Terms of Service

These Terms of Service ("Terms") form a binding agreement between you and Rubber Duck LLC ("we", "us", "our"), the operator of the Duomate mobile application ("Duomate", the "Service"). By creating an account or using Duomate, you agree to these Terms and to our Privacy Policy. If you do not agree, do not use the Service.

1. Eligibility

You must be at least 18 years old to use Duomate. By creating an account you confirm you meet this requirement. We may suspend or remove accounts that we determine are operated by minors.

2. Your Account

You are responsible for safeguarding your account credentials and for all activity that occurs under your account. Notify us immediately at support@duomateapp.com if you suspect unauthorized access. You may not share, sell, or transfer your account.

3. Acceptable Use — Zero Tolerance for Objectionable Content or Abuse

Duomate has zero tolerance for objectionable content or abusive users. Any account posting objectionable content or engaging in abusive behavior toward other users will be removed. Duomate exists for language learning through real conversation. By using it, you agree NOT to:

• Post, send, or upload content that is unlawful, harassing, defamatory, threatening, hateful, sexually explicit involving minors, or that infringes on others' rights;
• Impersonate any person or entity, or misrepresent your affiliation with any person or entity;
• Solicit or transmit unwanted commercial messages (spam), pyramid schemes, or chain letters;
• Collect or harvest personal information about other users without their consent;
• Use the Service to facilitate illegal activity, distribute malware, or attempt to disrupt, reverse engineer, or gain unauthorized access to our systems;
• Use automated tools (bots, scrapers, crawlers) to access or interact with the Service;
• Submit content you do not have the right to share, including copyrighted material you do not own or have license to.

Violations may result in content removal, account suspension, or permanent termination without notice. We cooperate with law enforcement where required.

4. User Content

You retain ownership of the messages, photos, voice recordings, and other content you create or upload ("Your Content"). By submitting Your Content to Duomate, you grant us a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to host, store, transmit, and display Your Content solely to operate and improve the Service (for example, to deliver messages to your chat partner, render vocabulary you've encountered on your dashboard, or analyze content for moderation).

We do not claim ownership of Your Content. We do not use Your Content for advertising or sell it to third parties.

5. AI Conversation Partners and AI Features

Duomate includes AI-powered conversation partners, translation, grammar correction, reactions, and voice pronunciation feedback. Messages, voice recordings, and related text you submit are transmitted to the following third-party AI providers for processing: Anthropic (Claude, for AI chat replies), OpenAI (GPT models via OpenRouter, for grammar corrections and reactions), Google (Gemini via OpenRouter, for translation and short-form generation), and Microsoft Azure Speech Services (for pronunciation assessment). None of these providers retain your content beyond the duration of the request.

AI responses are generated automatically and may contain inaccuracies. AI partners are not human, do not have feelings, and have no memory beyond what is explicitly stored. You should not rely on AI partners for medical, legal, financial, or other professional advice.

6. Reports, Blocks, and Moderation

You can report any message or user from inside the app. Reports are reviewed; we aim to respond to verified violations within 24 hours. You can block any user, which prevents further contact and removes their ability to view your profile. We may also moderate content automatically using machine-learning classifiers and may suspend or remove content or accounts at our discretion to enforce these Terms.

7. Premium Subscription

Duomate offers a paid Premium subscription that unlocks higher AI usage limits, expanded translate caps, and premium themes. Subscriptions are billed through Apple via the App Store at the price disclosed on the in-app paywall. Subscriptions auto-renew at the end of each billing period unless canceled at least 24 hours before the renewal date through your Apple ID account settings. We do not see or store your payment details — Apple handles billing.

Refunds are subject to Apple's refund policy and are not issued by us directly. To request a refund, contact Apple Support.

8. Termination

You can delete your account at any time from Settings → Account → Delete Account. Deletion permanently removes your profile, messages, matches, vocabulary, and uploaded files within 30 days (backups are purged on a rolling 90-day schedule). For Sign-in-with-Apple accounts, deletion also revokes the token linking the app to your Apple ID.

We may suspend or terminate your access if you violate these Terms, if required by law, or if continued operation of your account creates risk to us, other users, or third parties.

9. Disclaimers

Duomate is provided "as is" and "as available", without warranties of any kind, express or implied, including merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement. We do not warrant that the Service will be uninterrupted, error-free, secure, or free of harmful components. Language learning outcomes vary; we make no guarantees about proficiency improvements.

10. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law, Rubber Duck LLC and its officers, employees, and agents will not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, or any loss of profits or revenues, whether incurred directly or indirectly, arising from your use of or inability to use the Service. Our total liability to you for any claim arising out of or relating to these Terms or the Service will not exceed the amount you paid us in the twelve months preceding the claim, or USD $50, whichever is greater.

11. Indemnification

You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless Rubber Duck LLC from any claims, liabilities, damages, losses, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising from or related to your use of the Service, Your Content, or your violation of these Terms.

12. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. When we do, we will update the "Last updated" date above and, for material changes, notify you in-app or by email. Continued use of the Service after changes become effective constitutes your acceptance.

13. Governing Law and Disputes

These Terms are governed by the laws of the United States and the State of Washington, without regard to conflict-of-law principles. Any dispute arising under these Terms will be resolved exclusively in the state or federal courts located in King County, Washington, and you consent to the jurisdiction of those courts.

14. Contact

Questions about these Terms? Email support@duomateapp.com.