runcabin.com/terms

Terms of Service

Last Updated: October 15, 2026

1. Acceptance of Terms

By signing up for, accessing, or using the RunCabin platform ("Service"), you ("Customer") agree to be bound by these Terms of Service ("Terms"). If you are entering into these Terms on behalf of a business or other legal entity, you represent that you have authority to bind that entity. If you do not agree to these Terms, do not use the Service.

2. Description of Service

RunCabin (operated by Ryan Mergen, Baltimore, MD) provides a platform for designing, publishing, and hosting AI-agent-enabled websites. Each published site (a "Cabin") includes:

  • Generated web pages, images, and interactive web programs backed by a real Postgres schema;
  • A 24/7 conversational AI agent powered by Anthropic's Claude models, metered against your Cabin token balance;
  • A private GitHub repository maintained by RunCabin containing the source code of your Cabin, available for one-time ownership buyout under Section 8;
  • An AGENTS.md development contract baked into the repository for use by downstream AI coding tools;
  • Containerized hosting on shared or dedicated infrastructure operated by RunCabin, with TLS/SSL certificates and email forwarding included.

The Service does not hold or process funds on your behalf. If your Cabin sells products or accepts payments, you are responsible for connecting your own payment processor (Stripe or otherwise) and complying with that processor's terms.

3. Fees & Payment Terms

3.1 Free Trial. New accounts receive a one-time grant of 250,000 Cabin tokens for design-time use of the AI builder. No credit card is required to use the free trial.

3.2 Publishing Fee. Publishing a Cabin from the RunCabin AI builder to a live URL costs $9.99 USD per month, billed in advance via Stripe and beginning on the date your Cabin first goes live. This fee includes:

  • Containerized hosting;
  • TLS/SSL certificate provisioning and renewal;
  • Inbound email forwarding for your Cabin's domain;
  • Versioned source-code history for your Cabin, maintained in a private GitHub repository (ownership buyout available under Section 8.4);
  • Platform updates, security patches, and the underlying orchestrator infrastructure.

The $9.99/mo fee is launch pricing and may be increased on 30 days' written notice as described in Section 16.

A website hosted through RunCabin's AI assistant tools (its MCP server and API) is free on a RunCabin address. Hosting it on your own domain costs $4.99 USD per month or $47.99 USD per year, as you choose at checkout, billed in advance via Stripe; it renews each period until cancelled under Section 3.7.

3.3 Cabin Tokens & AI Usage. AI calls made by your Cabin's agent - chat conversations, image generations, and any other AI features - are metered in Cabin tokens and debited from your account balance in near real time. RunCabin pays the upstream model providers (Anthropic, OpenAI, and others) and resells access at a margin disclosed on our pricing page. You are responsible for maintaining a positive Cabin token balance. If your balance reaches zero, AI features on your published Cabin will pause until the balance is topped up; the rest of the site (pages, images, web programs not requiring live AI) remains online.

Optional auto-refill is available: when enabled, your card on file is charged a pre-set amount when your balance crosses a threshold you choose. You can disable auto-refill at any time from your dashboard.

3.4 Domain Registration. If you ask RunCabin to register a domain on your behalf through our registrar partner, the registration fee is shown before you pay (typically $10-$25 per year depending on the TLD). We register it through RunCabin's registrar account on your behalf, and it belongs to you. If you cancel or your subscription otherwise ends, we release the domain to you: we will provide the transfer authorization code at no charge so you can move the domain to any registrar of your choosing. RunCabin does not hold domains hostage under any circumstance.

3.5 Refunds. Publishing, hosting and other subscription fees, whether billed monthly or yearly, are non-refundable except as required by law or as expressly stated in Section 7.2. Cabin tokens purchased are non-refundable once consumed; unused tokens may be refunded at our discretion within 30 days of purchase. Domain registration and renewal fees are non-refundable once the registrar has registered or renewed the domain, so a domain purchase cannot be refunded once the domain is registered. If a domain you paid for cannot be registered (for example, because someone else registers it first), we refund that domain's charge. If RunCabin cannot complete a move of an existing website you paid for, that move's fee is refunded under Section 8.7(g).

3.6 Late Payment. If a payment fails and is not cured within 7 days of written notice, RunCabin may suspend the Service (Cabin offline, AI agent disabled) until payment is received. Repeated failures may result in termination under Section 7.

