Some features may be marked as "beta" or "experimental." These features:

May not work perfectly
May change or be discontinued without notice
Should not be relied upon for critical tracking

We'll clearly mark beta features so you know what you're getting into.

3. Eligibility and Accounts

3.1 Age Requirement

You must be 18 years or older to create a Buoy account. By signing up, you represent that you are at least 18 years old.

If you're under 18: Do not create an account. You may only interact with Buoy (by adding assignments or marking signals) under the direct supervision and instruction of your parent or guardian who holds the account.

3.2 Account Registration

To use Buoy, you must:

Provide accurate, complete registration information (name, email)
Keep your account information up to date
Choose a secure password and keep it confidential
Not share your account with others

3.3 Account Security

You're responsible for:

All activity that occurs under your account
Maintaining the confidentiality of your password
Notifying us immediately if you suspect unauthorized access

We're not liable for losses from unauthorized account use, but we'll help you secure your account if you contact us promptly.

3.4 One Account Per Person

You may only create one account unless we give you permission to create multiple accounts. We may terminate duplicate accounts without notice.

4. User Responsibilities

4.1 What You Agree To Do

Use the Service lawfully:

Comply with all applicable laws and regulations
Respect the rights of others
Don't use Buoy for illegal activities

Provide accurate information:

Make assignment information as accurate as you can
Verify important details before relying on AI-parsed data
Correct errors when you notice them

Respect children's privacy:

Instruct children on appropriate use of the Service
Monitor how children use the Service
Don't let children share sensitive personal information

4.2 What You Agree NOT To Do

Don't abuse the Service:

Send spam, malicious content, or harassing messages
Attempt to overwhelm our systems
Exploit bugs or vulnerabilities for personal gain

Don't interfere with the Service:

Attempt to gain unauthorized access to our systems
Reverse engineer, decompile, or hack Buoy
Use automated scripts or bots without permission
Interfere with other users' use of the Service

4.3 Consequences of Violations

If you violate these Terms, we may:

Issue a warning
Temporarily suspend your account
Permanently terminate your account
Take legal action if necessary
Report illegal activity to law enforcement

We'll try to give you notice and an opportunity to fix problems, but we may suspend or terminate immediately for serious violations.

5. Email Forwarding Terms

5.1 How Email Forwarding Works

Email forwarding is a core feature of Buoy. When you forward an email to us:

You authorize us to receive, store, and process that email
You authorize us to send the email content to Anthropic's Claude API for parsing
You represent that forwarding the email doesn't violate any laws or third-party rights
We extract assignments, tests, and due dates and add them to your dashboard

5.2 What NOT to Forward

DO NOT forward emails containing:

Protected health information (PHI) or medical records
Financial account numbers, credit card details, or banking information
Social Security numbers or government ID numbers
Legal documents requiring confidentiality
Business trade secrets or proprietary information
Anything you wouldn't want stored and processed by a third-party AI

We're not liable for consequences of forwarding sensitive information. Use this feature only for school-related emails (schedules, announcements, assignment notifications, etc.).

5.3 Processing and Storage

When you forward an email:

We receive and store the email in our database (Supabase)
We send the content to Anthropic's Claude API for parsing
Claude extracts assignment details (title, date, class, child)
We create dashboard entries based on the parsed information
We retain the email according to our data retention policy (see Privacy Policy)

Email retention: We keep forwarded emails for up to 90 days for troubleshooting, then delete them unless you request earlier deletion.

5.4 Third-Party Email Providers

If you forward from work or school email:

Ensure you have permission from your organization to forward work emails
Your IT department may have policies restricting email forwarding
We're not responsible if forwarding violates your employer's or school's policies

6. Push Notification Terms

6.1 Consent to Receive Notifications

By enabling push notifications in the app, you agree to receive notifications from Buoy including daily digest summaries, upcoming test reminders, and service notifications.

What you're consenting to:

Daily digest notifications ("2 tests this week, 5 assignments due")
Test reminders (2 days before, 1 day before)
"Hard" signal alerts when your child marks something as difficult
Occasional feature announcements (a few times per year maximum)

What you're NOT consenting to:

Marketing notifications about third-party products
Promotional offers from other companies
Unsolicited spam

6.2 Notification Frequency and Control

Frequency: Varies based on your settings and school activity. Typically one daily digest plus occasional test reminders.

