Terms of Service

These Terms of Service (the "Terms") form a binding agreement between you and OrbitSub, a sole proprietorship owned and operated by Karan in New Delhi, India, and registered as a micro enterprise under the Udyam (MSME) scheme of the Government of India ("OrbitSub", "we", "us" or "our"). They govern your access to and use of the website at orbitsub.com, the OrbitSub web application and every related feature, tool and service we provide (together, the "Service").

This document is an electronic record under the Information Technology Act, 2000 and the rules made under it. It is generated by a computer system and does not require a physical or digital signature. It is published in accordance with Rule 3(1) of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 (the "IT Rules").

Please read these Terms carefully. By creating an account, clicking to accept them, or using the Service, you confirm that you have read, understood and agree to be bound by them. If you do not agree, you must not use the Service.

1. Definitions

In these Terms:

• "Account" means the account you create to use the Service.
• "Content" means any text, research, document, image, file, citation, comment, suggestion, message, prompt, profile information or other material that you or any other user submits, uploads, writes, publishes or transmits through the Service.
• "Research" means a document created on the Service, in any state: draft, live, paused, ended or published.
• "Live Room" means the collaborative writing space for a Research, including its editors, viewers, suggestions and history.
• "Owner" means the user who created a Research, and who controls who may edit it.
• "Orbit AI" means the artificial intelligence features of the Service, including drafting, deep research, question answering, editing proposals, reviews, rewriting, autocomplete, source search and document chat.
• "Output" means any content generated by Orbit AI in response to your input.
• "Paid Plan" means any subscription plan for which you pay a fee.
• "Policies" means the documents listed in clause 2.3, as updated from time to time.

2. About these Terms

2.1 Who we are. OrbitSub is a sole proprietorship owned and operated by Karan in New Delhi, India. References to OrbitSub include its proprietor. You can reach us at team@orbitsub.com.

2.2 Agreement. These Terms, together with the Policies, form the entire agreement between you and us about the Service.

2.3 Policies that form part of these Terms. The following documents are incorporated into these Terms by reference, and you agree to comply with them: the Privacy Policy, Cookie Policy, Community Guidelines, AI Use Policy, Content Moderation Policy, Copyright Policy, Payment Terms, Refund and Cancellation Policy, Grievance Redressal Policy, Disclaimer, Data Retention Policy, Data Deletion Policy, Security Policy, Responsible Disclosure Policy and Accessibility Statement. If a Policy conflicts with these Terms, these Terms prevail unless the Policy expressly says otherwise.

3. Eligibility

3.1 Age. You must be at least 18 years old to create an Account or use the Service. The Service is not directed at children, and we do not knowingly allow anyone under 18 to use it. If we learn that a user is under 18, we will close the Account and delete the associated personal data in accordance with our Privacy Policy.

3.2 Capacity. You must be competent to contract under the Indian Contract Act, 1872, and not barred from receiving the Service under any law applicable to you.

3.3 On behalf of an organisation. If you use the Service for an institution, company or other organisation, you confirm that you are authorised to accept these Terms on its behalf, and "you" includes that organisation.

3.4 Previous removal. You may not use the Service if we have previously suspended or terminated your Account for breach of these Terms, unless we have agreed in writing that you may return.

4. Your Account

4.1 Accurate information. You agree to provide accurate, current and complete information when you register and to keep it up to date.

4.2 One person, one Account. An Account is personal to you. You may not share it, sell it, transfer it or let anyone else use it.

4.3 Security. You are responsible for keeping your password and any two-factor authentication codes confidential, and for all activity under your Account. We strongly recommend enabling two-factor authentication. Tell us immediately at team@orbitsub.com if you suspect unauthorised access.

4.4 Usernames. Your username must not impersonate any person or organisation, infringe anyone's rights, or be offensive or misleading. We may reclaim or change a username that breaches these Terms or that is needed to resolve a legitimate trademark or impersonation complaint.

