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Clarity Terms of Service

The rules, responsibilities, and expectations that govern use of the Clarity app.

Effective July 30, 2026

Current document

Version 1.0.0

This page always shows the active published document for public review.

Effective date
July 30, 2026
Published
July 30, 2026
Status
Active
Clarity TOSVersion 1.0.0

Clarity AI by CivStart 

Terms of Service

These Terms of Service (the “Agreement”) govern access to and use of the Clarity AI by CivStart platform (the “Platform”) and all related services (collectively, the “Services”)—as provided by CivStart Ventures, Inc., a Delaware corporation (“CivStart,” “we,” “us,” or “our”)—by the government entity or public-sector organization whose authorized representative accepts these terms (“User,” “you,” or “your”). CivStart and User may be referred to separately as a “Party” and, collectively, the “Parties.”

By creating an account or otherwise accessing or using the Services, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by this Agreement, including all documents incorporated by reference. If you do not agree, do not access or use the Services.

The Services are provided free of charge to eligible government users. No subscription fee, credit system, or procurement action is required to access the core services.

Note on product name. The Services are currently offered under the name “Clarity AI by CivStart.” CivStart reserves the right to rename, rebrand, or reorganize the Services at any time. Any such change will not affect the rights and obligations of the Parties under this Agreement.

1. Eligibility and Account

A. Eligibility.

The Services are available exclusively to individuals who are currently employed by, appointed to, or acting in an official capacity on behalf of a local, county, municipal, tribal, or other public-sector government entity in the United States (“Public-Sector Entity”). By creating an account, you represent, warrant, and attest that:

  • you are currently employed by, appointed to, or otherwise authorized to act on behalf of a Public-Sector Entity;

  • your use of the Services is in connection with your official duties or responsibilities; and

  • neither you nor your organization has previously been suspended or removed from the Services.

CivStart reserves the right to verify eligibility at any time and to suspend or terminate access for any user who does not meet these requirements or who provides false attestation. CivStart may, in its sole discretion, extend access to contractors, consultants, or other individuals acting under a formal engagement with a Public-Sector Entity; such access is subject to the same eligibility requirements and attestation.

B. Account Registration.

To access the Services, you must register for an account. You agree to provide true, accurate, and complete registration information, including your name, organizational affiliation, and official work email address, and to promptly update that information if it changes. You are solely responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account credentials and for all activity that occurs under your account. You agree to notify us immediately at admin@civstart.com if you become aware of any unauthorized use of your account or any breach of security.

C. Account Suspension and Termination by CivStart.

CivStart reserves the right to suspend or terminate your account at any time if, in its sole discretion, you have violated the terms of this Agreement, no longer meet the eligibility requirements in Section 1.A, or have otherwise acted in a manner inconsistent with the spirit of this Agreement. Upon loss of eligibility—including departure from your Public-Sector Entity—you agree to cease use of the Services immediately or to notify us at admin@civstart.com.

2. Description of Services

The Services are a research and discovery tool designed to help government users define, refine, and align on organizational challenges. The Services are not a procurement tool and are not intended to substitute for, or constitute, any formal procurement process. Nothing in the Services or in any output generated through the Services constitutes a solicitation, recommendation, endorsement, or approval of any vendor, product, or solution.

A. Discovery.

The Discovery panel is an AI-powered workspace for defining and refining government challenges. Users may respond to guided questions about their challenge, stakeholders, constraints, and context. The platform generates decision-ready documents based on user inputs. AI-generated outputs are provided for research and internal alignment purposes only. CivStart makes no representation that any output is accurate, complete, legally sufficient, or suitable for any particular purpose. Users are solely responsible for reviewing, validating, and determining the appropriate use of any AI-generated content before relying on it. More information on CivStart’s use of AI can be found at trust.civstart.com

B. Connect.

The Connect panel allows users to optionally share their challenge definitions with peer government users and the broader vendor community for the purpose of collaborative learning, benchmarking, and AI-powered solution matching. Participation in Connect is entirely opt-in and is configured on a per-challenge basis. By opting a challenge into Connect, you acknowledge and agree that:

  • your challenge data may be shared with other verified government users and with vendors using the GovFit platform operated by CivStart;

  • CivStart may apply AI-powered matching and scoring to identify peer challenges and vendor solutions potentially relevant to your challenge, and may present those scores and matches to participating peer governments or vendors;

  • sharing is not a procurement action and does not initiate, obligate, or constitute any formal procurement process;

  • you retain the right to withdraw a challenge from Connect at any time, provided that data already shared with third parties prior to withdrawal cannot be recalled by CivStart; and

  • you represent that you have the authority to share the challenge data you submit and that doing so does not violate any applicable law, regulation, policy, or confidentiality obligation of your Public-Sector Entity.

