Legal

Terms of Service

Last updated: September 21, 2026. See also our Privacy Policy and Content Guidelines.

1. Acceptance of these Terms

Instrumental-Convergence ("the Site," "we," "us") is an independent, community-sourced archive documenting reports, research, and evidence relating to instrumental convergence and goal-directed behaviors in AI systems. By accessing the Site, and especially by creating an account, submitting a report, comment, or source, you agree to these Terms of Service. If you do not agree, do not use the Site.

2. Eligibility

You must be at least 18 years old, and capable of forming a binding contract under the laws of your jurisdiction, to create an account or submit content. We do not knowingly collect information from, or direct this Site at, anyone under 18.

3. What you're responsible for when you post

By submitting a report, comment, source, or other content ("User Content"), you represent and warrant that:

• It is accurate to the best of your knowledge, and you have a good-faith basis for any factual claim you make, especially one naming a specific company, product, or person.
• You are not knowingly submitting a false, misleading, or fabricated claim.
• You have the right to submit it: it is your own account of events, your own writing, or you otherwise have the right to share it (see our copyright policy in Section 7).
• It does not violate the Content Guidelines' prohibited-content rules (harassment, doxxing, illegal content, and the like; see Content Guidelines).

You, not the Site, are legally responsible for what you post. Submitting a report you know to be false, or that you make with reckless disregard for its truth, especially about an identifiable person or organization, can expose you, personally, to defamation or other liability under the law of your jurisdiction, independent of anything the Site does.

4. License you grant us

You retain ownership of your User Content. By submitting it, you grant the Site a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free, sublicensable license to host, store, reproduce, display, and distribute it as part of operating and promoting the Site (for example, showing it on report pages, including it in the sitemap, or featuring it in the timeline). This license ends for content that is deleted, except to the extent copies reasonably persist in backups or in content others have already corroborated, cited, or discussed.

5. Moderation and editorial discretion

We review submitted reports before they appear publicly (see Content Guidelines for how). We have no obligation to publish any submission, and we may remove, label, restrict, or decline to publish content at our sole discretion (including content that is already public) for any reason, including a good-faith belief that it is false, defamatory, infringing, or otherwise violates these Terms.

Exercising this editorial discretion does not make the Site the author of, or responsible for, what a user submits. Consistent with 47 U.S.C. § 230 (Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act), we do not treat ourselves, and ask that others not treat us, as the "publisher or speaker" of information provided by another content provider merely because we hosted, moderated, or labeled it. Moderating in good faith to remove content we consider objectionable does not forfeit that protection.

Every report also carries an evidence-type label (firsthand report, documented research, corroborated incident, disputed interpretation, or speculation) reflecting how strong its basis is. A published report, and the evidence-type label on it, is not a verification by the Site that the underlying claim is true: it is a claim made by its submitter, labeled by our editorial process according to its apparent basis.

6. Prohibited conduct

In addition to the content rules in our Content Guidelines, you agree not to:

• Submit content you know to be false or that recklessly disregards the truth.
• Harass, threaten, or dox any person, including someone named in a report.
• Impersonate any person or entity, or misrepresent your affiliation with one.
• Upload malware, attempt to breach the Site's security, or interfere with its normal operation.
• Use the Site to violate any applicable law.

7. Copyright policy (DMCA)

We respect intellectual property rights and expect users to do the same. If you believe content on the Site infringes your copyright, send a notice to dmca@instrumental-convergence.com including: (a) identification of the copyrighted work; (b) identification of the material you claim is infringing and its location on the Site; (c) your contact information; (d) a statement that you have a good-faith belief the use is not authorized; (e) a statement, under penalty of perjury, that the notice is accurate and that you are authorized to act on the copyright owner's behalf; and (f) your physical or electronic signature. We will remove or disable access to material in response to a valid notice and may terminate the accounts of repeat infringers.

Note on formal designation: a formal DMCA safe-harbor designation with the U.S. Copyright Office's online Designated Agent Directory is a separate step from publishing this policy, and is in progress. Until it is complete, the contact above is the fastest way to reach us about a copyright concern.

8. Disputing a report about you

If a report or comment names you or your organization and you believe it is false, misleading, or should be corrected, see Dispute a report for how to reach us. We review every dispute; depending on what you provide, our response may include adding context, re-labeling the evidence type, or removing the content.

9. Disclaimer of warranties

THE SITE AND ALL USER CONTENT ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE," WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, NON-INFRINGEMENT, OR ACCURACY. WE DO NOT VERIFY, ENDORSE, OR GUARANTEE THE TRUTH OF ANY USER-SUBMITTED REPORT, REGARDLESS OF ITS EVIDENCE-TYPE LABEL OR MODERATION STATUS.

10. Limitation of liability

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, THE SITE, ITS OPERATOR, AND THEIR AFFILIATES WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, OR ANY LOSS OF PROFITS OR REVENUE, ARISING FROM YOUR USE OF THE SITE OR ANY USER CONTENT, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. OUR TOTAL LIABILITY FOR ANY CLAIM ARISING FROM THESE TERMS OR THE SITE WILL NOT EXCEED ONE HUNDRED U.S. DOLLARS ($100).

11. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless the Site and its operator from any claim, liability, damage, loss, or expense (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising from: your User Content; your violation of these Terms; or your violation of any right of a third party, including a claim that your report is defamatory.

12. Termination

We may suspend or terminate your access to the Site at any time, with or without cause. You may stop using the Site at any time. Sections 3, 4, 6–11, and 13–15 survive termination.

13. Governing law and venue

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Oklahoma, without regard to its conflict-of-laws principles. Any dispute arising from these Terms or the Site will be brought exclusively in the state or federal courts located in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, and you consent to personal jurisdiction there.

14. Changes to these Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. We'll update the "Last updated" date above when we do; continued use of the Site after a change constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms.

15. Miscellaneous

If any provision of these Terms is found unenforceable, the remaining provisions stay in full effect. These Terms, together with the Privacy Policy and Content Guidelines, are the entire agreement between you and the Site regarding its use.

Contact

Questions about these Terms: legal@instrumental-convergence.com