To manage notifications:

Go to Settings in the Buoy app
Toggle notifications on or off
Set your preferred digest time
Configure quiet hours

7. Pricing, Billing, and Payments

7.1 Plans and Pricing

Buoy offers:

Free Plan: Limited features (specifics on pricing page)
Paid Plans: Monthly or annual subscriptions (current prices on getbuoy.co/pricing)

Founding Member Special: The first 1,000 users receive special pricing: $10/month or $100/year, locked in for life. After the first 1,000 users, standard pricing is $15/month or $150/year.

7.2 Billing and Payments

Payment processor: Stripe handles all payment processing. We never see or store your full credit card number.

Automatic renewal: Paid subscriptions automatically renew at the end of each billing period unless you cancel.

Authorization: By starting a paid plan, you authorize recurring charges to your payment method until you cancel.

7.3 Refunds

General policy: Payments are generally non-refundable.

Exceptions - we'll provide refunds for:

Billing errors (double charges, wrong amount, etc.)
Extended service outages (if Buoy is down for more than 48 consecutive hours)
Accidental sign-ups caught within 48 hours
Other situations at our discretion

7.4 Cancellation

How to cancel:

Go to Settings > Subscription > Cancel
Or email support@getbuoy.co

What happens:

Your paid plan continues until the end of the current billing period
You won't be charged again
After the billing period ends, you're downgraded to the free plan
You can re-subscribe anytime

7.5 Price Changes

For existing subscribers:

If we raise prices, we'll give you at least 30 days' notice
Your current subscription continues at the old price until your next renewal
You can cancel before the price increase takes effect

For Founding Members:

Your $10/month or $100/year rate is locked in for life as long as you maintain continuous subscription
If you cancel and re-subscribe later, Founding Member pricing may no longer be available

8. Intellectual Property

8.1 Buoy's Intellectual Property

Our property includes:

The Buoy website, app, and dashboard
Our logo, branding, and design elements
Our software code, algorithms, and AI parsing logic
Documentation, content, and marketing materials
The "Buoy" name and trademark

Your license: We grant you a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable license to use Buoy for personal family homework tracking during your subscription. This license doesn't give you ownership rights.

You may NOT: Copy, modify, reverse engineer, sell, redistribute, or create derivative works from Buoy without our written permission.

8.2 Your Content

"Your Content" means: Forwarded emails, screenshots, assignments, and any other data you provide to Buoy.

You retain ownership of Your Content. We don't claim ownership of your emails, screenshots, or assignment information.

License you grant us: By using Buoy, you grant us a worldwide, non-exclusive license to:

Store Your Content in our databases
Process Your Content through our AI (Claude) for parsing
Create dashboard entries based on Your Content
Display Your Content back to you
Use aggregated, anonymized data for service improvement

This license ends: When you delete Your Content or close your account (though backup copies may persist for up to 90 days).

8.3 Feedback and Suggestions

If you provide feedback, suggestions, or ideas about Buoy:

We can use them without restriction or compensation
You're not entitled to royalties or acknowledgment
You waive any claims to features we build based on your suggestions

9. Third-Party Services

9.1 Services We Use

Buoy relies on third-party services to function:

Anthropic Claude (AI)

Powers assignment parsing from emails and screenshots.

Supabase (Database & Auth)

Stores your data securely and handles authentication.

OneSignal (Push Notifications)

Delivers push notifications to your devices.

Stripe (Payments)

Processes payments securely.

Vercel (Hosting)

Hosts the website and app.

9.2 Third-Party Terms Apply

You agree to the terms and policies of these third-party services. We're not responsible for:

Changes to third-party services
Third-party service outages or failures
How third-party services handle your data (though we choose reputable providers)
Third-party pricing changes

10. AI Parsing and Accuracy

10.1 How AI Parsing Works

Buoy uses artificial intelligence (Anthropic's Claude) to extract assignment information from emails and screenshots. The AI attempts to identify titles, due dates, classes, and which child the assignment belongs to.