Relationship to GovFit. The Clarity AI platform is offered free of charge to government users in part because it is supported by the GovFit vendor-facing platform, also operated by CivStart. When you opt a challenge into Connect, challenge data may be passed to the GovFit application. GovFit vendors do not pay for access to your contact information and may only initiate contact through facilitated introductions at your discretion. CivStart does not sell government data that has not been anonymized and aggregated to vendors.

C. Data Dashboard.

The Data Dashboard panel provides access to benchmarking data, govIntel reports, and—where applicable—association surveys for users affiliated with CivStart’s partner associations. govIntel reports and benchmarking data are derived from anonymized and aggregated challenge data contributed by platform users. Individual challenge data is not attributed to specific users or entities in any external-facing report without your express consent.

Partner association surveys. If you are a member of a partner association that has engaged CivStart, you may receive surveys or access association-specific data through the Data Dashboard. Participation in association surveys is voluntary.

D. Partner Links and Third-Party Services.

The Services may include links to or integrations with third-party platforms and partner organizations, including but not limited to cooperative purchasing platforms and procurement research tools. These links are provided for informational and research purposes only. CivStart does not endorse, operate, or take responsibility for third-party platforms or any action you take through them. Your use of any third-party service is governed solely by that service’s own terms and policies.

For the avoidance of doubt, this section does not apply to Sub-Processors engaged by CivStart to process User data in connection with providing the Services, which are governed by Section 5.D.

E. Service Changes.

CivStart reserves the right to modify, rename, enhance, suspend, or discontinue any feature, panel, or component of the Services at any time and without prior notice, including the names and structures of the Discovery, Connect, and Data Dashboard panels. We will endeavor to communicate material changes to active users where reasonably practicable. You are responsible for maintaining your own copies of any content or documents you generate through the Services.

F. No Fees; Future Premium Features.

The core Services are provided free of charge to eligible government users. No subscription fee, credit system, or payment is required to access the Discovery, Connect, or Data Dashboard panels as currently offered. CivStart may introduce optional premium features or capabilities in the future that are subject to separate fees. Any such paid features will be clearly identified, and access will require separate agreement to applicable fee and subscription terms. Your continued use of the free Services will not be conditioned on purchasing any premium feature.

3. User Obligations

A. Standards of Conduct.

You agree to use the Services in a lawful, respectful, and professional manner consistent with your obligations as a public official or representative of a Public-Sector Entity. You agree not to:

  • submit any data that you are not authorized to share, including data subject to confidentiality obligations, attorney-client privilege, or applicable public records restrictions;

  • use the Services to solicit, negotiate, or award any contract or procurement in violation of applicable procurement law, ethics rules, or your entity’s policies;

  • use the Services to spam, harass, misrepresent your affiliation, or make unauthorized contact with any party;

  • access, search, or scrape any portion of the Platform using automated tools, bots, or data-mining mechanisms not provided by CivStart;

  • reverse engineer, decompile, or attempt to discover the source code or AI models underlying any portion of the Services;

  • use the Services for any illegal purpose or in violation of any applicable local, state, or federal law or regulation; or

  • share your account credentials with any third party or permit unauthorized access to your account.

B. Data Responsibility.

You are solely responsible for the data you input into the Services. You agree not to upload, submit, or input:

  • personally identifiable information (“PII”) of residents, businesses, or staff, including but not limited to names, addresses, social security numbers, financial account information, or health data, except as expressly necessary and only in compliance with applicable law;

  • protected health information as defined under HIPAA;

  • data classified as Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) or any data subject to federal classification requirements; or

  • any data whose upload would violate the privacy rights of any individual or the policies of your Public-Sector Entity.

CivStart strongly advises against uploading any non-public PII or health data of residents, businesses, or staff into the platform. CivStart is not responsible for any consequences arising from your decision to submit such data in violation of this section.

C. Compliance with Government Ethics and Procurement Laws.

Your use of the Services, including any use of the Connect panel or any contact with vendors through facilitated introductions, must comply with all applicable government ethics rules, procurement laws, conflict-of-interest policies, and lobbying restrictions. CivStart makes no representation that use of the Services satisfies any particular legal or regulatory requirement applicable to your entity. You are solely responsible for ensuring that your use of the Services and any resulting vendor engagement complies with your entity’s legal obligations.

D. Feedback.

If you choose to provide suggestions, comments, or ideas regarding the Services (“Feedback”), you grant CivStart an unrestricted, perpetual, irrevocable, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to use and exploit the Feedback for any purpose, including improving the platform. CivStart has no obligation to act on any Feedback or provide any compensation or attribution for it.

