NotchBio Terms of Service

1. Who We Are

The Service is operated by NOTCHBIO (SMC-PRIVATE) LIMITED ("NotchBio", "we", "us", or "our"). NotchBio provides a cloud-based bioinformatics platform for research workflows, including RNA-seq data upload/import, quality control, preprocessing, quantification, differential expression, and pathway analysis.

NotchBio serves both direct Lab Users through the Lab App and Core Facilities through the Core Facility App. Core Facilities use NotchBio to upload/import sequencing data, structure projects, deliver projects to Lab Recipients, and manage organization-level usage and billing.

2. Research Use Only

• The Service is for research and informational purposes only.
• The Service is not a medical device.
• The Service is not intended to diagnose, cure, treat, mitigate, or prevent disease.
• You are solely responsible for validating outputs before any publication, regulatory filing, patient-related decision, or clinical use.

3. Eligibility and Accounts

You must be legally able to enter a contract, provide accurate account information, and keep credentials secure.

You are responsible for all activity under your account and must promptly report unauthorized access.

If you use the Core Facility App on behalf of an organization, you represent that you have authority to bind that organization, manage its team members, and accept responsibility for activity conducted through the organization's account.

4. Lab Users, Organizations, and Core Facilities

• Lab Users use the Lab App to create projects, upload/import data, run analysis workflows, view results, and collaborate with other Lab Users.
• Core Facilities are organizations that use the Core Facility App to process and deliver sequencing data to Lab Recipients.
• Core Facility organizations have structured team roles: admin, uploader, analyst, and viewer.
• NotchBio is not responsible for the relationship between a Core Facility and its customers. Core Facilities are independent service providers to their customers.
• NotchBio provides software, infrastructure, storage, compute, and workflow tools. NotchBio is not responsible for a Facility's customer pricing, wet-lab work, sample handling, sequencing quality, reports, or service promises.

5. Core Facility Roles and Admin Responsibilities

• Facility admins control access, integrations, permissions, team members, and billing.
• Uploaders may upload/import data and manage project content.
• Analysts may view and interact with project data.
• Viewers may view facility dashboards and project information.
• Facility admins are responsible for role assignment, access control, team removal, and permission management.
• NotchBio is not responsible for actions taken by users who were granted access by the organization.
• Recipients should only be invited if they are authorized to receive the project and data.

6. Project Workspaces and Collaboration

• Lab workspaces are controlled by Lab Users. Workspace owners and authorized editors may add/remove members and manage project content.
• Core Facility organizations have structured team roles: admin, uploader, analyst, viewer.
• Facility admins are responsible for role assignment, access control, team removal, and permission management.
• NotchBio is not responsible for actions taken under permissions granted by your workspace or organization.
• Recipients should only be invited if they are authorized to receive the project/data.

7. Data You Upload, Import, or Deliver

You may upload files and import datasets through:

• Direct uploads (FASTQ and other supported file formats).
• Public repository imports (for example, SRR, SRX, SRP, or PRJNA from NCBI/SRA).
• Core Facility imports from connected integrations such as Illumina BaseSpace, Box, and other supported services.

Data may include FASTQ/raw sequencing files, sample metadata, grouping metadata, recipient details, and project delivery metadata.

You represent and warrant that you have necessary rights and legal basis to upload, process, and share your data, and that your use complies with applicable laws, institutional rules, repository terms, and data-use restrictions. Core Facilities are additionally responsible for consent, IRB/ethics approvals, customer permission, institutional approval, and any data-use restrictions applicable to the data they upload or deliver.

8. Sensitive and Controlled Data

You must not use the Service in violation of controlled-access or consent-based restrictions. If you process human or potentially identifiable biological data, you are responsible for required approvals and safeguards.

Core Facilities may process third-party customer or researcher data. The Facility must confirm it has permission to upload, process, analyze, and deliver such data. The Facility must not deliver data to unauthorized recipients.

NotchBio does not verify consent, IRB approval, patient authorization, or customer authorization. NotchBio is not intended for clinical diagnosis or patient-care decisions.

9. Core Facility Delivery Workflow

• A Facility creates a project, uploads/imports data, structures sample groups, adds recipients, and submits the project.
• Once submitted, the project is locked for edits unless explicitly unsubmitted by an authorized user.
• The owner recipient accepts the delivery into the Lab App.
• Delivery is completed when the owner recipient accepts the project or when analysis begins, whichever comes first.
• The Facility must verify files, metadata, sample groups, comparisons, and recipients before submission.
• If wrong data is submitted, the Facility is responsible.
• Recipient acceptance does not transfer responsibility to NotchBio for incorrect data, wrong recipients, or data quality issues.

10. Storage, Processing, and Data Separation

The Service may use third-party cloud infrastructure and can create temporary and derived files during processing.

For Lab Users:

• Source uploads/imports are stored in user-scoped storage (the Customer/Lab Volume).
• Project-generated intermediate and analysis outputs are stored separately by project.
• Deleting a project removes associated project-generated outputs.
• Source uploads/imports remain available unless you delete them.

For Core Facilities:

• Direct browser uploads may be temporarily staged in Cloudflare R2 to provide multipart transfer and resume capabilities before the files are validated and copied into the Facility Volume on Modal.
• Facility source files are stored in the Facility Volume.
• Lab-generated outputs from delivered projects are stored in the Customer/Lab Volume.
• Delivered Lab projects may point back to Facility source files for raw inputs.
• DESeq2 outputs, plots, pathway results, tables, and downstream analysis generated by the Lab user are stored in the Lab user's volume.
• Deleting Facility source files may break reruns or future analysis in delivered Lab projects.
• Already generated Lab outputs may remain available according to the Lab user's retention plan.

