User Agreement

1Introduction

Welcome to Lynx. Lynx is a professional networking platform built exclusively for the Vanderbilt University community, connecting students, recent graduates, and venture capitalists around startup ideas, early-stage projects, and co-founder recruitment. These terms govern your access to and use of Lynx’s website, mobile experience, and related services (collectively, the “Services”).

By creating an account or using the Services, you agree to be legally bound by this User Agreement (“Agreement”), our Privacy Policy, Professional Community Policy, and all other policies referenced herein or published on the platform. If you do not agree to this Agreement, you may not access or use the Services.

Lynx is operated as an independent platform and is not officially affiliated with, endorsed by, or operated by Vanderbilt University. References to the “Vanderbilt community” describe the population of eligible users, not an institutional partnership. This Agreement applies to all registered users regardless of account type, including students, alumni acting as founders, and venture capital professionals.

We may update this Agreement periodically. When we make material changes, we will notify you via email or an in-app notification at least 14 days before the changes take effect. Your continued use of the Services after the effective date of any update constitutes acceptance of the revised terms. We encourage you to review this Agreement regularly. The most current version will always be posted at lynx.community/legal/user-agreement.

2Obligations

2.1 Eligibility

Lynx is an exclusive community platform. To be eligible to register, you must be: (a) a currently enrolled Vanderbilt University undergraduate or graduate student; (b) a Vanderbilt University alumnus or alumna; or (c) a venture capital professional who has been granted access through Lynx’s verified investor program. Lynx reserves the right to verify eligibility at registration and at any subsequent time. Accounts that cannot be verified as belonging to an eligible user may be suspended or permanently removed.

You must be at least 18 years of age to create an account. By registering, you represent and warrant that you meet all eligibility requirements. If eligibility criteria change during your use of the Services (for example, upon graduation), you remain eligible provided your Vanderbilt community ties continue to exist. Lynx may introduce additional eligibility criteria in the future with reasonable advance notice.

2.2 Account Accuracy

You agree to provide accurate, current, and complete information when creating your account and to maintain the accuracy of that information throughout your use of the Services. This includes, but is not limited to, your name, email address, account type (student or VC), academic major, graduation year, professional bio, and any links to external profiles such as LinkedIn or GitHub. Misrepresenting your identity, academic affiliation, graduation status, or professional background is a material breach of this Agreement.

You may not impersonate any person or entity, create a false identity, or use an account to deceive other members of the community. Profiles representing fictional persons, bots, or automated agents are strictly prohibited. Each person may maintain only one active account. If you believe your account has been compromised or that a duplicate account exists under your identity, you must notify Lynx immediately at legal@lynx.community.

2.3 Password Security

Your account security is your responsibility. You agree to maintain the confidentiality of your login credentials, including passwords and any multi-factor authentication codes. You agree not to share your credentials with any third party or allow any other person to access the Services through your account. Lynx uses Clerk for authentication and does not store raw passwords; however, the security of your associated email account and any linked identity providers is your sole responsibility.

You agree to notify Lynx promptly if you suspect unauthorized access to or use of your account. You are responsible for all activities that occur under your account, whether or not you authorized them, unless Lynx is directly at fault. Lynx will not be liable for any loss or damage arising from your failure to protect your account credentials.

2.4 Acceptable Use of the Platform

You agree to use the Services only for lawful, professional, and community-oriented purposes consistent with the mission of connecting Vanderbilt entrepreneurs. You shall not use the Services for any personal, commercial, or promotional purposes unrelated to startup formation, co-founder recruitment, or professional networking within the Vanderbilt community.

3Rights and Limits

3.1 What You Can Do on Lynx

Subject to this Agreement, Lynx grants you a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable license to access and use the Services for their intended purpose. This includes: creating and managing a personal profile; posting, editing, and deleting startup ideas; creating and managing projects and associated open roles; browsing and expressing interest in ideas and projects posted by other community members; sending and receiving direct messages; and connecting with venture capital professionals who have been admitted to the platform.

The Services are designed to facilitate genuine professional relationships. You are encouraged to be specific, honest, and substantive in your idea descriptions, project stages, and role requirements so that your posts attract compatible co-founders and collaborators. Lynx reserves the right to remove or moderate content that does not conform to the community’s professional standards as described in the Professional Community Policy.

3.2 Daily Reach-Out Limits

To maintain a high-quality experience and prevent spam, Lynx enforces daily reach-out limits (“dailyReachOuts”) on ideas and projects. These limits restrict the number of times per day that other users may initiate contact or express interest in a specific idea or project. Daily reach-out quotas are set by the idea or project owner and may be adjusted at any time within the bounds Lynx permits. Once a daily limit is reached for a given idea or project, further interest expressions or contact attempts will be queued or blocked until the following day.

You agree not to circumvent or attempt to circumvent reach-out limits through technical means, the use of multiple accounts, or any other mechanism. Limits exist for the benefit of the entire community and their violation may result in account suspension. Lynx may modify the parameters governing reach-out limits at its discretion, with notice to affected users where practicable.

