Terms of Service & Agent Protocol Policy

These Terms of Service (“Terms”) govern your access to and use of the services, applications, software interfaces, and Model Context Protocol (MCP) endpoints provided by AisleNode (“AisleNode,” “we,” “our,” or “us”).

By registering a merchant store, connecting an inventory catalog, placing an order, or querying our endpoints via an autonomous agent or conversational client (such as Meta Muse or Claude), you agree to be bound by these Terms. If you do not agree, do not access or use AisleNode.

1. Architecture & Non-Custodial Model

AisleNode provides a programmatic discovery, routing, and order communication layer that connects physical retail inventories with autonomous software shoppers and messaging channels.

• Direct Merchant Settlement: Customer payments are transferred directly from the shopper to the merchant's designated payment provider (e.g. Stripe, PayPal, or Flutterwave). AisleNode is not a bank, licensed money transmitter, escrow agent, or merchant of record for customer goods. We never hold, pool, or custody customer purchase funds.
• Merchant Responsibility: Physical merchants are independently responsible for item availability, shelf pricing, packaging, safety, and fulfilling customer pickup or delivery hand-offs.

2. Refunds, Cancellations & Non-Custodial Financial Liability

Because AisleNode does not process, custody, or intermediate consumer payments, the following refund and financial liability provisions apply strictly to all buyers and merchants:

• Merchant Refund Obligation: If an order is declined, rejected, cancelled, out-of-stock, or unfulfilled, the merchant is solely, directly, and legally responsible for issuing an immediate 100% full refund to the customer via the merchant's payment processor dashboard.
• No AisleNode Refund Liability: AISLENODE EXPLICITLY DISCLAIMS ANY AND ALL LIABILITY FOR CUSTOMER REFUNDS, CHARGEBACKS, PAYMENT DISPUTES, OR UNFULFILLED ORDERS. Because AisleNode does not hold customer funds, AisleNode cannot initiate, reverse, or issue refunds on behalf of merchants.
• Resolution of Payment Disputes: Any financial disputes, chargebacks, or claims for non-delivery must be resolved directly between the buyer, the merchant, and the respective payment gateway (PayPal, Stripe, Flutterwave, or card-issuing bank).
• Merchant Enforcement & Penalties: Retaining customer funds for rejected or unfulfilled orders constitutes fraudulent conversion and a material breach of these Terms. AisleNode reserves the right to immediately and permanently ban any merchant from the network and report fraudulent non-refund practices to payment providers and relevant consumer protection authorities.

3. Autonomous Agent & Conversational AI Standards

AisleNode exposes standard Model Context Protocol (MCP) resources and tool definitions. AI models, orchestrators, and automated agents accessing our platform must comply with the following operational policies:

3. WhatsApp & Direct Dispatch Communications

AisleNode provides structured links enabling shoppers and merchants to coordinate order hand-offs via WhatsApp:

• Direct Communication: Communication occurs peer-to-peer between the customer and the merchant. AisleNode does not transmit automated unsolicited outbound marketing messages or promotional blasts.
• Compliance with Messaging Policies: Merchants using our dispatch links agree to adhere to Meta's WhatsApp Business Messaging Policies, and may not use our links to facilitate transactions for restricted or prohibited goods.
• Privacy of Contact Details: Customer phone numbers and fulfillment instructions provided during checkout may only be used to facilitate that specific order.

4. Store Verification & Discoverability

To maintain catalog reliability for shoppers and agent networks, stores are kept in an unlaunched draft state and excluded from public search results and MCP discovery until the merchant fulfills four verification criteria:

1. A verified physical street address and non-zero latitude and longitude coordinates are provided.
2. A direct, reachable merchant WhatsApp telephone number is linked.
3. A verified direct payout account (Stripe, PayPal, or Flutterwave) is active.
4. At least one valid in-stock product is published to the catalog.

AisleNode reserves the right to unlist or suspend any store that provides inaccurate coordinates, inactive phone numbers, or fraudulent listings.

5. Protocol Software Fees & Invoicing

AisleNode assesses a 10% Protocol Software Fee on confirmed orders processed through the platform.

• Monthly Billing in Arrears: Fees are calculated at the end of each 30-day merchant billing cycle based on completed order totals.
• Invoice Settlement: Invoices are issued through Lemon Squeezy, our merchant of record for protocol software licensing.
• Payment Terms: Merchants are provided a 7-day settlement window upon invoice generation. Unpaid accounts may experience paused agent discoverability until outstanding balances are cleared.

6. Disclaimers & Limitation of Liability

THE AISLENODE SERVICES, APIS, AND PROTOCOL TOOLS ARE PROVIDED “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE,” WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, OR NON-INFRINGEMENT.

AISLENODE SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF MERCHANT-CUSTOMER FULFILLMENT DISPUTES, INCORRECT GPS COORDINATES, PRODUCT QUALITY ISSUES, OUTAGES OF THIRD-PARTY LLM PROVIDERS, OR UNAUTHORIZED ACCOUNT ACCESS.

7. Termination

You may terminate your merchant account at any time by ceasing use of the platform and settling any accumulated arrears fees. We reserve the right to suspend or terminate access for any user or API client that violates these Terms or threatens protocol integrity.

8. Contact

Questions regarding these Terms or our agent integration guidelines should be sent to aislenode@soltrixstudios.com.