Terms of Service

1. Agreement to these terms

These Terms of Service ("Terms") govern your use of btmpprogram.com, the BTMP education platform, and participation in any Black Technology Mentorship Program programme, service or event (together, the "Services").

By using the Services you agree to these Terms. If you do not agree, please do not use the Services. If you are accepting on behalf of an organisation, you confirm that you have authority to bind that organisation, and "you" refers to that organisation.

Additional terms apply to specific programmes — for example the Shipyards founder agreement and the mentor code of conduct. Where additional terms conflict with these Terms, the additional terms govern for that programme only.

2. Eligibility and accounts

2.1 Who may participate

• You must be at least thirteen years old to apply. Applicants under sixteen require the consent of a parent or guardian, and applicants under eighteen are subject to our safeguarding policy.
• You must provide accurate information in your application and keep it current.
• Admission to any programme is at BTMP's discretion and is assessed against published criteria. Meeting the criteria does not create an entitlement to a place; cohort capacity is finite.
• We may decline or withdraw a place where information provided proves materially inaccurate, or where participation would breach applicable law or sanctions.

2.2 Your account

• You are responsible for keeping your credentials confidential and for all activity under your account.
• Accounts are personal and may not be shared, sold or transferred.
• Tell us promptly at [email protected] if you believe your account has been accessed without authorisation.

3. What we provide, and what we do not

3.1 What we provide

• Access to curriculum, labs and speaker sessions for the track to which you are admitted.
• Matching with a mentor, a written development plan and a defined session cadence.
• Assessment against published rubrics, with written feedback.
• Where applicable, stipends, hardware loans and connectivity support, subject to available funding and the terms of the relevant loan agreement.
• Where applicable, interview preparation and introductions to hiring partners.

3.2 What we expressly do not provide

• No guarantee of employment. Pipelines provides preparation and introductions. Hiring decisions belong entirely to employers.
• No guarantee of investment. Shipyards provides guidance, review and introductions. Funding decisions belong entirely to investors.
• No professional advice. Legal, financial, tax, immigration and medical matters discussed in sessions or clinics are general information, not advice on which you should rely. See the Disclaimer.
• No accreditation claim. BTMP credentials record completion of our programmes. They are not a degree and are not accredited by any national education authority.
• No guaranteed availability. Cohorts, tracks and services may change, be postponed or be discontinued; see section 9.

4. Acceptable use and code of conduct

Everyone in the programme — participants, mentors, facilitators and staff — agrees to the same standards of conduct.

4.1 You agree to

• Treat others with respect, including when you disagree.
• Give and receive feedback about work rather than about people.
• Keep confidential anything a mentor, mentee or founder shares in confidence.
• Submit your own work, and attribute any work, code or text that is not yours.
• Disclose the use of generative tools where an assessment asks you to.
• Report conduct that breaches these Terms to [email protected].

4.2 You agree not to

• Harass, bully, threaten, or discriminate against anyone on any basis.
• Share sexual, violent or otherwise inappropriate content, or contact a participant under eighteen outside programme channels.
• Misrepresent your identity, experience or affiliation.
• Record a one-to-one session without the other person's express permission.
• Share, resell or publish BTMP curriculum materials outside the programme.
• Use the Services to solicit participants for unrelated commercial purposes.
• Attempt to gain unauthorised access to any system, or to test the security of our systems outside the disclosure route in our Privacy Policy.
• Scrape, crawl or bulk-download the site or platform beyond ordinary use.
• Use the Services in breach of any applicable law, export control or sanctions regime.

4.3 Enforcement

We investigate reports proportionately and confidentially. Depending on severity we may issue a warning, require training, suspend a pairing, remove a person from a cohort, or terminate participation permanently. Where conduct may be criminal we report it to the appropriate authorities. Decisions may be appealed once, in writing, within fourteen days, to a reviewer who was not involved in the original decision.

5. Intellectual property

5.1 What you own

You retain all rights in the work you create during a BTMP programme — your code, designs, documents, capstone artefacts and any business you found. We claim no ownership of it and no equity in it by virtue of your participation.

5.2 The licence you give us

You grant BTMP a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free licence to use, reproduce and display the work you submit for assessment, solely for the purposes of assessing it, moderating standards across cohorts, and — only with your separate written permission — showcasing it publicly. You may withdraw the showcase permission at any time.

5.3 What we own

The curriculum, assessment rubrics, platform, site design, text, the BTMP name and the BTMP logo are owned by BTMP or its licensors. You may use them only as needed to take part in the programme. You may not reproduce, redistribute or create derivative works from curriculum materials without written permission.

5.4 Third-party materials

Some materials are provided under open source or Creative Commons licences, which are identified where they appear and which govern your use of those materials.

5.5 Copyright complaints

If you believe material on this site infringes your copyright, write to [email protected] with a description of the work, the location of the material, your contact details, a statement of good-faith belief, and a statement made under penalty of perjury that you are authorised to act. We respond to valid notices promptly.

6. Fees, stipends and equipment

Core mentorship and education are provided free of charge to accepted participants. Where a fee applies to a specific service — for example organisational training for a company — it is set out in a separate written agreement.

6.1 Stipends

• Stipends are discretionary and depend on available funding.
• They are paid against the barrier you identified — typically connectivity or living costs.
• You are responsible for any tax consequences of a stipend in your own jurisdiction.
• Stipends stop if you leave a programme, and we do not claw back sums already paid except where an application was fraudulent.

