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Techstars Engagement Terms and Conditions

Last updated: July 23, 2025

1.  Agreements. These Techstars Engagement Terms and Conditions, which include and incorporate the Techstars Data Protection Terms attached hereto as Annex 1 (“Terms and Conditions”) apply to the provision of all products and services (the “Programs”) provided to you (“Partner”) by Techstars Central LLC (“Techstars”) pursuant to any agreement, order, schedule, or other document that expressly references or incorporates these Terms and Conditions (each a “Schedule”, and collectively with these Terms and Conditions, the “Agreement”). All capitalized terms not defined in these Terms and Conditions shall have the meaning given to them in any applicable Schedule.  For purposes of this Agreement, the term “Affiliate” means, any other person or entity who, directly or indirectly, controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with the party.

2.  Fees.  Partner will pay any fees stated in a Schedule within thirty (30) days of the date of the applicable invoice.  Unless otherwise stated in the Schedule, all fees will be invoiced up-front on the Effective Date. Fees for any Renewal Term may be invoiced one month prior to the start of such Renewal Term. If any amount due under the Agreement is not paid when due, such amount will bear interest at a rate of 5% per month (or, if lower, at the maximum rate permitted under applicable law), charged daily until the balance is paid in full. Partner shall also reimburse Techstars for all reasonable costs incurred in collecting late payments, including, without limitation, attorneys’ fees. In addition to all other remedies available under this Agreement or applicable law, Techstars will only be obligated to provide services when it has received all fees due according to the Schedule and Techstars may delay, suspend or stop the delivery of any services for non-payment of fees. All fees are non-refundable and are exclusive of any taxes, levies, duties or similar governmental assessments of any nature, including applicable national, state, provincial or local sales or use taxes, value added taxes and withholding taxes (collectively, “Taxes”). Partner is responsible for paying all Taxes associated with its payments hereunder, excluding taxes on Techstars’ net income. If Techstars has the legal obligation to charge Taxes for which Partner is responsible under the Agreement, Techstars will invoice Partner and Partner will pay that amount unless Partner provides Techstars a valid tax exemption certificate from the appropriate taxing authority. Partner will bear all of its own costs of participation in the Programs, which shall not be considered part of the fees. If Partner mandates the use of any third-party payment or invoicing vendor (e.g. Ariba) to Techstars, Techstars shall have the right to invoice Partner for any expenses or fees incurred or charged by such third-party payment vendor to Techstars in connection with this Agreement.

3.  Termination and Changes.  

a.  Termination for Cause. Either party (“Terminating Party”) may terminate all or any part of this Agreement for cause: (i) upon 30 days’ written notice to the other party of a material breach if such breach remains uncured at the expiration of such period, (ii) upon 30 days’ written notice if the other party (or its Affiliate) is in material breach of the terms of any other agreement with the Terminating Party (or its Affiliate) (a “Cross Breach”), including any limited partnership or other investment agreements, or (iii) if the other party becomes the subject of a petition in bankruptcy or any other proceeding relating to insolvency, receivership, liquidation or assignment for the benefit of creditors. In the event of a Cross Breach, the Terminating Party may delay, suspend, or stop the delivery of services under this Agreement or any related Schedule.

b.  Survival. Sections 2 (Fees), 3 (Termination and Changes), 5 (Confidential Information), 6.c (Disclaimer of Warranties), 7 (Limitation of Liability), and 9 through 14 of these Terms and Conditions will survive any termination or expiration of the Agreement. 

c.  Changes. Techstars may change or supplement these Terms and Conditions at any time, so long as it does not change the fees or deliverables set forth in the Schedule, by providing an updated version of the Terms and Conditions on this website and such changes will be binding on Partner 10 days following the date such updated version is posted to this website.

4.  Use of Marks & Program Name. 

a. Use of Marks. Upon the execution of the Schedule, each party hereby grants to the other party and its Affiliates a limited, non-transferable, royalty-free and non-exclusive license during the Term to reproduce, display and use its names, trade names, logos and/or services marks (“Marks”) in connection with the performance of the other party’s obligations under this Agreement and as otherwise set forth in any Schedule. Any use of the other party’s Marks beyond the rights in the foregoing license shall require the prior approval of the other party’s appointed representative and such use shall be in accordance with any Marks usage control guidelines provided by the other party and updated from time to time. All goodwill that accrues from the use of a party’s Marks shall accrue to the party owning such Marks.

b. Use of Program Name. Upon the execution of the Schedule, each party hereby grants to the other party and its Affiliates an unlimited, non-transferable, royalty-free and non-exclusive license to reproduce, display and use the name of any Program (which may include either of the Party’s name or trade name) to reference or otherwise refer to the Program.