3.3 Prohibited Uses

The following uses of the Services are expressly prohibited. Violations may result in immediate account suspension or permanent termination and, where appropriate, referral to law enforcement authorities:

• Harassment and abuse: Sending unsolicited, offensive, threatening, or discriminatory messages to other users; using the platform to stalk, bully, or intimidate any person.
• Spam and commercial solicitation: Using the messaging or idea-posting features to distribute unsolicited commercial advertisements, affiliate links, or promotional content unrelated to startup formation within the Vanderbilt community.
• Intellectual property infringement: Posting content that infringes the copyrights, trademarks, patents, trade secrets, or other intellectual property rights of any third party.
• Deceptive practices: Posting fictitious startup ideas, fabricating traction metrics or team credentials, or otherwise misrepresenting the nature or status of a project to attract co-founders or investor attention.
• Unauthorized data collection:Scraping, crawling, or otherwise extracting user data from the platform through automated means without Lynx’s express written consent.
• Security violations:Attempting to probe, scan, or test the vulnerability of the Services; introducing malware, viruses, or other harmful code; attempting to gain unauthorized access to any part of the Services or to other users’ accounts.
• Circumvention: Attempting to bypass any technical measure Lynx uses to enforce community standards, including but not limited to daily reach-out limits, content moderation filters, or eligibility verification.

Lynx may update this list of prohibited uses from time to time. Conduct not explicitly listed but inconsistent with the spirit of a professional, community-oriented platform remains subject to moderation at Lynx’s discretion.

4Intellectual Property

4.1 Your Ownership of Content

You retain full ownership of all content you post, upload, or otherwise submit to the Services (“User Content”). User Content includes, without limitation, your profile information, startup idea titles and descriptions, project descriptions, open role listings, messages, skills lists, and any media files you upload such as profile photographs or banner images. Lynx makes no claim of ownership over your User Content and this Agreement does not transfer any intellectual property rights in your User Content to Lynx.

You are solely responsible for ensuring that you have all necessary rights to post your User Content, and that doing so does not infringe upon the intellectual property rights of any third party. If you post startup ideas that incorporate third-party technology, open-source code, or licensed materials, you represent that your use is authorized and does not violate any applicable license terms.

4.2 License to Lynx

By posting User Content to the Services, you grant Lynx a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, sublicensable, and transferable license to use, store, display, reproduce, modify (for formatting purposes only), distribute, and transmit your User Content solely for the purpose of operating, developing, providing, and improving the Services. This license is limited in scope: Lynx will not sell your User Content to third parties, use it for advertising outside the platform without your consent, or repurpose it in ways unrelated to delivering the Services to you and other community members.

The license you grant Lynx survives the deletion of individual pieces of User Content only to the extent necessary to comply with legal obligations (for example, backup retention schedules) or to allow Lynx to fulfill actions you initiated before deletion. Upon account termination, this license terminates except as described in Section 6 (Termination) and except for aggregate, de-identified data that does not identify you personally.

4.3 License to Other Users

By making your User Content visible to other users on the platform (for example, by publishing a startup idea or opening your profile to the community), you grant other registered Lynx users a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable license to view that content solely within the Lynx platform and solely for personal, non-commercial purposes related to evaluating co-founder fit, assessing investment opportunities, or otherwise participating in the Lynx community. This license does not authorize other users to copy, reproduce, distribute, or publicly display your User Content outside the platform without your separate written consent.

You acknowledge and agree that ideas shared on Lynx are visible to other community members who may independently be working on similar concepts. Lynx strongly encourages users who are concerned about the confidentiality of their startup concepts to exercise judgment about the level of detail they share publicly and to use direct messaging to vet potential collaborators before disclosing sensitive information.

4.4 Lynx’s Intellectual Property

Lynx and its licensors retain all rights, title, and interest in and to the Services, including all underlying software, design, trademarks, trade dress, and other intellectual property that is not User Content. Nothing in this Agreement grants you any right to use Lynx’s trademarks, logos, or brand assets without prior written permission.

5Disclaimer and Limit of Liability

5.1 Disclaimer of Warranties

THE SERVICES ARE PROVIDED ON AN “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, LYNX DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, WHETHER EXPRESS, IMPLIED, STATUTORY, OR OTHERWISE, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT.

Lynx does not warrant that the Services will be uninterrupted, error-free, secure, or free of viruses or other harmful components. Lynx does not warrant or make any representations regarding the accuracy, reliability, completeness, or timeliness of any User Content posted by third parties. You acknowledge that your use of the Services and your reliance on any User Content is at your own risk.

Lynx does not verify the qualifications, credentials, background, or intentions of any user. Lynx makes no representation that any startup idea posted on the platform is novel, feasible, legally compliant, or commercially viable, nor that any VC professional using the platform is authorized to make investment commitments on behalf of any fund or firm. You are solely responsible for conducting your own due diligence before entering into any professional relationship, co-founder agreement, or investment discussion initiated through the Services.