4.5 Sign-in with Google. If you sign in with Google, you authorise us to receive the information described in our Privacy Policy. Your use of Google's services is governed by Google's own terms.

4.6 Private accounts. You may make your profile private. A private profile limits who can see your profile and published work, but it does not make Content private that you have shared in a public Live Room, a community or with other users.

5. The Service

5.1 What we provide. The Service lets you research and write, with the help of Orbit AI, and collaborate with other people. Its features include drafting research from a question, deep research, a writing editor, citation management in thousands of citation styles, a source library, live co-editing, Live Rooms that the public may watch and suggest to, communities, publishing, profiles, following, direct messages and export to common file formats.

5.2 Changes. The Service is under active development. We may add, change, suspend or remove any feature at any time. Where a change materially reduces the features of a Paid Plan you have paid for, clause 12.7 applies.

5.3 Beta features. Some features may be labelled as beta, preview or experimental. They are provided for evaluation, may be incomplete or unreliable, and may be changed or withdrawn without notice.

5.4 Availability. We aim to keep the Service available and working, but we do not guarantee that it will be uninterrupted, timely, secure or error free. We may suspend the Service temporarily for maintenance, security or reasons beyond our control.

5.5 Keep your own copies. The Service is not a backup service. You are responsible for keeping copies of Content that matters to you. You can export your Research to PDF, Word or Markdown at any time.

6. Your Content

6.1 You own your Content. You retain all ownership rights in the Content you create. We do not claim ownership of your Content.

6.2 Licence to us. To operate the Service, we need your permission to handle your Content. You grant OrbitSub a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, transferable licence, with the right to sublicense to the service providers who help us run the Service, to host, store, reproduce, process, adapt for technical purposes (for example, formatting or converting files), display, perform and transmit your Content, solely to:

1. provide, maintain, secure and improve the Service for you and for the people you share Content with;
2. display Content to the audience you choose, including making public Content visible to the public;
3. comply with law and enforce these Terms.

This licence ends when you delete the Content or your Account, except (a) for Content you contributed to another user's Research or a shared space, as described in clause 7, (b) for copies retained as described in our Data Retention Policy, and (c) as needed to comply with law.

6.3 Promotion. We will not use your Content in our marketing or advertising without your consent. We may link to or display public Content within the Service, for example in feeds, search results and community pages.

6.4 No training on your Content. We do not use your Content to train artificial intelligence models, and we do not permit our AI service providers to use it for that purpose, as described in our AI Use Policy.

6.5 Your responsibility for Content. You are solely responsible for your Content. You confirm that you have all the rights needed to submit it and to grant the licences in these Terms, and that your Content and our use of it as permitted by these Terms will not infringe any person's rights or break any law.

6.6 Public Content. Content you publish, share in a public Live Room, post in a community or make visible on a public profile may be seen, read, quoted and shared by anyone, and may be indexed by search engines. Think carefully before making Content public.

6.7 Feedback. If you send us ideas, suggestions or feedback about the Service, we may use them without any obligation to you.

7. Collaboration and Live Rooms

7.1 The Owner decides. The Owner of a Research decides who may edit it, whether it goes live, whether a Live Room is public or private, whether suggestions are open, and when a Live Room ends. Only the Owner may give or remove edit access.

7.2 Co-authors. If you are given edit access to a Research, you contribute to a work controlled by its Owner. You grant the Owner, and the other editors of that Research, a non-exclusive, perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free licence to use, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish and distribute your contributions as part of that Research and its derivatives. This licence survives the deletion of your Account.

7.3 Suggestions. When you submit a suggestion to a Live Room, you grant the Owner the same licence over the suggestion. A suggestion that the Owner approves becomes part of the Owner's Research.

7.4 Credit and history. A published Research may show a public history of how it was made, including when it started, who joined as a collaborator, which contributions were folded in and when it was published. By contributing, you agree that your username and contributions may appear in that history. If you delete your Account, your contributions remain part of the Research without being linked to your Account.