4. AI-Generated Content

A. Nature of AI Outputs.

The Services use artificial intelligence and large language model technologies to assist users in defining challenges, generating documents, and surfacing insights. AI-generated outputs, including challenge summaries, decision-ready documents, matching scores, and benchmarking insights, are produced algorithmically and may contain errors, omissions, or inaccuracies. They are provided for research and internal alignment purposes only.

B. No Reliance Warranty.

CivStart makes no representation or warranty that any AI-generated output is accurate, complete, current, legally sufficient, or fit for any particular purpose. You are solely responsible for reviewing, validating, and determining the appropriate use of any AI-generated content before relying on it for any decision, including but not limited to budget decisions, strategic planning, vendor evaluation, or procurement.

C. No Model Training on User Data.

CivStart does not use challenge data or other content submitted by individual users to train, fine-tune, or update any AI model. CivStart may use anonymized and aggregated data derived from platform usage for product improvement, govIntel reporting, and benchmarking purposes, as described in Section 5.A.

D. Vendor Matching Scores.

When you opt a challenge into Connect, CivStart’s platform may generate AI-powered matching scores indicating the potential relevance of vendor solutions to your challenge. These scores are algorithmic outputs generated for informational purposes only. They do not constitute an endorsement, evaluation, or recommendation of any vendor or product by CivStart. You should not rely on matching scores as a substitute for your own independent evaluation of any vendor or solution.

The most up to date information on CivStart’s use of AI technologies can be found at trust.civstart.com

5. Data and Privacy

A. Data Use.

CivStart may collect and use data and information relating to the use and performance of the Services (“Services Data”) for the following purposes:

  • to provide and improve the Services;

  • to generate anonymized and aggregated govIntel reports and benchmarking data, which may be made available through the Data Dashboard panel to all platform users, regardless of whether an individual user has opted into Connect; and

  • for internal analytics, product development, and as otherwise permitted by applicable law.

When CivStart uses your challenge data to contribute to govIntel or benchmarking outputs, it does so only in anonymized and aggregated form. Individual challenge data will not be attributed to you or your Public-Sector Entity in any external-facing output without your express consent.

What we do not do. CivStart does not sell government user data to vendors or third parties. CivStart does not use individual challenge data to train AI models. CivStart does not share individually identifiable challenge data with vendors except when you have expressly opted a specific challenge into Connect.

B. Data You Control.

You retain ownership of and responsibility for all challenge data and other content you submit to the Services (“User Content”). CivStart’s rights to use User Content are limited to those described in this Agreement. You may request deletion of your User Content at any time as provided in Section 5.F. You are responsible for maintaining your own copies of any content you wish to retain.

C. Privacy Policy.

All personal information collected through or in connection with the Services is subject to CivStart’s Privacy Policy, available at https://civstart.ventures/privacy, which is incorporated into this Agreement by reference. Please review the Privacy Policy for information about how we collect, use, store, and disclose personal information.

D. Sub-Processors.

CivStart may engage third-party service providers (“Sub-Processors”) to process data in connection with providing the Services. A current list of CivStart’s Sub-Processors is maintained in the CivStart Trust Center at trust.civstart.com. CivStart will provide at least thirty (30) days’ advance written notice before engaging any new Sub-Processor or making a material change to an existing Sub-Processor’s role where such change would materially affect the processing of your data. Notice may be provided by email or by posting to the Trust Center changelog.

E. Security Practices.

CivStart maintains a publicly available Trust Center at trust.civstart.com that describes its current security controls, infrastructure practices, and compliance status. The Trust Center reflects CivStart’s operational practices as of its stated effective date. The controls described in the Trust Center are not warranties and do not expand CivStart’s obligations beyond those set forth in this Agreement. CivStart’s liability with respect to security incidents is subject to Section 8 (Limitation of Liability).

F. Data Deletion Upon Request.

Upon written request submitted to compliance@civstart.com, CivStart will delete or cause to be deleted your personal data and User Content held in the Platform within thirty (30) days of receiving the request, and will confirm completion in writing. This obligation applies during the term of this Agreement and for thirty (30) days following termination. Notwithstanding the foregoing:

  • CivStart may retain data where required by applicable law, regulation, or legitimate legal hold obligations, and will notify you of any such retention;

  • anonymized and aggregated data derived from your User Content and incorporated into govIntel reports or benchmarking outputs is not subject to this deletion obligation, as it cannot be disaggregated from aggregate datasets without unreasonable effort; and

  • you are solely responsible for retaining copies of any content you have submitted to the Platform prior to requesting deletion.