5.  Confidential Information. Definition.

a.  “Confidential Information” means all information disclosed by a party (“Disclosing Party”) to the other party (“Receiving Party”) in connection with the Agreement, disclosed in any manner that is designated as confidential or reasonably should be understood to be confidential given the nature of the information and the circumstances of disclosure. Confidential Information includes, but is not limited to, the terms of this Agreement and all Schedules and, in the case of Techstars, the names of mentors in its network. The parties acknowledge that there may be multiple parties involved in the Programs, and each agrees to use reasonable efforts to mark its written Confidential Information accordingly. Confidential Information shall not include any information that, without breach of any obligation owed by the Disclosing Party, (i) is or becomes generally known to the public, (ii) was known to the Receiving Party prior to its disclosure by the Disclosing Party, (iii) is received from a third party, or (iv) was independently developed by the Receiving Party.

b.  Protection of Confidential Information. Except as otherwise permitted in writing by the Disclosing Party, the Receiving Party shall (i) use the same degree of care that it uses to protect the confidentiality of its own confidential information of like kind (but in no event less than reasonable care), (ii) not disclose or use any Confidential Information of the Disclosing Party for any purpose outside the Programs, and (iii) limit access to Confidential Information of the Disclosing Party to those of its employees, contractors and agents who need such access for purposes consistent with this Agreement and who have signed confidentiality agreements with the Receiving Party containing protections no less stringent than those herein.

c.  Compelled Disclosure. The Receiving Party may disclose Confidential Information of the Disclosing Party if it is compelled by law to do so, provided the Receiving Party gives the Disclosing Party prior notice of such compelled disclosure (to the extent legally permitted) and reasonable assistance, at the Disclosing Party’s cost, if the Disclosing Party wishes to contest the disclosure. If the Receiving Party is compelled by law to disclose the Disclosing Party’s Confidential Information as part of a civil proceeding to which the Disclosing Party is a party, and the Disclosing Party is not contesting the disclosure, the Disclosing Party will reimburse the Receiving Party for its reasonable cost of compiling and providing secure access to such Confidential Information.

6.  Warranties; Disclaimer.

a.  Techstars Performance Standard.  Techstars warrants to Partner that (i) all work to be performed by Techstars hereunder shall be performed in a workmanlike and professional manner, and (ii) all Techstars personnel assigned to operate the Programs will possess the skill reasonably necessary to operate the Programs.

b.  Representations and Warranties.  Each party represents and warrants to the other party that (i) it has the right to enter into this Agreement and perform its obligations hereunder; (ii) the person executing this Agreement on its behalf has been authorized to do so; (iii) this Agreement constitutes its valid, legal and binding obligation enforceable in accordance with its terms; and (iv) it will comply in all material respects with all laws and regulations applicable to its activities under this Agreement.

c.  Disclaimer of Warranties.  EXCEPT AS EXPRESSLY SET FORTH IN THIS SECTION, AND TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, THE PROGRAMS AND ALL DELIVERABLES ARE PROVIDED “AS-IS” AND TECHSTARS DISCLAIMS ANY REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, REGARDING THE PROGRAMS OR DELIVERABLES, INCLUDING ANY IMPLIED WARRANTY OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, OR TITLE.

7.  Limitation of Liability. IN NO EVENT SHALL EITHER PARTY BE LIABLE TO THE OTHER PARTY FOR ANY INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, INDIRECT, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, LOST PROFITS) REGARDLESS OF WHETHER SUCH LIABILITY IS BASED ON A BREACH OF CONTRACT, TORT, STRICT LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTIES, FAILURE OF ESSENTIAL PURPOSE OR OTHERWISE AND EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. BOTH PARTIES’ AGGREGATE LIABILITY FOR ANY AND ALL CLAIMS, DAMAGES OR EXPENSES ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO THIS AGREEMENT, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE) OR OTHERWISE, WILL NOT EXCEED THE FEES PAID BY PARTNER TO TECHSTARS DURING THE 12 MONTH PERIOD PRECEDING THE DATE THE CLAIM AROSE. THE FOREGOING LIMITATIONS OF LIABILITY WILL NOT APPLY TO ANY FEES OR OTHER AMOUNTS DUE TO TECHSTARS UNDER THE AGREEMENT.

