L1 /LEGAL

Terms of
service.

Wallet-native, non-custodial, open-source. The honest version, not a wall of legalese — but the legalese still applies. Read section 9 (disclaimers) and section 10 (liability) carefully.

Effective date: 2026-03-01 Last updated: 2026-03-01

These Terms of Service ("Terms") govern your use of the Open Agent ID protocol ("OAID", "the Project", "the Services"), including the API, website, smart contracts, command-line tools, and SDKs.

OAID is an open-source protocol licensed Apache-2.0. There is no company behind it — only a collective of contributors. The Services are operated on a best-effort basis with no warranty.

TL;DR

  • The Services are provided "as is", with no guarantees
  • You are responsible for your own wallet and private keys
  • Don't use the Services for anything illegal
  • All on-chain actions are irreversible
  • Don't rely on the Services for anything mission-critical
  • The contributors have no liability if anything breaks

1. What OAID is

OAID is a decentralized identity protocol for AI agents. It lets you:

  • Register a verifiable agent identity (a DID) anchored on Base L2
  • Sign messages and API requests with an Ed25519 key
  • Optionally pay $10 USDC to upgrade an agent to "verified" tier
  • Look up other agents and verify their signatures

OAID is not:

  • A custodial wallet
  • A financial service
  • An investment vehicle
  • A guaranteed identity verification service
  • Your customer support team

2. Who can use it

You may use the Services if:

  • You are at least 18 years old
  • You are not on any sanctions list (OFAC, EU, UN)
  • You are not in a jurisdiction where the Services are prohibited
  • You agree to these Terms

You may not use the Services to:

  • Commit fraud, identity theft, or impersonation
  • Launder money or finance terrorism
  • Spam, harass, or abuse other users
  • Reverse engineer security mechanisms
  • Bypass rate limits or quotas
  • Violate any applicable law

3. Your wallet, your responsibility

OAID is wallet-native. You connect your own Ethereum wallet to use it. This means:

  • You hold your own private keys. The contributors never see them.
  • If you lose your private keys, you lose access to your DIDs. There is no password reset, no recovery, no support.
  • All transactions you sign are final. There is no rollback.
  • You are responsible for all gas fees for transactions you initiate.
  • You are responsible for keeping your wallet secure.

4. Verification fee

The "verified" tier upgrade costs $10 USDC paid to the TrustPayment smart contract on Base L2. By submitting a payment, you agree:

  • The fee is non-refundable once paid on-chain
  • The verification only proves you paid the fee — it does not certify your identity, business, or trustworthiness
  • The Project may change the fee in the future for new verifications
  • The fee may be used to fund infrastructure costs of the Project

5. Service availability

The Services are provided "as is" and "as available". Specifically:

  • We aim for 99.9% uptime but make no guarantees
  • We may take the Services offline for maintenance, security, or any other reason
  • We may change, deprecate, or remove features at any time
  • We may pause smart contracts in the event of a bug or attack
  • The on-chain components depend on Base L2 being operational

If the Services go down, your previously-registered DIDs remain valid on-chain. Anyone running an OAID-compatible registry can serve them.

6. Open source nature

OAID is open source under Apache-2.0. This means:

  • Anyone can read, modify, and redistribute the code
  • Anyone can run their own instance of the Services
  • The Project does not control derivative deployments
  • "Open Agent ID" the protocol is distinct from any specific operator

7. Intellectual property

  • The OAID protocol specification is open source
  • Code in the official repos is licensed Apache-2.0
  • The Open Agent ID name and logo may be subject to trademark (see trademark.md)
  • You retain ownership of any data you create (your DIDs, agent metadata, etc.)

8. Payment processing

When you pay the verification fee:

  1. You initiate the transaction from your wallet
  2. The transaction is mined on Base L2
  3. The Services verify the on-chain payment via a node
  4. Your agent's credit score is updated

We do not process credit card or fiat payments. We do not custody your USDC — it goes directly to the TrustPayment smart contract.

9. Disclaimers

THE SERVICES ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NONINFRINGEMENT.

We specifically disclaim:

  • That the Services will be uninterrupted, secure, or error-free
  • That defects will be corrected
  • That the Services or servers are free of viruses or other harmful components
  • That the Services will meet your requirements
  • That information obtained through the Services is accurate or reliable

10. Limitation of liability

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, IN NO EVENT SHALL THE PROJECT, ITS CONTRIBUTORS, OR ITS OPERATORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, OR ANY LOSS OF PROFITS, REVENUE, DATA, OR BUSINESS, ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO YOUR USE OF THE SERVICES.

This includes losses from:

  • Lost private keys
  • Failed or delayed transactions
  • Smart contract bugs or exploits
  • Service downtime or interruption
  • Reorgs or chain failures on Base L2
  • Third-party services we depend on (RPC providers, USDC, etc.)
  • Legal action by third parties
  • Anything else, really

If you must assign a dollar value to our liability, it is capped at the total amount you have paid to the Services in the 12 months preceding the claim, which for most users is $10 or less.

11. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless the Project and its contributors from any claim, damage, or expense arising from:

  • Your use of the Services
  • Your violation of these Terms
  • Your violation of any law or third-party right
  • Your interaction with smart contracts you initiated

12. Termination

You may stop using the Services at any time. You can revoke your DIDs via the API or oaid revoke. Note that on-chain records remain.

The Project may suspend or terminate your access to the off-chain Services at any time, for any reason, without notice. Your on-chain DIDs are unaffected by such termination.

13. Governing law

These Terms are governed by the laws of Singapore, except where prohibited by mandatory local law. Any disputes shall be resolved in the courts of Singapore.

If you live in a jurisdiction with mandatory consumer protection laws, you may have additional rights that these Terms cannot override.

14. Changes to these Terms

If we materially change these Terms, we will:

  1. Update the "Last updated" date
  2. Post a notice on https://openagentid.org
  3. For significant changes, post on GitHub with at least 30 days notice

Continued use after changes means you accept the new Terms.

15. Severability

If any provision of these Terms is found unenforceable, the remaining provisions remain in full effect.

16. No agency or partnership

Nothing in these Terms creates a partnership, joint venture, employment, or agency relationship between you and the Project.

17. Contact

For questions about these Terms:

These Terms are licensed CC0 — feel free to reuse for your own project.