G. Security Incidents; Breach Notification.

CivStart maintains an incident response policy and will notify you without undue delay, and in any event within seventy-two (72) hours of becoming aware of any confirmed Security Incident that materially affects your data. For purposes of this Agreement, “Security Incident” means any unauthorized access to, or acquisition, disclosure, or destruction of, your personal data held in the Platform. Notice will include: (a) a description of the nature of the incident including categories and approximate volume of data affected to the extent then known; (b) the likely consequences; and (c) measures CivStart has taken or proposes to take to address it. CivStart’s notification obligations are subject to any restrictions imposed by law enforcement or applicable law. Notification of a Security Incident does not constitute an admission of fault or liability.

6. Intellectual Property

A. CivStart Ownership.

The Services, including the Platform, all underlying technology, AI models, software, visual interfaces, designs, data compilations, algorithms, matching logic, and all other elements provided by CivStart (“Materials”), are owned by CivStart or its licensors and are protected by applicable intellectual property laws. No rights in or to the Materials are granted except as expressly set forth in this Agreement. There are no implied licenses.

B. License to User.

Subject to your compliance with this Agreement and your continued eligibility, CivStart grants you a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable right to access and use the Services solely for the purposes described in this Agreement and solely in connection with your official duties on behalf of your Public-Sector Entity.

C. User Content.

You retain all rights in and to the User Content you submit to the Services. By submitting User Content, you grant CivStart a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to use, process, store, and display your User Content solely as necessary to provide the Services and as otherwise permitted by this Agreement (including anonymization and aggregation for govIntel and benchmarking purposes). You represent and warrant that you have all necessary rights and authority to submit User Content and to grant this license.

D. AI-Generated Documents.

Documents and outputs generated by the Services using your User Content as input (“Govt-Initiated Outputs”) are provided to you for your use in connection with your official duties. CivStart does not claim ownership of Govt-Initiated Outputs to the extent they are substantially derived from your User Content. However, to the extent any Govt-Initiated Output incorporates CivStart’s proprietary templates, models, or other Materials, those elements remain the property of CivStart. CivStart makes no representation as to the copyrightability or legal status of any AI-generated output.

7. Term and Termination

A. Term.

This Agreement commences when you create an account and continues until terminated by either party in accordance with this Section.

B. Termination by User.

You may terminate this Agreement at any time by deleting your account and ceasing use of the Services, or by contacting us at admin@civstart.com. Termination does not affect any rights or obligations that arose prior to termination.

C. Termination by CivStart.

CivStart may terminate this Agreement or suspend your access at any time, for any reason, including but not limited to: (i) your violation of this Agreement; (ii) your loss of eligibility; (iii) discontinuation of the Services in whole or in part; or (iv) legal or regulatory requirements. Because the Services are provided free of charge, no refund or compensation is owed upon CivStart-initiated termination.

D. Effect of Termination.

Upon termination, your right to access and use the Services ceases immediately. The following sections survive termination: Sections 3.D, 4, 5.A, 5.F, 5.G, 6, 8, 9, 10, and 11, and any other provision that by its nature should survive. You are solely responsible for retaining copies of any User Content or generated documents prior to termination.

8. Disclaimers and Limitation of Liability

A. Disclaimer of Warranties.

THE SERVICES AND ALL MATERIALS, AI-GENERATED OUTPUTS, MATCHING SCORES, BENCHMARKING DATA, AND GOVITEL REPORTS ARE PROVIDED “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE.” CIVSTART EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, WHETHER EXPRESS, IMPLIED, OR STATUTORY, INCLUDING ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE, NON-INFRINGEMENT, AND ANY WARRANTIES ARISING FROM COURSE OF DEALING OR USAGE OF TRADE. CIVSTART MAKES NO WARRANTY THAT THE SERVICES WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, ERROR-FREE, SECURE, OR FREE OF HARMFUL CODE, OR THAT ANY AI-GENERATED OUTPUT WILL BE ACCURATE, COMPLETE, OR SUITABLE FOR ANY PARTICULAR PURPOSE.

B. No Procurement or Legal Advice.

THE SERVICES ARE A RESEARCH AND DISCOVERY TOOL ONLY. NOTHING IN THE SERVICES OR ANY OUTPUT GENERATED THROUGH THE SERVICES CONSTITUTES LEGAL ADVICE, PROCUREMENT ADVICE, A SOLICITATION, A RECOMMENDATION TO AWARD A CONTRACT, OR AN ENDORSEMENT OF ANY VENDOR, PRODUCT, OR SOLUTION. CIVSTART IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY PROCUREMENT DECISION, VENDOR ENGAGEMENT, OR LEGAL OUTCOME ARISING FROM YOUR USE OF THE SERVICES.

