Legal

Terms of Service

The rules for using Tethered Trust, written to be read. The short version: Tethered Trust helps you check compatibility, but it can be wrong, so confirm with the manufacturer before you buy or install anything.

Last updated October 5, 2026 · Operated by Chimes In LLC, a Florida limited liability company

1. Agreement

These Terms of Service ("Terms") are an agreement between you and Chimes In LLC ("Chimes In LLC", "we", "us"), the operator of Tethered Trust, including the website at tetheredtrust.com, the Tethered Trust API, the Tethered Trust MCP server and related services (together, the "Service"). By using the Service, you agree to these Terms, our Privacy Policy and, if you use the API or MCP server, our API & Agent Terms. If you don't agree, don't use the Service.

If you use the Service on behalf of a company or other organization, you agree to these Terms for it and confirm you're authorized to do so. "You" then includes that organization.

2. The service

Tethered Trust answers questions about whether products, parts, accessories and appliances work together or fit a space. Answers come from a compatibility graph of product specifications, fixed rules (for example memory generation, M.2 length and interface, USB-C wattage and installation clearances), the information you provide, outcomes reported by other users, and, for products we don't yet know, specifications read by an artificial-intelligence model. Each answer includes a verdict, a confidence score, the checks performed, caveats and, where available, sources.

Tethered Trust does not sell products, is not a retailer, and is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by any manufacturer or brand named on the Service unless we say so explicitly.

3. Compatibility answers are information, not a guarantee

Please read this section carefully. Tethered Trust can be wrong. Manufacturers change parts, revisions and specifications; product listings can be inaccurate; model numbers can be ambiguous; information you or an AI agent provide can be incomplete; and specifications read by AI or marked "unverified" have not been checked by a person.

  • Always confirm compatibility, dimensions and installation requirements with the manufacturer, the product's documentation and the seller before you buy, install or use anything. Where Tethered Trust and the manufacturer disagree, follow the manufacturer.
  • Physical-fit results use typical clearances, not the clearances in your product's installation guide. They don't account for doors, trim, floors, flooring height, outlets, vents, plumbing, gas lines or local building codes unless you entered them.
  • Electrical, gas, water and structural work must follow applicable codes and, where required, be performed by a licensed professional. Tethered Trust does not provide installation, electrical, plumbing or safety advice.
  • Don't use Tethered Trust for safety-critical decisions, including medical devices, vehicle safety systems, life-safety equipment, or any use where an incorrect answer could cause injury, death or significant property damage.
  • You are responsible for your purchase decisions, returns and installation. We are not responsible for incompatible purchases, return or restocking fees, shipping costs, installation costs or damage arising from reliance on an answer, to the fullest extent permitted by law (see Sections 9 and 10).

4. Eligibility, accounts and AI agents

You must be at least 18 years old (or the age of majority where you live) to use the Service. The Service is not directed to children under 13, and children under 13 may not use it.

AI agents and automated access. Tethered Trust is built to be used by software, including AI assistants and autonomous agents acting for people or businesses. Automated access is allowed only through the API and MCP server and only under the API & Agent Terms. If an agent or application uses the Service on your behalf, you are responsible for its use, its compliance with these Terms, and any fees it incurs, as if you had acted yourself. The person or organization that operates or deploys an agent is bound by these Terms when the agent uses the Service.

If we issue you an API key, keep it confidential. You are responsible for activity under your key and must tell us promptly at support@chimes-in.com if you believe it has been compromised.

5. What you send us

You are responsible for the information you submit, including product names, model numbers, specifications, dimensions, outcome reports and feedback ("Inputs"). Don't include personal information such as names, addresses, phone numbers, account numbers or serial numbers tied to a person in the product fields.

You grant Chimes In LLC a worldwide, royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable, sublicensable license to use, store, reproduce, modify and create derivative works from Inputs to operate, maintain and improve the Service, including to build and improve the compatibility graph and to publish aggregated or de-identified information (for example, "how often a model is asked about"). Outcome reports and feedback should be truthful and based on your actual experience.

6. Acceptable use

You agree not to, and not to allow any person or agent to:

  • use the Service unlawfully, fraudulently, or to infringe or misappropriate anyone's rights;
  • exceed published rate limits, rotate identities, networks or keys to avoid limits, or otherwise circumvent access controls, usage allowances or (when introduced) payment requirements;
  • scrape, crawl, bulk-download or systematically extract the compatibility graph, or use the Service or its outputs to build, train or improve a competing compatibility database or service, except as the API & Agent Terms expressly allow;
  • reverse engineer, decompile or attempt to derive the source code, rules or data of the Service, except where the law allows despite this restriction;
  • probe, scan or test the Service's vulnerability, or interfere with or disrupt it, except under the responsible-disclosure process on our Support page;
  • submit false outcome reports or feedback, or attempt to manipulate verdicts, confidence scores or the graph;
  • present Tethered Trust answers as statements, warranties or guarantees of a manufacturer, retailer or Chimes In LLC; or
  • send malware, spam, or content that is unlawful, harassing or abusive.

