Terms & Conditions

Welcome to Founders Draw. These Terms & Conditions (“Terms”) govern your use of the Founders Draw website and the weekly draw (the “Service”). By joining the waitlist, signing in, adding a startup, or otherwise using the Service, you agree to these Terms. If you don’t agree, please don’t use the Service.

1. What Founders Draw is

Founders Draw runs a recurring draw in which a number of startups are selected from the pool and featured to our founder mailing list. Selection is random and weighted by the number of entries (“tickets”) on your account. Entries are a chance to be featured — not a purchase, investment, or guarantee of any outcome.

The draw is free to enter, and entries are free — and always will be. No purchase is ever necessary, and no payment can be made to enter, earn entries, or improve your chances. Entries are earned through participation only. Separately, we sell clearly-labelled sponsored placements in the newsletter (see section 6) — these are paid advertising and have no effect on the free draw.

2. Eligibility & your account

• You must be at least 18 years old and able to enter a binding agreement.
• You agree to provide accurate information and to keep your account secure. Sign-in codes are personal to you.
• One account per founder. You’re responsible for activity that happens under your account.

3. Your startup & content

You may add one or more startups and choose one as your active entry. You keep ownership of your content, and you grant Founders Draw a non-exclusive licence to display your startup’s name, link, and pitch in connection with the draw (for example, in emails to our list). You confirm you have the right to share what you submit and that it is accurate and not misleading.

4. Acceptable use & our right to exclude

Founders Draw is a community built on goodwill. We reserve the right, at our sole discretion and without notice or compensation, to remove, disqualify, or exclude any startup, submission, entry, or account from any draw or from the Service — and to withhold or reverse entries — if we reasonably believe it is or involves:

• anything unethical, deceptive, fraudulent, or harmful to people, animals, or the public;
• illegal activity, or the promotion or facilitation of it;
• adult, sexual, or otherwise NSFW content or services;
• hateful, discriminatory, harassing, threatening, or violent content;
• weapons, illicit drugs, gambling, or other high-risk or restricted categories;
• spam, malware, phishing, or attempts to compromise security or privacy;
• infringement of intellectual property or other rights;
• misrepresentation of what the startup actually does; or
• anything otherwise inconsistent with the spirit of the community or these Terms.

We may make these decisions for any project we deem ineligible, and our decisions on eligibility and selection are final.

5. Entries, referrals & the draw

• Entries are free, and always will be. They are earned only — through joining, referrals, sharing, and engagement — and cannot be bought. No membership, fee, or payment grants extra entries or better odds.
• Entries have no cash value, are non-transferable, and may be adjusted, expire, or change as the program evolves.
• Referral entries are credited when a founder genuinely joins through your link. We may withhold or reverse entries obtained through self-referral, fake accounts, bots, or other gaming.
• Draws are probabilistic. More entries improve your odds but never guarantee selection.
• We may change, pause, reschedule, or cancel any draw, and may modify how entries are earned or counted, at any time.

6. Sponsored placements

Separately from the free draw, we may sell sponsored placements — paid slots that feature a startup in the newsletter. Sponsored placements are advertising: they are bought directly, are clearly labelled as sponsored, and are kept visually distinct from startups selected by the draw. Purchasing a sponsored placement gives you that placement only — it does not grant entries, improve your draw odds, or otherwise affect the free draw in any way. To enquire about sponsorship, email [email protected].

7. Suspension & termination

We may suspend or terminate your access, remove content, or void entries if you violate these Terms or misuse the Service. You may stop using the Service at any time and request deletion of your account.

8. Disclaimers

The Service is provided “as is” and “as available,” without warranties of any kind. We don’t guarantee that you’ll be featured, that being featured will produce any particular result, or that the Service will be uninterrupted or error-free.

9. Limitation of liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law, Founders Draw and its operators will not be liable for any indirect, incidental, or consequential damages, or for lost profits or opportunities, arising from your use of the Service.

10. Changes to these Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. If we make material changes, we’ll update the date above and, where appropriate, notify you. Continued use of the Service means you accept the updated Terms.

11. Contact

Questions about these Terms? Email [email protected].