7.5 Private rooms. Room codes for private Live Rooms are confidential. Share them only with people the Owner wants to admit. Anyone with a valid code may be able to view the room.

7.6 Disputes between collaborators. Disagreements between collaborators about authorship, credit or use of a Research are for the collaborators to resolve. We may act on legitimate legal complaints, but we are not required to decide disputes between users.

8. Orbit AI

8.1 What Orbit AI is. Orbit AI uses large language models provided by third-party AI service providers, as described in our Privacy Policy, together with searches of scholarly databases and the web, to help you research and write.

8.2 Outputs can be wrong. Artificial intelligence is probabilistic. Outputs may be inaccurate, incomplete, outdated, biased or offensive, may misstate or misattribute sources, and may present fabricated information as fact. Outputs are not reviewed by us before you receive them. You must independently verify every Output, including every citation, quotation, figure and claim, before you rely on it, publish it or submit it anywhere.

8.3 Not professional advice. Outputs, and all Content on the Service, are for general information and research assistance only. They are not legal, medical, financial, tax, engineering or other professional advice.

8.4 Your responsibility. You are responsible for how you use Outputs, including whether you publish them and whether they comply with law, with the rights of others and with the rules of any institution, publisher or examination body that applies to you.

8.5 Academic integrity. Many universities, schools, journals and examination bodies restrict or require disclosure of the use of AI tools. You are solely responsible for checking and following the rules that apply to you, including disclosing your use of OrbitSub and Orbit AI where required. Misuse of the Service to commit academic misconduct is a breach of these Terms.

8.6 Rights in Outputs. As between you and us, and to the extent any rights exist in them, you own the Outputs generated for you, and we assign to you any rights we may have in them. Because of how AI works, Orbit AI may generate similar or identical Outputs for other users, and those Outputs are not yours.

8.7 Limits. Orbit AI is subject to usage limits that depend on your plan, and to fair-use limits that protect the Service.

8.8 AI Use Policy. Your use of Orbit AI is also governed by our AI Use Policy.

9. Acceptable Use

9.1 Prohibited content. In accordance with Rule 3(1)(b) of the IT Rules, you must not host, display, upload, modify, publish, transmit, store, update or share any information that:

1. belongs to another person and to which you have no right;
2. is obscene, pornographic, paedophilic, invasive of another's privacy including bodily privacy, insulting or harassing on the basis of gender, racially or ethnically objectionable, relating to or encouraging money laundering or gambling, or promoting enmity between different groups on the grounds of religion or caste with the intent to incite violence;
3. is harmful to children;
4. infringes any patent, trademark, copyright or other proprietary right;
5. deceives or misleads the recipient about the origin of the message, or knowingly and intentionally communicates any misinformation or information that is patently false and untrue or misleading in nature;
6. impersonates another person;
7. threatens the unity, integrity, defence, security or sovereignty of India, friendly relations with foreign States, or public order, or causes incitement to the commission of any cognisable offence, or prevents the investigation of any offence, or is insulting to other nations;
8. contains software viruses or any other computer code, file or program designed to interrupt, destroy or limit the functionality of any computer resource;
9. is in the nature of an online game that is not verified as a permissible online game, or is any advertisement or surrogate advertisement or promotion of an online game or online gaming intermediary that is not permitted;
10. is synthetically generated information that is unlawful, including information that depicts any person or event in a false manner that is likely to deceive, or that constitutes non-consensual intimate imagery or child sexual abuse material;
11. violates any law for the time being in force.