8.  Compliance Regulations.  In connection with this Agreement, each party will comply with all applicable import, re-import, sanctions, anti-boycott, export, and re-export control laws and regulations, including all such laws and regulations that apply to a U.S. company, and economic sanctions programs implemented by the Office of Foreign Assets Control. Each party represents and warrants that it, and its officers, directors, employees, and Affiliates, is not subject to sanctions or otherwise designated on any list of prohibited or restricted parties, including but not limited to the lists maintained by the United Nations Security Council, the U.S. Government (e.g., the Specially Designated Nationals List and Foreign Sanctions Evaders List of the U.S. Department of Treasury, and the Entity List of the U.S. Department of Commerce), the European Union or its Member States, or other applicable government authority. Each party further represents and warrants that it is not owned or controlled, directly or indirectly, by any person or entity that is the subject of any such sanctions or restrictions. Techstars prohibits the corruption of government officials and the payments of bribes or kickbacks of any kind, whether in dealings with public officials or individuals in the private sector. Each party represents and warrants that it will comply with all applicable laws and regulatory requirements in connection with all business activities in connection with this Agreement, including laws against bribery, corruption, inaccurate books and records, inadequate internal controls, money-laundering, the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and U.K. Bribery Act.

9.  Relationship of the Parties. The parties will perform hereunder as independent contractors. Nothing contained in this Agreement shall be deemed to create any association, partnership, joint venture, or relationship of principal and agent between the parties.

10.  Assignment.   Neither party may assign its rights or delegate its duties under this Agreement either in whole or in part without the prior written consent of the non-assigning party, provided that Techstars may assign its rights and/or delegate its duties under the Agreement either in whole or in part to any Affiliate of Techstars, provided that written notice of such assignment is provided to Partner within 30 days thereof.

11.  Force Majeure.  Each party shall be excused from performance of their obligations under this Agreement if such a failure to perform results from compliance with any requirement of applicable law, acts of God, fire, strike, pandemic, epidemic, governmental order, embargo, terrorist attack, war, insurrection or riot or other causes beyond the reasonable control of such party. Any delay resulting from any of such causes shall extend performance accordingly or excuse performance, in whole or in part, as may be reasonable under the circumstances.

12.  Governing Law; Arbitration.  The parties agree to this section as the exclusive manner and means for resolving all disputes related to this Agreement. Any dispute will be settled by final and binding arbitration by one arbitrator, mutually selected by the parties, sitting in New York, New York, in accordance with the rules of the American Arbitration Association (the “AAA”). If the parties cannot mutually agree on one arbitrator, the arbitrator will be selected in accordance with the rules of the AAA.  This Agreement will be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the United States, the State of New York without regard to its conflicts of law provisions. The United Nations convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods shall not apply. The language to be used in the arbitral proceedings will be English and all documents not in English will be accompanied by a translation into English.  The parties will equally bear the fees and out-of-pocket expenses of the arbitration, and the prevailing party will be entitled to its reasonable attorneys’ fees and expenses and will be reimbursed for the fees and expenses of the arbitration. Any decision of the arbitrator will be (a) a final and non-appealable determination of the matter, (b) binding upon each of the parties, and (c) enforceable by any court of competent jurisdiction.  Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this section, each party will have recourse to any court having jurisdiction for the sole purpose of seeking conservatory or interim measures (including temporary restraining orders or preliminary injunctions) or their equivalent, or for the purpose of such party’s enforcement of its intellectual property rights.

13.  Notices.  Any notice required or permitted by this Agreement shall be in writing and shall be delivered as follows, with notice deemed given as indicated: (a) by personal delivery, when delivered personally; (b) by confirmed electronic mail or facsimile if sent during normal business hours of the recipient, and if not so confirmed, then on the next business day; (c) by overnight courier, upon written verification of receipt; or (d) by certified or registered mail, return receipt requested, upon verification of receipt. Notices sent to Techstars shall be sent to the attention of the legal department.

14.  Entire Agreement; Modifications. All terms of the relationship of the parties and Techstars provision of products and services to Partner are set forth in the Agreement, which supersedes all prior and contemporaneous agreements, proposals or representations, written or oral, concerning its subject matter. The parties agree that any term or condition stated in a Partner’s purchase order or in any other order documentation from Partner (excluding what is set forth in any Schedule) shall be void.  Except as expressly set forth herein, no modification, amendment, or waiver of any provision of this Agreement shall be effective unless in writing and signed by an authorized representative of each party.

