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Terms of Service

Last updated: May 16, 2026

1. Acceptance of Terms

By accessing or using Palidocs, you agree to be bound by these Terms of Service. If you do not agree, you may not use the service.

2. Description of Service

Palidocs is a collaborative academic writing platform that allows you to create, edit, and export documents in real time with other users. The service includes document editing, citation management via Zotero or BibTeX, optional AI assistance using your own provider API key (see Section 6), and PDF export for journal templates.

3. User Accounts

You must provide accurate information when creating an account. You are responsible for maintaining the security of your account credentials. Notify us immediately if you suspect unauthorized access to your account.

4. User Content

You retain all rights to the content you create on Palidocs. By using our service, you grant us a limited license to store, process, and display your content solely for the purpose of providing the service to you and your collaborators.

You agree not to upload content that:

  • Violates applicable laws or regulations
  • Infringes on intellectual property rights of others
  • Contains malware or harmful code

5. Collaboration

When you invite collaborators to a document, they will be able to view and/or edit the document based on the permissions you grant. You are responsible for managing access to your documents.

6. AI Features and Third-Party Providers

Palidocs offers optional AI assistance (rewrite, continue, explain, chat, generate, and manuscript review). AI features require you to connect an API key from a supported third-party provider (Anthropic, Google, or OpenAI). Palidocs proxies requests to your selected provider on your behalf but is not itself the AI provider.

You acknowledge and agree that:

  • Use of AI features is governed by your separate agreement with the provider whose API key you connect. You are responsible for complying with that provider's terms and for any usage fees, quotas, or rate limits they impose.
  • AI outputs are generated by third-party models and may be inaccurate, incomplete, fabricated, biased, or otherwise unsuitable. We make no representations or warranties as to the accuracy, originality, suitability, or fitness for any purpose of AI-generated content.
  • You are solely responsible for reviewing, verifying, and editing AI-generated content before relying on or publishing it. This includes verifying citations, factual claims, and compliance with the academic integrity policies of any institution, journal, conference, or publication to which you submit work.
  • You will not use AI features to violate applicable laws, infringe third-party rights, or engage in academic dishonesty as defined by the institution or publication you are working with.
  • AI providers may change their available models, pricing, or terms at any time. We may add, remove, or change supported providers without notice.

Details on what data is transmitted to AI providers when you invoke an AI action are described in our Privacy Policy.

7. Acceptable Use

You agree not to:

  • Attempt to gain unauthorized access to our systems or other users' accounts
  • Use the service for any illegal purpose
  • Interfere with or disrupt the service or its infrastructure
  • Use automated means to access the service without our permission

8. Service Availability

We strive to maintain high availability but do not guarantee uninterrupted access. We may perform maintenance or updates that temporarily affect availability. We are not liable for any data loss resulting from service interruptions.

9. Termination

You may delete your account at any time. We reserve the right to suspend or terminate accounts that violate these terms. Upon termination, your data will be deleted in accordance with our Privacy Policy.

10. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law, Palidocs is provided "as is" without warranties of any kind. We are not liable for indirect, incidental, or consequential damages arising from your use of the service. In particular, we are not liable for any loss, damage, or claim arising from AI-generated content, including but not limited to inaccuracies, plagiarism, infringement of third-party rights, or consequences of academic-integrity findings — responsibility for reviewing and verifying AI output rests with you.

11. Governing Law

These terms are governed by the laws of the Federal Republic of Germany. The courts of the data controller's place of business shall have jurisdiction.

12. Changes to These Terms

We may update these terms from time to time. Continued use of the service after changes constitutes acceptance of the new terms. We will notify registered users of material changes via email.