9.2 Prohibited conduct. You must not, and must not help anyone else to:

1. harass, threaten, bully, stalk, dox or intimidate any person;
2. post spam, run bulk or automated posting, or manipulate likes, follows, votes, views or rankings;
3. access or collect data from the Service by automated means, including scraping, crawling or bulk downloading, except through features we provide for that purpose;
4. use the Service or any Content from it to train, fine-tune or evaluate artificial intelligence models without our written permission;
5. probe, scan or test the vulnerability of the Service, except as permitted by our Responsible Disclosure Policy, or breach or circumvent any security, authentication or rate-limiting measure;
6. interfere with, overload or disrupt the Service or the networks connected to it;
7. copy, modify, reverse engineer, decompile or create derivative works of the Service's software, except to the extent the law expressly permits;
8. create Accounts by automated means, create multiple Accounts to evade limits or enforcement, or buy, sell or transfer Accounts, usernames or founding numbers;
9. circumvent plan limits or payment obligations;
10. use the Service to commit or facilitate fraud, academic misconduct, plagiarism, or the sale of academic work that others submit as their own;
11. misrepresent your identity, affiliation or credentials, or present Outputs or other people's work as your own original research where that would mislead;
12. use the Service in breach of export control or sanctions laws that apply to you.

9.3 Community Guidelines. Our Community Guidelines set out further rules for behaviour on the Service, and form part of these Terms.

10. Enforcement and Consequences

10.1 Our rights. We may, at our discretion and without prior notice where the law permits, investigate any suspected breach, and remove or disable access to Content, restrict features, suspend or terminate Accounts, and report conduct to the relevant authorities, as described in our Content Moderation Policy.

10.2 Consequences of non-compliance. If you do not comply with these Terms, our Privacy Policy or any of our Policies, we may immediately remove or disable access to the non-compliant Content, suspend or terminate your access to the Service, or both. Non-compliance may also result in liability and penalties under the Information Technology Act, 2000, the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 and other applicable laws, and where the law requires, we will report the conduct to the appropriate authorities and disclose information to them. We will remind all users of these consequences at least once every three months, as required by the IT Rules.

10.3 Preservation. Where we remove Content or disable access to it, or where a user's registration is cancelled, we may preserve the relevant information and associated records for at least 180 days, or longer where required by a court, a government agency or law, for investigation purposes, as required by the IT Rules.

10.4 Appeals. If you believe we acted on your Content or Account in error, you may appeal as described in our Content Moderation Policy and Grievance Redressal Policy.

11. Intermediary Status

11.1 Safe harbour. For Content posted by users, OrbitSub acts as an intermediary within the meaning of the Information Technology Act, 2000. We do not initiate the transmission of user Content, select its receivers, or select or modify the information it contains, except as needed to provide the Service (for example, formatting), to comply with law or to enforce these Terms. We observe the due diligence required of intermediaries under the IT Rules.

11.2 No duty to monitor. We do not pre-screen user Content and are not obliged to monitor it, although we may use automated tools and human review to detect Content that breaches these Terms or the law.

11.3 Orders and complaints. We act on lawful orders of courts and authorised government agencies, and on complaints received under our Grievance Redressal Policy, within the time limits set by law.

12. Paid Plans and Payments

12.1 Plans. Some features and higher limits are available only on Paid Plans. The features, limits and prices of each plan are shown on our pricing page at the time you subscribe.

12.2 Billing. Paid Plans are billed in advance, monthly or yearly, through PayPal, and renew automatically at the end of each billing period until you cancel. By subscribing, you authorise us and PayPal to charge the applicable fee, and any applicable taxes, at the start of each billing period.

12.3 Currency and taxes. Plans are priced and charged in the currency shown on our pricing page and at checkout. Prices may be subject to applicable taxes, which will be shown at checkout where they apply.

12.4 Cancellation. You can cancel a Paid Plan at any time from your account settings. Cancellation stops future renewals. You keep access to the Paid Plan until the end of the billing period you have paid for.

12.5 Refunds. Refunds are governed by our Refund and Cancellation Policy. Nothing in these Terms limits any refund to which you are entitled by law.

