Terms of Use

These Terms of Use govern your access to and use of the Espen platform, website, and mobile applications operated by Career Buddy Trust trading as Espen AI. By using our services you agree to be bound by these terms.

1. Our Services

Career Buddy Trust operates Espen, an AI educational platform available at https://www.espen.ai and via our mobile applications. We are registered in South Africa at Watershed, 17 Dock Road, Victoria & Alfred Waterfront, Cape Town, 8002.

Espen specialises in curriculum support, primarily for South African CAPS-aligned National Senior Certificate (NSC) education, with expansion plans for additional curricula and jurisdictions. Information provided through the services is not intended for distribution in any jurisdiction where doing so violates local law or requires registration we do not hold.

2. Intellectual Property Rights

We own all content, source code, designs, trademarks, and marks associated with the services, except where licensed from third parties. Subject to your compliance with these terms, we grant you a non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable licence to access and use the services for personal, non-commercial use only.

3. User Representations

By using the services, you represent and warrant that:

• you are at least 13 years old, and if under 18 you have parental or guardian consent to use the services;
• all registration information you provide is accurate and current and will be kept up to date;
• you have the legal capacity and authority to agree to these terms; and
• you will comply with all applicable laws and regulations in your use of the services.

4. User Registration

You may be required to register an account to access certain features. You agree to keep your password confidential and are responsible for all activity that occurs under your account. Notify us immediately at hello@espen.ai if you become aware of any unauthorised use of your account.

5. Purchases and Payment

Where the services are offered for purchase, we accept Visa and Mastercard. All charges are in US dollars unless otherwise stated. We reserve the right to refuse any order and to correct pricing errors at any time before a transaction is finalised.

6. Subscriptions

Subscription plans auto-renew at the end of each term unless cancelled. You may cancel any active subscription at any time by contacting hello@espen.ai. We will provide notice of any subscription price change in accordance with applicable law.

7. Prohibited Activities

You agree not to, without limitation:

• scrape, harvest, or otherwise extract data from the services without our written permission;
• engage in unauthorised framing or linking to the services;
• circumvent, disable, or otherwise interfere with any security feature;
• use the services for any commercial purpose not expressly endorsed by us;
• harass, abuse, or harm another person, or threaten any of the foregoing;
• use the services in a manner inconsistent with any applicable law or regulation;
• upload or transmit viruses, malware, or other harmful code;
• impersonate any person or misrepresent your affiliation with any person or entity;
• reverse engineer, decompile, or disassemble any portion of the services;
• use any automated system, including bots or scrapers, to access the services without our prior written consent.

8. User-Generated Contributions

The services may invite you to submit content. Any contributions you post become our property and you grant us an unrestricted, unlimited, irrevocable, perpetual, non-exclusive, transferable, royalty-free, fully paid, worldwide right and licence to use, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, and distribute your contributions, in whole or in part, in any form and for any purpose, including commercial purposes.

You represent and warrant that your contributions are original to you, do not violate any third-party rights, and comply with all applicable laws.

9. Mobile Application Licence

Where we make a mobile application available, we grant you a revocable, non-exclusive, non-transferable, limited right to install and use the application on devices you own or control. You may not decompile, reverse engineer, disassemble, modify, or use the application for any revenue-generating purpose without our written consent.

10. Third-Party Websites and Content

The services may contain links to third-party websites and content that are not owned or controlled by us. We make no warranties and accept no responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, legality, or availability of any third-party site or content.

11. Services Management

We reserve the right to monitor the services for violations of these terms; to take appropriate legal action against anyone who violates applicable law or these terms; to remove or disable any content; and otherwise to manage the services in a manner designed to protect our rights and property and to facilitate the proper functioning of the services.

12. Privacy Policy

We care about data privacy and security. Please review our Privacy Policy. By using the services you agree to be bound by our Privacy Policy, which is incorporated into these Terms of Use. The services are hosted in Ireland. By accessing the services, you consent to have your data transferred to and processed in Ireland.

13. Copyright Infringement

We respect the intellectual property rights of others. If you believe any material on the services infringes a copyright you own, please contact us at hello@espen.ai with sufficient detail to identify the work and the allegedly infringing material.

14. Term and Termination

These Terms of Use remain in full force and effect while you use the services. We reserve the right, in our sole discretion and without notice or liability, to deny access to and use of the services to any person for any reason, including breach of any representation, warranty, or covenant in these terms. Users whose accounts are terminated may not create replacement accounts.

15. Modifications and Interruptions

We reserve the right to change, modify, or remove the contents of the services at any time without notice. We will not be liable to you or any third party for any modification, price change, suspension, or discontinuance of the services.

16. Governing Law

These Terms of Use and your use of the services are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the Republic of South Africa.

17. Dispute Resolution

The parties shall attempt to resolve any dispute through informal negotiation in good faith for a period of at least 30 days. Failing such resolution, the dispute shall be finally resolved by arbitration seated in Cape Town, South Africa, conducted under the International Commercial Arbitration Court Rules. Class actions and representative claims are not permitted.

18. Corrections

We reserve the right to correct any errors, inaccuracies, or omissions and to change or update information at any time without prior notice.

19. Disclaimer

The services are provided on an "as-is" and "as-available" basis. You agree that your use of the services will be at your sole risk. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we disclaim all warranties, express or implied, in connection with the services and your use thereof, including warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement.

20. Limitations of Liability

In no event will we or our directors, employees, or agents be liable to you or any third party for any direct, indirect, consequential, exemplary, incidental, special, or punitive damages arising from your use of the services. Our aggregate liability to you for any claim arising out of or relating to these terms or the services will not exceed the amount paid by you to us in the six months preceding the event giving rise to the claim.

21. Indemnification

You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold us harmless from and against any loss, damage, liability, claim, or demand, including reasonable attorneys' fees, made by any third party due to or arising out of your contributions, use of the services, breach of these terms, or violation of the rights of a third party.

22. User Data

You are solely responsible for the data you transmit through the services. We disclaim all liability for loss or corruption of such data and encourage you to maintain your own backups.

23. Electronic Communications, Transactions, and Signatures

Visiting the services, sending us emails, and completing online forms constitute electronic communications. You consent to receive electronic communications, and you agree that all agreements, notices, disclosures, and other communications we provide electronically satisfy any legal requirement that such communications be in writing.

24. SMS Text Messaging

If you opt in to receive SMS messages from us, you may opt out at any time by replying STOP. Standard message and data rates apply per your carrier.

25. Miscellaneous

These Terms of Use, together with any policies posted by us on the services, constitute the entire agreement between you and us. If any provision is held to be unenforceable, the remaining provisions continue in full force and effect. We may assign our rights and obligations to others at any time.

26. Contact Us

For any questions about these Terms of Use, please contact:

Career Buddy Trust
Watershed, 17 Dock Road
Victoria & Alfred Waterfront
Cape Town, 8002, South Africa
Telephone: +27 78 705 1175
Email: hello@espen.ai