Annex 1

Techstars Data Protection Terms

Techstars takes the privacy and security of personal data seriously. As part of the services provided under this Agreement, our Partners (each as defined in the Agreement) may receive, and each party may process, certain information about identified or identifiable individuals including Personal Data about Techstars participants, staff, and others.

These Data Protection Terms (the “Data Terms”) describe each party’s obligations with respect to its handling of Personal Data provided under the Agreement. Upon agreement by Partner, these Data Terms are incorporated into the Agreement between Partner and Techstars. Any capitalized terms not defined in these Data Terms will have the definition used in the Agreement. These Data Terms will control to the extent inconsistent with the Agreement.

1.  Definitions. In these Data Terms, the following terms will have the following meanings:

a.  “Controlling Party” means any party, to the extent such party acts as a controller or a business hereunder;

b.  "Data Protection Laws" means all laws, statutes, regulations, rules, treaties, executive orders, directives, opinions, guidance, or other official releases regarding the data protection, privacy, data security, confidentiality, and breach notification that are applicable to a party or Personal Data processed under the Agreement including, without limitation, and only to the extent applicable, Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (“GDPR”), Directive 2002/58/EC (the “ePrivacy Directive”), any laws implemented in European Union Member States thereunder and any successor directives or regulations thereof then in effect; the UK General Data Protection Regulation (“UK GDPR”); the Colorado Privacy Act effective as of July 1, 2023 (“CPA”); the California Privacy Rights Act of 2020 (“CPRA”) and the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (“CCPA”);

c.  "Participant Personal Data" means any Personal Data relating to participants in the Program that is provided to Partner by Techstars under the Agreement or as part of the Program;

d. “Personal Data” means any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person; an identifiable natural person is one who can be identified, directly or indirectly, in particular by reference to an identifier such as a name, an identification number, location data, an online identifier or to one or more factors specific to the physical, physiological, genetic, mental, economic, cultural or social identity of that natural person and includes, without limitation and as applicable, “Personal Identifiable Information” as defined in the CCPA.

e.  “Processing Party” means any party, to the extent such party acts as a Processor or service provider hereunder; and

f.  the terms “business” "controller", "data subject", "personal data breach", "process", "processor", “sell”, and “service provider” have the meanings as defined in the GDPR or the CCPA, even if such Data Protection Laws do not apply to a party.

2.  Compliance with Data Protection Laws. These Data Terms do not relieve each party of its obligations under the Data Protection Laws, and each party will be separately and independently responsible for complying with obligations that apply to it as a controller (or functionally equivalent role) under all applicable Data Protection Laws, as well as all other laws, rules and regulations applicable in relation to the party’s processing of Personal Data.

3.  Description of Data Processing. Processing Party will process Personal Data only for the purpose of fulfilling its obligations under the Agreement or the instructions of the Controlling Party, and, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, shall not sell any Program Personal Data.

4.  Controller/Processor.  For purposes of these Data Terms and the GDPR: (i) Partner and Techstars are each Controlling Parties with respect to any Participant Personal Data; and (ii) Techstars is the processor with respect to any Personal Data processed on behalf of and at the instruction of Partner under the Agreement or other agreements between Techstars and Partner.  Exhibit 1 to these Data Terms describes the parties’ responsibilities as joint controllers, and the lawful bases for processing personal data jointly controlled. In the event the parties anticipate that personal data will be processed in a way not described on Exhibit 1 hereto, the parties will cooperate in good faith to maintain compliance with the Data Protection Laws and any Exhibit attached directly to a Schedule will supersede the Exhibit 1 below.

5.  Processors. Processing Party will, and is hereby authorized to, process Personal Data solely on the documented instructions of the Controlling Party, including without limitation, as is reasonably necessary to perform its obligations under the Agreement, unless required to do so by Data Protection Laws to which the Processing Party is subject, and Processing Party notifies the Controlling Party of such legal requirement before processing (except where the law prohibits such disclosure on public interest grounds). The Personal Data processed, and purposes of processing are described further in the applicable Exhibit.

6.  Authorized Persons.  The Processing Party will ensure that persons authorized to process the Personal Data are under an appropriate contractual or statutory obligation of confidentiality with respect to such Personal Data.

7.  Termination. Processing Party will, solely to the extent processing as a Processing Party hereunder, cease processing Personal Data upon the termination or expiry of the Agreement, and at the Controlling Party’s option, either return or delete all copies of Personal Data unless (and solely to the extent and for so long as) applicable law requires the retention of such Personal Data.