12.6 Price changes. We may change the price of a Paid Plan. We will give you at least 30 days' notice before a price increase takes effect for your subscription, and the new price will apply from your next renewal after that notice. If you do not agree, you can cancel before the renewal.

12.7 Material reductions. If we permanently remove a core feature of a Paid Plan during a billing period you have paid for, you may cancel and request a pro-rated refund for the unused part of that period.

12.8 Failed payments. If a payment fails, we may retry it, and we may move your Account to the Free plan until payment succeeds. Your Content is not deleted because a payment failed.

12.9 Payment Terms. Further details are in our Payment Terms.

13. The Founding 500

13.1 What it is. The Founding 500 is a recognition programme for the first 500 people to claim a founding number through the Service.

13.2 Terms. Founding membership is limited to 500 people, ever. Founding numbers are assigned in the order in which they are claimed, and claiming one requires a verified email address. A founding number and badge are permanent and stay on your profile unless your Account is suspended, terminated or deleted. The badge is recognition and is not a paid plan: it does not include any subscription or feature entitlement unless we expressly say so. Perks beyond the badge may change over time. Founding membership grants no equity, ownership, revenue share, securities or any other financial interest in OrbitSub, and it cannot be sold or transferred.

14. Our Intellectual Property

14.1 Ownership. The Service, including its software, design, text, graphics, and the names OrbitSub and Orbit AI and their logos, is owned by OrbitSub or its licensors and is protected by intellectual property laws. These Terms do not grant you any right in them except the limited licence in clause 14.2.

14.2 Licence to use the Service. Subject to these Terms, we grant you a personal, limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable licence to access and use the Service for its intended purpose.

14.3 Brand use. You may not use our names, logos or trademarks without our prior written permission, except to refer to the Service accurately.

15. Third-Party Services

The Service integrates with and links to services provided by others, including PayPal for payments, Google for sign-in, Zotero and Mendeley for importing references, and video platforms whose content can be embedded in Research. Your use of those services is governed by their own terms and privacy policies. We are not responsible for third-party services, and their inclusion does not mean we endorse them.

16. Privacy

Our Privacy Policy explains what personal data we collect, why, how we use and protect it, and your rights. By using the Service, you acknowledge that we process your personal data as described there.

17. Disclaimers

17.1 As is. To the fullest extent permitted by law, the Service, Orbit AI, Outputs and all Content are provided on an "as is" and "as available" basis, without warranties of any kind, whether express, implied or statutory, including warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, accuracy, quiet enjoyment and non-infringement.

17.2 User Content. Content is the responsibility of the person who created it. We do not endorse any user Content, and we are not responsible for its accuracy, legality or quality.

17.3 Further detail. Our Disclaimer sets out these limitations in more detail.

18. Limitation of Liability

18.1 Exclusion of indirect loss. To the fullest extent permitted by law, OrbitSub will not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, exemplary or punitive damages, or for any loss of profits, revenue, business, goodwill, data, academic standing or opportunity, arising out of or in connection with the Service, these Terms, any Content or any Output, however caused and even if we were advised of the possibility.

18.2 Cap. To the fullest extent permitted by law, our total aggregate liability arising out of or in connection with the Service or these Terms is limited to the greater of (a) the total amount you paid to us for the Service in the twelve months before the event giving rise to the liability, and (b) one thousand Indian rupees (INR 1,000).

18.3 What we do not limit. Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits liability for fraud, for death or personal injury caused by negligence, for wilful misconduct, or for any liability that cannot be excluded or limited under applicable law. Nothing in these Terms affects your statutory rights as a consumer, including under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.

19. Indemnity

To the fullest extent permitted by law, you agree to indemnify and hold harmless OrbitSub and its proprietor from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, losses and expenses, including reasonable legal fees, arising out of or in connection with (a) your Content, (b) your use of Outputs, (c) your breach of these Terms or any Policy, or (d) your violation of any law or the rights of any third party.