Temporary/intermediate files may be created during compute jobs. Compute jobs may queue, retry, fail, cancel, or consume runs depending on stage.

11. Included Analysis Runs

• Delivered core projects include 5 included customer analysis runs shared across all recipients.
• Runs are shared across recipients of the same delivered project.
• Runs may be restored only for verified NotchBio platform errors.
• Runs are not restored for wrong metadata, wrong files, poor-quality source data, or user/facility mistakes.
• Once all included runs are consumed, additional analysis may require paid usage.

12. License You Grant to Us

You retain ownership of your data. NotchBio does not own raw data or generated outputs.

Core Facilities may control source files they upload/import. Lab Recipients may control outputs generated in their Lab projects. Ownership may depend on agreements between the Facility, Lab Recipient, institution, and customer.

You grant NotchBio a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to host, copy, transmit, transform, and process your data solely to operate, secure, maintain, troubleshoot, and support the Service, subject to applicable law and our Privacy Policy.

NotchBio does not sell biological or research data. NotchBio does not use biological data for general AI model training unless separately agreed in writing.

13. Acceptable Use

• No illegal, fraudulent, or unauthorized use.
• No disruption, abuse of APIs, or unauthorized scraping.
• No unauthorized access attempts or security bypass.
• No malware or harmful code uploads.
• No misuse of third-party integrations (BaseSpace, Box, etc.) including using tokens, connections, or imported data beyond what is authorized.
• No unauthorized recipient delivery or intentional delivery to recipients who are not permitted to receive the data.

14. Third-Party Services and Integrations

The Service depends on third-party systems including:

• Authentication and identity (Clerk).
• Cloud infrastructure, temporary upload staging, compute, and storage (Railway, Cloudflare R2, Modal).
• Billing and subscription handling (Paddle).
• Public repositories (NCBI/SRA).
• Illumina BaseSpace.
• Box.
• Product analytics (PostHog, Google Analytics).
• Analysis tools and reference databases.

Their availability or policy changes may affect the Service.

Facility admins are responsible for connecting and revoking organization-wide integrations. Facilities must comply with third-party terms of service.

NotchBio is not responsible for expired tokens, external API downtime, deleted external files, third-party policy changes, or import failures outside NotchBio's control.

15. Privacy

Our collection and use of personal data is described in our Privacy Policy.

16. Fees, Credits, Metered Billing, and Refunds

16.1 For Lab Users

If paid plans apply, pricing and usage terms are provided separately. We may update plans prospectively. Payments are processed by our merchant of record, Paddle. When you purchase a subscription or credits, Paddle acts as the seller and handles billing, taxes, and refunds on our behalf.

You may request a full refund for any eligible subscription charge or credit purchase within 14 days of the payment date, for any reason, no questions asked. If credits are refunded, the corresponding credits are removed from your account balance.

16.2 For Core Facilities / Organizations

Core Facilities use organization-level metered billing. Pricing may be custom and may be based on active samples, analysis runs, compute, selected services, or a written agreement. Usage may be grouped into weekly invoices and charge attempts. Paddle may process billing, invoices, taxes, and refunds.

Pending usage may be released if a project is voided before analysis starts. Once compute or analysis has started, usage may be billable. Storage is free unless a separate written agreement states otherwise.

The 14-day refund guarantee for Lab Users does not automatically apply to Core Facility metered usage, enterprise invoices, custom agreements, already-consumed compute, or completed organization usage.

For full details, see our Refund Policy.

17. Intellectual Property

Except for your data and outputs, NotchBio and its licensors retain all rights in the Service, including software, designs, documentation, and trademarks.

18. Feedback

If you provide feedback, you grant NotchBio a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free right to use it without restriction or compensation.

19. Service Availability and Changes

The Service is provided "as available." We may modify, suspend, or discontinue features at any time and do not guarantee uninterrupted operation or specific processing times. Job queues, integrations, third-party dependencies, and pipeline jobs may experience delays, failures, or changes.

20. Disclaimers

To the maximum extent permitted by law, the Service is provided "as is" and "as available" without warranties of any kind. NotchBio does not warrant the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of analysis outputs, delivered projects, import results, or third-party integration availability.

21. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law, NotchBio is not liable for indirect or consequential losses, including data loss, lost profits, goodwill, research opportunity, or losses arising from delivery of incorrect data by a Core Facility.

Total liability for claims related to the Service is limited to the greater of (a) fees paid by you in the prior 12 months, or (b) USD $100.

22. Indemnification

You will defend and indemnify NotchBio against claims or losses arising from your data, your use of the Service, or your violation of these Terms, applicable law, or third-party rights.

Core Facility users additionally indemnify NotchBio for claims arising from:

• Delivery to wrong or unauthorized recipients.
• Lack of customer authorization or consent.
• Lack of IRB/ethics approval.
• Misuse of third-party integrations.
• Uploading data the Facility is not authorized to process.
• Customer disputes between the Facility and Lab Recipients.
• The Facility's own wet-lab, sequencing, bioinformatics, or consulting services.

23. Suspension and Termination

You may stop using the Service at any time. We may suspend or terminate access for breach, legal compliance, security concerns, or non-payment.

Additional grounds for suspension include:

• Unpaid organization invoices.
• Misuse of integrations.
• Suspected unauthorized data sharing.

After termination, storage and data retention depend on your plan, account type, or written agreement. Deletion of Facility source files may impact delivered Lab projects.

24. Governing Law and Disputes

These Terms are governed by laws specified in your applicable order form, or if none, the laws of the jurisdiction where NotchBio is incorporated, excluding conflict-of-laws rules.

25. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms. Updated Terms are posted with a revised "Last Updated" date. Continued use after the effective date constitutes acceptance.

26. Contact

For legal notices or questions about these Terms, use the in-app contact option or email contact@updates.notchbio.app .