5.2 Limit of Liability

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, LYNX AND ITS OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS, SUCCESSORS, AND ASSIGNS SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO YOUR USE OF OR INABILITY TO USE THE SERVICES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO LOST PROFITS, LOSS OF DATA, LOSS OF GOODWILL, BUSINESS INTERRUPTION, OR THE COST OF SUBSTITUTE SERVICES, EVEN IF LYNX HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

IN NO EVENT SHALL LYNX’S TOTAL CUMULATIVE LIABILITY TO YOU FOR ALL CLAIMS ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO THIS AGREEMENT OR THE SERVICES EXCEED THE GREATER OF (A) THE TOTAL FEES PAID BY YOU TO LYNX IN THE TWELVE (12) MONTHS PRECEDING THE CLAIM, OR (B) ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS (USD $100). BECAUSE SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF LIABILITY FOR CONSEQUENTIAL OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES, THE ABOVE LIMITATION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU IN FULL.

The disclaimers and limitations in this section reflect a fair allocation of risk between you and Lynx and are fundamental elements of the basis of the bargain between the parties. Lynx would not be able to provide the Services on an economically reasonable basis without these limitations.

6Termination

6.1 Termination by You

You may terminate your account at any time by navigating to your account settings and selecting the account deletion option, or by contacting Lynx at legal@lynx.community with a written deletion request. Lynx will process deletion requests within 30 days of receipt. Deletion is permanent and cannot be reversed. We strongly recommend that you export any content or information you wish to retain before submitting a deletion request.

Upon deletion of your account, the following data will be permanently removed from the Lynx platform:

• Your profile, including your name, bio, skills, academic information, professional details, linked URLs, and any profile or banner images stored by Lynx.
• Your ideas, including all startup idea titles, descriptions, industry tags, reach-out configurations, and associated metadata.
• Your projects, including project names, descriptions, stage information, and all open role listings associated with those projects.
• Your project memberships, including records of your participation as a member of any project team on the platform.
• Your messages, including all direct messages sent and received through the Lynx messaging system. Note that message deletion may affect message threads visible to other users; Lynx will make reasonable efforts to anonymize rather than expose deleted user identities in shared threads.
• Your interests, including any expressions of interest you recorded in other users’ ideas or projects.

Certain de-identified aggregate data derived from your activity may be retained for statistical and operational purposes and will not be attributable to you. Lynx may also retain records as required by applicable law, including records necessary to resolve open disputes, enforce this Agreement, or comply with legal obligations.

6.2 Termination by Lynx

Lynx reserves the right to suspend or terminate your account, with or without notice, if Lynx reasonably believes that you have violated this Agreement, the Professional Community Policy, or any applicable law. Grounds for suspension or termination include, but are not limited to: providing false eligibility information; engaging in harassment or abuse of other community members; circumventing platform controls; or using the Services for unauthorized commercial purposes.

Where feasible, Lynx will provide notice of the reason for termination and an opportunity to remedy material breaches before taking irreversible action. However, Lynx may take immediate action without prior notice where the violation poses a risk of harm to other users or to the integrity of the platform. Following termination by Lynx for cause, you may not re-register for the Services without Lynx’s express written consent.

6.3 Effect of Termination

Upon termination of this Agreement for any reason, your license to use the Services immediately ceases. The following provisions of this Agreement survive termination: Section 4 (Intellectual Property, to the extent of licenses already granted), Section 5 (Disclaimer and Limit of Liability), Section 6.3 (Effect of Termination), Section 7 (Governing Law), and any other provisions that by their nature should survive.

7Governing Law

This Agreement and any disputes arising out of or related to it or the Services shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Tennessee, without regard to its conflict-of-law principles. You agree that any legal action or proceeding between you and Lynx arising under or relating to this Agreement shall be brought exclusively in the state or federal courts located in Davidson County, Tennessee, and you hereby consent to the personal jurisdiction of those courts.

If you are accessing the Services from outside the United States, you do so on your own initiative and are responsible for compliance with your local laws to the extent those laws are applicable. Lynx makes no representation that the Services are appropriate or available for use in all locations.

You and Lynx agree to resolve any disputes on an individual basis and waive any right to participate in a class action lawsuit or class-wide arbitration against Lynx. This waiver applies regardless of whether the dispute is resolved through litigation or any other dispute-resolution mechanism. To the extent permitted by applicable law, you agree to bring any claim arising from this Agreement within one (1) year after the cause of action accrues; claims not brought within that period are permanently barred.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, Lynx may seek injunctive or other equitable relief in any court of competent jurisdiction to prevent or stop the unauthorized use of the Services or infringement of Lynx’s intellectual property rights. The United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods does not apply to this Agreement.

8Contact Us

If you have questions or concerns about this User Agreement, believe that your rights under this Agreement have been violated, wish to report a potential violation by another user, or would like to submit an account deletion request, please contact us using the information below. We aim to respond to all inquiries within five (5) business days.

This User Agreement was last updated on June 5, 2026. Prior versions of this Agreement are available upon request by contacting legal@lynx.community.