Legal

Terms of Service

Last updated: April 19, 2026

These Terms of Service ("Terms") govern your access to and use of Vael, operated by Foundry26 ("we", "us", "our"). By downloading, installing, or using Vael, you agree to these Terms. If you do not agree, do not use Vael.

1. Acceptance

These Terms form a legally binding contract between you and Foundry26. By using Vael, you confirm you have read and accepted these Terms and our Privacy Policy.

2. Age Requirement

Vael is only for users aged 18 and over. By using Vael, you warrant that you are at least 18 years old. If you misrepresent your age, you are in material breach of these Terms and your account will be immediately terminated. Foundry26 cannot independently verify user age and relies on user self-declaration.

3. Anonymous Identity

Vael is an anonymous platform. You are identified only by a system-assigned anonymous ID and a user-chosen pseudonym. You may not attempt to de-anonymise other users, identify other users' real-world identities, or share information about other users that could identify them (doxxing).

4. Acceptable Use

You agree not to use Vael to:

  • Post content that is unlawful, harmful, threatening, abusive, harassing, defamatory, obscene, or hateful
  • Harass, bully, intimidate, or harm any person
  • Share or solicit explicit sexual content (NSFW/explicit material)
  • Post content that promotes or glorifies self-harm, suicide, eating disorders, or substance abuse
  • Dox other users — share private information about others without consent
  • Promote terrorism, extremism, or illegal acts
  • Spam, flood, or artificially inflate reaction counts
  • Manipulate, brigade, or coordinate poll votes or mosaic reactions, including through multiple accounts or automated tooling
  • Submit reports in bad faith, mass-report users, or otherwise abuse the in-app report or block features
  • Attempt to circumvent moderation, bans, or security measures
  • Use Vael for political discussion, political campaigning, or political persuasion
  • Use Vael for commercial advertising without Foundry26's written consent
  • Scrape, crawl, or harvest data from Vael by automated means

5. Content Ownership & Licence

You retain ownership of the thoughts and content you post. By posting, you grant Foundry26 a non-exclusive, royalty-free, worldwide licence to display, distribute, and moderate your content solely for the purpose of operating Vael. This licence ends when you delete your content or account, subject to moderation retention obligations.

5A. Saved Content (“Echoed”)

Vael allows you to privately save other users’ thoughts to your personal “Echoed” list. Saving:

  • does not grant you any ownership of, or licence to, another user’s content beyond viewing it inside Vael;
  • does not entitle you to copy, redistribute, or republish another user’s content outside Vael;
  • is private — the original author is not notified and cannot see who saved their post;
  • is automatically removed if the original author deletes the thought, or if your account is deleted.

You may unsave a thought at any time from the “Echoed” tab in your profile.

5B. Your Safety Controls

In addition to Foundry26’s moderation, you have personal controls available in-app:

  • Report any thought from its detail screen to flag it for moderator review.
  • Block another user to remove their thoughts from your feed and prevent further interactions. Blocking is private — the blocked user is not notified. You may unblock at any time from your privacy settings.
  • Delete any thought you have posted, or your entire account, at any time via the in-app vault and settings.

Misuse of the report or block features (including mass-blocking, retaliation, or coordinated false reports) is a violation of §4 (Acceptable Use).

6. Content Moderation & Enforcement

Foundry26 operates a moderation system. Content violating these Terms may be removed without notice. Depending on severity:

  • A warning may be issued (requires in-app acknowledgement before continuing)
  • The account may be suspended or permanently banned
  • The device may be blacklisted, preventing re-registration from the same device

Moderation decisions may be appealed. See our Appeals Policy for the full process. We aim to action reports within 24 hours but do not guarantee review timelines. For our full community guidelines and safety resources, see the Safety Center.

7. Account Termination

Foundry26 may terminate or suspend your access at any time, with or without notice, for violation of these Terms or at our sole discretion. You may terminate your account at any time via the in-app "Delete Account" function.

8. Intellectual Property

The Vael name, logo, design, and all software are the exclusive intellectual property of Foundry26. Nothing in these Terms grants you a right to use Foundry26's intellectual property.

9. Disclaimer of Warranties

Vael is provided "as is" without warranties of any kind, express or implied. Foundry26 does not warrant that the service will be uninterrupted, error-free, or free from harmful components.

10. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, Foundry26 shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages arising from your use of Vael. Our total liability to you for any claim shall not exceed £100 GBP. Nothing in this clause limits liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, or for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation.

11. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless Foundry26, its officers, directors, employees, and agents from any claims, damages, liabilities, costs, or expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising from your use of Vael or your violation of these Terms.

12. Dispute Resolution

We encourage you to contact us at [email protected] first. Unresolved disputes shall be submitted to binding arbitration under the LCIA rules. You waive any right to bring claims as a class action or class arbitration.

Consumer note: EU and UK consumers retain all rights under mandatory consumer protection laws of their country of residence, which these Terms cannot override.

13. Governing Law & Jurisdiction

These Terms are governed by the laws of England and Wales. Non-arbitration disputes are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales. EU consumers may also bring proceedings in their country of residence.

14. Changes to These Terms and All Policies

Foundry26 reserves the right to modify these Terms of Service and any ancillary policy — including but not limited to the Privacy Policy, Cookie Policy, EULA, Permissions, Safety Center, and Data Deletion Policy — at any time, at our sole discretion.

All changes — whether to these Terms or any ancillary policy — take effect on the "Last Updated" date shown at the top of the respective page, without prior notice unless otherwise required by applicable law. It is your responsibility to review these policies periodically. Continued use of Vael after any change takes effect constitutes your acceptance of the revised terms.

15. Entire Agreement

These Terms, together with the Privacy Policy, EULA, and all other policies referenced herein (collectively, the "Vael Policies"), constitute the entire agreement between you and Foundry26 regarding your use of Vael, and supersede all prior agreements, representations, and understandings. In the event of a conflict between these Terms and any ancillary policy, these Terms shall prevail unless the ancillary policy explicitly states otherwise.

Foundry26 · [email protected] · Governing law: England & Wales · Effective: April 19, 2026