6.2 Loaned equipment

• Loaned hardware remains BTMP property and is covered by a separate loan agreement.
• You agree to take reasonable care of it and to return it within thirty days of leaving the programme.
• Ordinary wear is expected and never charged for. We ask you to tell us promptly about loss or damage; we do not charge participants for accidental damage.
• Deliberate damage or failure to return equipment may result in a charge and in removal from the programme.

7. Third-party services and partners

The Services incorporate third-party tools — video conferencing, a learning platform, code hosting and an image delivery network among them. Your use of those tools is also governed by their own terms, which we encourage you to read.

Introductions to hiring partners, investors and clinic providers are introductions only. BTMP is not a party to, and accepts no responsibility for, any agreement you reach with them, including employment contracts, investment terms and professional engagements. We do not receive placement fees from hiring partners.

8. Availability, changes and discontinuation

• We aim to keep the site and platform available, but we do not guarantee uninterrupted access. Planned maintenance is announced in advance where practicable.
• We may change, add to or remove curriculum content, tracks, cohort dates and services. Where a change materially disadvantages enrolled participants we give reasonable notice and, where we can, an alternative.
• We may discontinue a service entirely. Enrolled participants will be told at least sixty days in advance and helped to complete, transfer or export their work.
• Content on this site is provided for general information. While we take care to keep it accurate, we do not warrant that it is complete or current at all times.

9. Suspension and termination

9.1 By you

You may leave at any time by writing to [email protected]. We will confirm, arrange the return of any loaned equipment, and tell you how to export your work. Leaving does not require a reason, and it does not prevent you from reapplying later.

9.2 By us

We may suspend or terminate participation where you materially breach these Terms or the code of conduct; where continued participation would place another person at risk; where an application contained material misrepresentation; or where required by law. Except in cases of serious misconduct or legal requirement, we give notice and an opportunity to respond first.

9.3 What survives

Sections 5 (Intellectual property), 10 (Disclaimers), 11 (Liability), 12 (Indemnity) and 14 (Governing law) survive termination.

10. Disclaimers

To the fullest extent permitted by law, the Services are provided "as is" and "as available". BTMP disclaims all warranties, express or implied, including implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement.

We do not warrant that participation will result in employment, funding, a particular salary, a specific skill level, or any other outcome. Educational and career outcomes depend on many factors outside our control, including your own effort and the state of the labour market.

Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or for any liability that cannot lawfully be excluded. Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion of implied warranties, so parts of this section may not apply to you. See also the full Disclaimer.

11. Limitation of liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, BTMP, its officers, employees, facilitators and mentors will not be liable for:

• indirect, incidental, special, consequential or punitive damages;
• loss of profits, revenue, business opportunity, goodwill or anticipated savings;
• loss or corruption of data, except where caused by our failure to meet the security obligations described in our Privacy Policy;
• the acts or omissions of a mentor, mentee, hiring partner, investor or other third party introduced through the Services.

Where liability cannot be excluded, our total aggregate liability arising out of or relating to the Services is limited to the greater of (a) the total fees you paid to BTMP in the twelve months before the event giving rise to the claim, or (b) one hundred United States dollars.

These limits apply regardless of the theory of liability and even if we have been advised of the possibility of the loss.

12. Indemnity

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless BTMP and its personnel against claims, losses and reasonable legal costs arising from your breach of these Terms, your infringement of another person's rights, or your unlawful use of the Services. This does not apply to the extent that a claim arises from our own negligence or breach.

13. Complaints and dispute resolution

We would rather resolve problems directly, and most are resolved quickly.

1. Raise it. Write to [email protected], or [email protected] for conduct matters. We acknowledge within five working days.
2. Escalate. If you are not satisfied, ask for escalation to a programme director, who will respond within twenty working days.
3. Independent review. For decisions about removal from a programme, you may request review by a person not involved in the original decision, within fourteen days of being told.
4. Mediation. Before commencing proceedings, both parties agree to attempt good-faith mediation with a mutually acceptable mediator. This does not prevent either party from seeking urgent injunctive relief.

14. Governing law and general terms

• Governing law. These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Georgia, United States, without regard to conflict-of-law rules. Consumers resident elsewhere keep the benefit of any mandatory protections of their local law.
• Jurisdiction. The courts of Fulton County, Georgia have jurisdiction, except where mandatory local law gives you the right to bring proceedings where you live.
• Severability. If any provision is held unenforceable, the rest remain in force and the provision is modified to the minimum extent necessary.
• No waiver. A failure to enforce a provision is not a waiver of it.
• Assignment. You may not assign these Terms. We may assign them to a successor organisation, on notice to you.
• Entire agreement. These Terms, together with the Privacy Policy, Cookie Policy, Disclaimer and any programme-specific agreement, form the whole agreement between us.
• Changes. We may update these Terms. Material changes are notified at least thirty days in advance to enrolled participants. Continued participation after the effective date constitutes acceptance; if you do not accept, you may leave under section 9.1 without penalty.

How to contact us about this policy

Write to [email protected], or by post to the Legal Team, Black Technology Mentorship Program, 1200 Innovation Way, Suite 400, Atlanta, GA 30308, United States. We acknowledge every enquiry within five working days and aim to resolve substantive questions within thirty days.

Use the contact form