C. Limitation of Liability.

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, IN NO EVENT WILL CIVSTART OR ITS OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS, OR LICENSORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY: (a) INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES; (b) LOSS OF DATA, REVENUE, PROFITS, GOODWILL, OR BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES; (c) COSTS OF SUBSTITUTE SERVICES; OR (d) DAMAGES ARISING FROM UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO OR ALTERATION OF YOUR DATA, EVEN IF CIVSTART HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

BECAUSE THE SERVICES ARE PROVIDED FREE OF CHARGE, AND TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, CIVSTART’S TOTAL AGGREGATE LIABILITY TO YOU FOR ANY CLAIMS ARISING UNDER OR RELATED TO THIS AGREEMENT SHALL NOT EXCEED ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS ($100.00).

Some jurisdictions do not permit the exclusion or limitation of certain warranties or liabilities. To the extent such laws apply, some of the foregoing limitations may not apply to you.

9. Indemnification

To the extent permitted by applicable law, you agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless CivStart and its officers, directors, employees, and agents from and against any claims, liabilities, losses, damages, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) arising out of or related to: (i) your violation of this Agreement; (ii) your violation of any applicable law or regulation; (iii) your submission of data that infringes the rights of a third party or violates any applicable privacy law; (iv) your use of the Connect panel in violation of your entity’s procurement or ethics policies; or (v) your reliance on any AI-generated output for any decision.

Nothing in this section is intended to waive any immunity or limitation on liability available to you or your Public-Sector Entity under applicable law, including applicable state tort claims acts or sovereign immunity provisions.

10. Governing Law and Dispute Resolution

A. Governing Law.

This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Delaware, without regard to its conflict of laws principles.

B. Dispute Resolution.

The Parties agree to first attempt to resolve any dispute informally by contacting CivStart at compliance@civstart.com with a written description of the dispute and proposed resolution. CivStart will respond within thirty (30) days. If the dispute cannot be resolved informally within sixty (60) days of the initial notice, either party may pursue available legal remedies.

C. Venue.

To the extent a dispute proceeds to litigation, each party irrevocably consents to the exclusive jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located in the State of Delaware. You waive any objection to the exercise of jurisdiction by such courts and to venue in such courts, to the extent permitted by applicable law.

Nothing in this section is intended to limit or waive any right, remedy, or defense available to a government entity under applicable state or federal law, including any applicable immunity from suit.

11. Modifications

A. Modification of this Agreement.

CivStart reserves the right to modify this Agreement at any time. We will provide notice of material changes by posting the updated Agreement on the Platform and, where reasonably practicable, by notifying you by email. Changes take effect upon posting unless a later effective date is specified. Your continued use of the Services following the effective date of any change constitutes your acceptance of the updated Agreement. If you do not agree to any change, you must cease using the Services.

B. Modification of the Platform.

CivStart may modify, rename, suspend, or discontinue any portion of the Services at any time without prior notice. CivStart is not liable for any modification, suspension, or discontinuation of the Services, including any impact on your access to previously generated content.

12. Miscellaneous

A. Entire Agreement.

This Agreement, together with the Privacy Policy and any other documents incorporated by reference, constitutes the entire agreement between the Parties with respect to the Services and supersedes all prior and contemporaneous understandings, agreements, and representations relating to the subject matter hereof.

B. Severability.

If any provision of this Agreement is found to be invalid, illegal, or unenforceable, that provision will be modified to the minimum extent necessary to make it enforceable, and the remaining provisions will continue in full force and effect.

C. No Waiver.

No failure or delay by CivStart in exercising any right under this Agreement will constitute a waiver of that right. Any waiver must be in writing and signed by CivStart.

D. Assignment.

You may not assign or transfer any of your rights or obligations under this Agreement without CivStart’s prior written consent. CivStart may assign this Agreement freely, including in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets.

E. Headings and Interpretation.

Section headings are for reference only and do not affect interpretation. The word “including” means “including but not limited to.” The word “or” is not exclusive.

F. Consent to Electronic Communications.

By using the Services, you consent to receiving electronic communications from CivStart as described in our Privacy Policy. You agree that any notices or communications sent to you electronically satisfy any applicable legal requirements for written communication.

G. Contact Information.

The Services are offered by CivStart Ventures, Inc. You may contact us at admin@civstart.com or at the address on file at https://civstart.ventures.

For questions about this Agreement, contact compliance@civstart.com.