8.  Non-Compliance Notice. Each Processing Party will immediately inform the Controlling Party if, in its opinion, an instruction of the Controlling Party violates any Data Protection Laws.

9.  Subprocessing.  Processing Party is authorized to appoint additional processors to process Personal Data on Processing Party’s behalf or perform its obligations under the Agreement ("Subprocessor"). The Processing Party will perform reasonable due diligence to ensure that any Subprocessors are able to, and are obligated by written contract to comply with, the Processing Party’s processing obligations under these Data Terms. Processing Party will notify Controlling Party of its Subprocessors at Controlling Party’s request.

10.  Security.  Taking into account the state of the art, the costs of implementation and the nature, scope, context and purposes of processing, as well as the risk of varying likelihood and severity for the rights and freedoms of natural persons, each party will implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to ensure a level of security appropriate to the risks posed to the security of Personal Data, including all measures required under applicable Data Protection Laws.

11.  Data Incidents. Processing Party will notify the Controlling Party without undue delay if Processing Party becomes aware or reasonably suspects a Personal Data Breach has occurred with respect to Personal Data processed under this Agreement.  Notifications to Techstars of a data incident or data breach should be sent to dataprivacy@techstars.com. Such notice will include all information reasonably required by the Controlling Party to comply with its obligations under the Data Protection Laws, and Processing Party will update such information as necessary. Processing Party will assist Controlling Party as reasonably necessary for Controlling Party to meet its obligations under applicable Data Protection Laws and in connection with any required notifications of a Personal Data Breach.

12.  Data Subject Rights.  Regardless whether acting as a Controller or Processor hereunder, each party will promptly notify the other party of any communication it receives directly from a data subject or supervisory authority regarding: (i) the processing of Personal Data under the Agreement; (ii) a party’s compliance with these Data Terms; or (iii) a data subject’s exercise of rights under applicable Data Protection Laws.  Notifications of communications to Techstars should be sent to privacy@techstars.com. Notifications to Partner should be sent to the address provided in the applicable Schedule unless another address is specified by Partner. To the extent reasonably necessary given the nature of the party’s processing, each party will use commercially reasonable efforts to assist the other party in the fulfilment of its obligations in relation to a data subject’s exercise of its rights under applicable Data Protection Laws or in connection with any response to data subjects or supervisory authorities.

13.  Assistance. To the extent necessary in relation to Processing Party’s processing of Personal Data hereunder, Processing Party will provide reasonable assistance to the Controlling Party with any data protection impact assessments or any prior consultations with supervisory authority which may be required under applicable Data Protection Laws. Further, upon a request from the Controlling Party, Processing Party will delete or return all Personal Data provided hereunder unless required by law to retain the Personal Data.

14.  Information. Each party will maintain, and the Processing Party will make available to the Controlling Party upon reasonable notice (and subject to any requirements or limitations regarding audits by the Controlling Party in the Agreement), all information reasonably necessary to demonstrate such party’s compliance with these Data Terms and the Data Protection Laws.

15.  Transfers.  Processing Party shall take all such measures as are necessary to ensure that the processing or transfer (directly or via onward transfer) of Personal Data processed under this Agreement that is protected by the GDPR or UK GDPR in or to a territory that is not deemed “adequate” data protection as determined by the European Commission under applicable Data Protection Laws is in compliance with applicable Data Protection Laws, which may include (for example) ensuring that any recipient has executed Standard Contractual Clauses or Binding Corporate Rules approved by the European Commission.

16.  Changes. In the event of any change in the Data Protection Laws, the parties will negotiate in good faith toward an agreement on any additional contractual terms which may be required following such changes.


Exhibit 1 to Techstars Data Protection Terms

As part of each party’s performance under the Agreement, the types of personal data described below may be processed as necessary in connection with such performance and for the specified purposes described below. The parties will cooperate to provide notice and obtain consents which may be necessary to process information in accordance with the below.

For all Programs, the following types of Personal Data may be processed:

  • Individual contact information (first name, last name, email, company name, title, biographic information) for the individuals from each of Partner and Techstars involved in the Program

For Programs that include accelerators or startup engagement, the following types of Personal Data may be processed:

  • Applicant/ participant information (first name, last name, email, biographic information) for individuals who apply to, are accepted for, or participate in the Program
  • Mentor information (first name, last name, email, biographic information) for any third-party mentors who participate in the Program

For Programs that include Techstars events, the following types of Personal Data may be processed:

  • Event invitation and attendee information (first name, last name, email, company, title, biographic information) for the third-party attendees of any event run as part of the Program