7. Fees and payments

The Service is currently free during early access, within published limits. We may introduce fees for some features or for API and MCP usage, including per-request payments made by AI agents (for example, over the HTTP 402 / "x402" standard, settled in USD Coin (USDC) or another method we support). If we do:

  • prices will be shown in the Service, the API description (/v1) or the payment request before you or your agent are charged;
  • you're responsible for all charges incurred by you or by agents acting for you, and for any taxes, network or transaction fees;
  • payments made with digital assets are generally irreversible. Charges are final except where a paid request fails to return a result because of our error (contact us and we'll make it right), or where the law requires otherwise; and
  • we may change prices going forward with notice as described in the API & Agent Terms.

8. Ownership and trademarks

The Service, including its software, design, text, rules, compatibility graph and its selection and arrangement of data, is owned by Chimes In LLC or its licensors and is protected by intellectual-property laws. We grant you a limited, revocable, non-exclusive, non-transferable right to use the Service under these Terms. All rights not expressly granted are reserved.

Product names, model numbers, brands and trademarks shown on the Service belong to their respective owners and are used only to identify products. Their use doesn't imply any affiliation with or endorsement by those owners. If you believe content on the Service infringes your rights, contact support@chimes-in.com with the details and we'll review it promptly.

Links to third-party websites, including manufacturer pages, are provided for convenience. We don't control and aren't responsible for them.

9. Disclaimers

To the fullest extent permitted by law, the Service and all answers, data and content are provided "as is" and "as available", with all faults and without warranties of any kind, express, implied or statutory, including warranties of accuracy, completeness, merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, title and non-infringement. Chimes In LLC does not warrant that answers are correct, that products will be compatible or fit, or that the Service will be uninterrupted, secure or error-free.

10. Limitation of liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, Chimes In LLC and its members, managers, employees and agents will not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, exemplary or punitive damages, or for lost profits, revenue, data, goodwill, purchase costs, return or restocking fees, installation costs or property damage, arising out of or relating to the Service or any answer, even if advised of the possibility. Our total liability for all claims relating to the Service is limited to the greater of (a) the amounts you paid us for the Service in the 12 months before the claim arose and (b) fifty U.S. dollars (US $50).

Some jurisdictions don't allow certain disclaimers or limitations, so some of the above may not apply to you. Nothing in these Terms limits liability that cannot be limited by law.

Indemnity. To the extent permitted by law, you will defend, indemnify and hold harmless Chimes In LLC from claims, losses and expenses (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising from your Inputs, your or your agents' use of the Service, or your breach of these Terms.

11. Changes, suspension and disputes

Changes. We may update the Service and these Terms. We'll post the updated Terms with a new "last updated" date, and for material changes we'll give reasonable notice on the Service or, for API key holders, by email. Continued use after changes take effect means you accept them.

Suspension and termination. We may suspend or end access, revoke API keys or block traffic at any time if we reasonably believe you or an agent acting for you violated these Terms, created risk or legal exposure, or to protect the Service. You may stop using the Service at any time. Sections 3, 5, 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12 survive termination.

Informal resolution first. If you have a dispute with us, contact us at support@chimes-in.com and give us 30 days to try to resolve it informally before starting a formal proceeding.

Governing law and venue. These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Florida and applicable U.S. federal law, without regard to conflict-of-law rules. Except where the law gives you the right to bring a claim elsewhere, any claim must be brought in the state or federal courts located in Florida, and you and we consent to their jurisdiction. Either party may bring an individual claim in small-claims court if it qualifies. To the extent permitted by law, claims must be brought individually and not as a plaintiff or class member in any class or representative proceeding.

12. General and contact

These Terms (with the Privacy Policy and API & Agent Terms) are the entire agreement between you and us about the Service. If any provision is unenforceable, the rest remains in effect. Our failure to enforce a provision isn't a waiver. You may not assign these Terms without our consent; we may assign them in connection with a merger, acquisition or sale of assets. Neither party is liable for delays caused by events beyond its reasonable control. You agree that we may provide notices electronically, including by posting them on the Service.

Questions about these Terms: