Terms of Service & Incubation Charter

1. Institutional Scope & Acceptance

By creating an account, browsing directories, booking mentor sessions, or submitting incubation dossiers on Founder OS, you agree to be legally bound by these Terms, the SIES Institutional Startup Policy, and the National Innovation and Startup Policy (NISP) 2019 for Students and Faculty.

2. Intellectual Property (IP) Ownership

SIES Incubation Centre upholds a progressive, founder-first intellectual property framework:

• Founder-Owned IP: All technical inventions, software codebases, CAD designs, chemical formulations, and commercial branding developed by incubatees remain the exclusive property of the founders.
• Institutional Facilities: Utilization of general university computers, Wi-Fi, and standard makerspace 3D printers does not grant SIES ownership of your patent rights.
• Joint Research: In rare cases where a venture directly commercializes institutional patents co-developed with SIES tenured faculty researchers, a separate Technology Transfer / Licensing Agreement will govern royalties.

3. Pre-Incubation vs. Formal Incubation

• Pre-Incubation (0% Equity): Open to all collegiate student builders exploring idea validation, participating in hackathons, and attending the 8-Week Foundations curriculum.
• Formal Incubation (2% - 3% Equity): Applicable only when a venture executes a formal Incubation Agreement, receives physical co-working desks, utilizes heavy lab testbeds, and receives administrative sponsorship for government seed grants (SISFS / DST PRAYAS).

4. Government Grant Facilitation & Compliance

SIES acts as an accredited Host Institute (HI) and Incubation Centre for government schemes (e.g., SISFS under DPIIT, NIDHI-PRAYAS under DST). Founders receiving disbursements agree to:

• Submit quarterly utilization certificates (UC) and audited statements from a certified Chartered Accountant.
• Utilize allocated grant funds strictly for approved Bill of Materials (BOM) items and prototype development.
• Present milestone demonstrations to the SIES Project Monitoring Committee (PMC).

5. Professional Code of Conduct & Lab Safety

Incubatees and mentors must maintain the highest standards of professional ethics. Harassment, academic plagiarism, falsification of revenue telemetry, or unauthorized operation of hazardous makerspace machinery will result in immediate termination of incubation privileges.

6. Jurisdiction & Dispute Resolution

These Terms are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the Republic of India. Any disputes arising in connection with the platform or incubation operations shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the competent courts in Navi Mumbai / Thane / Mumbai, Maharashtra.