10.2 AI Limitations

AI parsing isn't perfect. You should be aware that:

The AI may misinterpret dates, especially complex scheduling (like block days)
The AI may assign an item to the wrong child
The AI may miss assignments or create duplicates
Messy or unusual formatting may confuse the AI
The AI improves over time but will never be 100% accurate

10.3 Your Responsibility to Verify

You are responsible for verifying important deadlines. Buoy is a convenience tool to help you stay organized, but it should not be your only source of truth for critical tests, projects, or deadlines. Always verify important dates with your child or the school directly.

We're not liable for missed assignments, tests, or deadlines due to AI parsing errors.

11. Service Availability and Changes

11.1 Service Availability

We strive for high uptime, but we don't guarantee uninterrupted service. Service may be unavailable due to:

Scheduled maintenance
Emergency maintenance or security patches
Third-party service outages
Technical difficulties or server issues
Security incidents

11.2 Changes to the Service

We may change Buoy at any time:

Add new features
Remove or modify existing features
Change how features work
Change the user interface or design

Major changes: We'll try to give advance notice for significant feature removals or changes that affect how you use Buoy.

11.3 Termination of Service

We reserve the right to suspend or terminate Buoy entirely. If we shut down Buoy:

We'll give at least 90 days' notice
We'll provide a way to export your data
We'll issue pro-rated refunds for annual subscriptions

12. Disclaimers and Limitations of Liability

12.1 No Warranties

THE SERVICE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND.

To the maximum extent permitted by law, we disclaim all warranties, express or implied, including:

Fitness for a particular purpose: We don't guarantee Buoy will meet your specific needs
Accuracy: AI parsing isn't perfect. You're responsible for verifying important details.
Reliability: We can't guarantee uninterrupted, error-free operation
Security: While we use security measures, we can't guarantee absolute security
Third-party services: We don't guarantee third-party services will work correctly

12.2 Limitation of Liability

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW:

Excluded damages: We're not liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, including:

Lost profits or business opportunities
Lost data
Missed assignments, tests, or deadlines due to parsing errors or system failures
Damage to reputation
Costs of substitute services

Cap on liability: Our total liability for any claims related to Buoy or these Terms will not exceed the greater of: the amount you paid us in the 12 months before the claim arose, OR $500 USD.

Why: Buoy is a family convenience tool with low subscription costs. We can't accept unlimited liability for missed assignments. You should always verify important commitments.

13. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless Buoy, our officers, directors, employees, and agents from any claims, damages, losses, or expenses (including legal fees) arising from:

Your use of Buoy
Your violation of these Terms
Your violation of any laws or third-party rights
Content you provide (emails, screenshots, assignment data)
Your children's use of the Service
Disputes with other users

In plain English: If your use of Buoy causes legal problems for us, you're responsible for those costs.

14. Dispute Resolution

14.1 Informal Resolution First

If you have a problem with Buoy, please contact us first at support@getbuoy.co. We'll try to resolve it informally within 30 days. Most issues can be resolved through friendly communication.

14.2 Governing Law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Texas, United States, without regard to conflict of law principles.

14.3 Jurisdiction and Venue

If we can't resolve a dispute informally, any legal action must be brought in the state or federal courts located in Collin County, Texas. You and Buoy both consent to personal jurisdiction in those courts.

14.4 Class Action Waiver

You and Buoy agree to bring claims only in your individual capacity, not as a plaintiff or class member in any class action, consolidated action, or representative proceeding.

15. General Provisions

15.1 Entire Agreement

These Terms, together with our Privacy Policy, constitute the entire agreement between you and Buoy regarding the Service.

15.2 Changes to Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. For material changes:

We'll give at least 30 days' advance notice
We'll notify you via email and/or push notification
We'll update the "Last Updated" date at the top

15.3 Severability

If any provision of these Terms is found unenforceable, the remaining provisions remain in full effect.

15.4 Waiver

Our failure to enforce any right or provision doesn't constitute a waiver of that right.

15.5 Assignment

You may not transfer or assign these Terms or your Buoy account without our written consent. We may assign these Terms in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets.

15.6 Force Majeure

We're not liable for failures or delays due to circumstances beyond our reasonable control, including natural disasters, acts of war, pandemics, internet outages, or government actions.

16. Account Deletion and Data

16.1 Account Deletion

How to delete your account:

Settings > Account > Delete Account
Or email support@getbuoy.co with "Delete My Account" in the subject