20. Suspension and Termination

20.1 By you. You may stop using the Service at any time, and you may delete your Account from your settings. Deletion is described in our Data Deletion Policy.

20.2 By us. We may suspend or terminate your Account, or your access to all or part of the Service, if you breach these Terms or any Policy, if we are required to do so by law or by an order, if your use creates risk or possible legal exposure for us or other users, or if we discontinue the Service. Where reasonably possible and lawful, we will tell you why.

20.3 Effect. On termination, your right to use the Service ends. Clauses 6.5, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4, 8.4 to 8.6, 10, 14, 17, 18, 19, 21, 22 and 24, and any other clause that by its nature should survive, survive termination.

20.4 Paid Plans on termination. If we terminate your Account for your breach, you are not entitled to a refund of any fees paid, except where the law requires one. If we terminate your Account without cause, or discontinue the Service, we will refund the unused part of any prepaid fees on a pro-rated basis.

21. Changes to these Terms

21.1 Updates. We may update these Terms from time to time. We will post the updated Terms on this page and change the date at the top.

21.2 Notice. If a change is material, we will give you at least 30 days' notice by email or through the Service before it takes effect, unless the change is required sooner by law or addresses a security risk.

21.3 Acceptance. If you continue to use the Service after an update takes effect, you accept the updated Terms. If you do not agree, you must stop using the Service and may delete your Account.

21.4 Periodic reminders. In addition, we will inform you of our rules, Privacy Policy and these Terms, and any changes to them, at least once a year, as required by the IT Rules.

22. Governing Law and Disputes

22.1 Governing law. These Terms, and any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with them or the Service, are governed by the laws of India.

22.2 Talk to us first. Before starting any formal proceedings, please contact us at team@orbitsub.com so that we can try to resolve the matter. Most concerns can be resolved quickly this way.

22.3 Courts. Subject to clause 22.4, the competent courts at New Delhi, India have exclusive jurisdiction over any dispute arising out of or in connection with these Terms or the Service.

22.4 Consumer rights. Nothing in this clause prevents a consumer from approaching a consumer disputes redressal commission under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019. If you are a consumer resident in another country, you also benefit from any mandatory protections of the law of your country of residence that cannot be excluded by agreement.

23. Grievance Officer

In accordance with the Information Technology Act, 2000 and the IT Rules, our Grievance Officer is:

Karan, Grievance Officer, OrbitSub New Delhi, India Email: team@orbitsub.com

Complaints are acknowledged and resolved within the time limits set out in our Grievance Redressal Policy, which also explains how to appeal to the Grievance Appellate Committee.

24. General

24.1 Entire agreement. These Terms and the Policies are the entire agreement between you and us about the Service and supersede any prior agreements on that subject.

24.2 Severability. If any provision of these Terms is held invalid or unenforceable, it will be enforced to the maximum extent permissible, and the remaining provisions will continue in full force.

24.3 No waiver. If we do not enforce a provision, that does not waive our right to enforce it later.

24.4 Assignment. You may not assign or transfer your rights or obligations under these Terms. We may assign or transfer ours, including to a company or other entity that carries on the OrbitSub business, provided that your rights under these Terms are not reduced.

24.5 Force majeure. We are not liable for any delay or failure to perform caused by events beyond our reasonable control, including natural disasters, epidemics, war, terrorism, civil unrest, labour disputes, failures of power, networks or third-party services, and acts of government.

24.6 Notices. We may give you notices by email to the address on your Account or through the Service. You may give us notices by email to team@orbitsub.com.

24.7 Relationship. Nothing in these Terms creates a partnership, joint venture, agency or employment relationship between you and us.

24.8 Language. These Terms are written in English. Any translation is provided for convenience, and the English version prevails if there is a conflict.

24.9 Headings. Headings are for convenience only and do not affect interpretation.

25. Contact

If you have any questions about these Terms, write to us at team@orbitsub.com.

These Terms are effective from 1 October 2026.