3.7 Cancellation. You may cancel your subscription at any time at runcabin.com/cancel or by emailing hello@runcabin.com. Cancellation takes effect at the end of the then-current billing period, whether monthly or yearly. Any domain registered through RunCabin remains yours: upon cancellation we will release it to you at no charge, providing the transfer authorization code per Section 3.4. Your Cabin's source-code repository is retained and remains available for ownership buyout after cancellation - see Section 8.4 (for a website plan order, Section 8.8).

3.8 Repository Buyout. You may purchase full ownership of your Cabin's source-code repository at any time - while subscribed or after cancellation - for a one-time fee of $99.99 USD. See Section 8.4 for what the buyout includes and how to complete it. Customers whose subscriptions began before June 10, 2026 are exempt - see Section 8.6. This section does not apply to a website ordered through the site planner, whose code is covered by Section 8.8.

3.9 Website Plan Orders. If you order a website through our site planner at runcabin.com/spec (open to homes in every U.S. state), you pay a one-time website build fee of $499 USD and a hosting subscription of $39.99 USD per month or $479.88 USD per year, as you choose at checkout. Each optional tool you pick in the planner's Tools for families step, such as a calculator, adds a one-time charge of $199 USD, shown in your total before you pay. Optional add-ons you pick in the planner (such as online payments, live booking or chat), and sections beyond the number your build includes, add the one-time and monthly charges shown in your total before you pay; a monthly add-on charge renews with your hosting subscription until cancelled under Section 3.7, and an AI add-on's use is paid with Cabin tokens. The build fee, any tool and add-on charges, and the first hosting period are charged together at checkout via Stripe. The build fee is non-refundable. The hosting subscription renews automatically each period until cancelled under Section 3.7. RunCabin builds the site from the answers, photos, and files you give us, with a target delivery within 7 days of payment; we email you when it is ready. Additional sections you describe in the planner are not part of the build fee until RunCabin approves them; if one would change the price, we tell you the price before building it, and you may decline it. When the planner shows a price for a domain we register for you, you pay that price for its first year at checkout, and its renewal price, also shown before you pay, is charged once a year after that on the same card until your hosting subscription ends; ending your hosting also stops the domain's renewals. If the planner shows no price, or the domain you pick is a premium domain, we confirm its price with you before registering it. Connecting a domain you already own costs nothing extra. A domain we register for a planner order belongs to you. We keep it registered in RunCabin's name on your behalf so we can manage its web and email settings (DNS, MX and other email records) for you. We release the domain to you on request, providing the transfer authorization code at no charge, and it stays yours whether or not you buy your site's code. RunCabin owns your site's code. You may change the code while we host your site, and if you want to leave, you may buy the code for a one-time fee of $1,999 USD and take it with you (Section 8.8). If your plan includes an AI assistant for your visitors, it is not part of the build fee or hosting: its use is paid separately with Cabin tokens, and it is turned on only with your OK.

4. Account Responsibilities

4.1 Accurate Information. You agree to provide accurate, current, and complete information when creating your account and to keep that information updated, including any registrant details required for domain registration.

4.2 Account Security. You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account credentials, the integrity of any GitHub repository transferred to you, and all activity that occurs under your account. RunCabin authenticates sign-in via first-party HttpOnly cookies (described in our Privacy Policy).

4.3 Third-Party Services. You are solely responsible for any third-party services you connect to your Cabin - payment processors, email senders, analytics, or others - including compliance with their respective terms.

5. Prohibited Content and Conduct

The following are strictly prohibited on the RunCabin platform. Violation of any item in this section may result in immediate termination without refund.

  • 5.1 Publishing, listing, or advertising illegal products or services in any jurisdiction the Cabin is accessible from.
  • 5.2 Selling, listing, or distributing counterfeit goods or content that infringes any third party's intellectual property rights.
  • 5.3 Publishing misleading or deceptive advertising, false product claims, or content designed to defraud consumers.
  • 5.4 Hosting or distributing malware, spyware, ransomware, or any malicious code.
  • 5.5 Operating any phishing scheme or collecting user credentials under false pretenses.
  • 5.6 Publishing adult or sexually explicit content without prior written approval from RunCabin. (If you intend to operate an adult-content Cabin, you must request and receive written approval before launching. Note that upstream model providers also prohibit generating sexually explicit imagery and will refuse such requests at the API level.)
  • 5.7 Using your Cabin's email infrastructure or AI agent to send unsolicited bulk email (spam), including purchased email lists or mass campaigns to non-consenting recipients. Violation of this provision is grounds for immediate termination.
  • 5.8 Using your Cabin's AI agent to extract or repackage RunCabin's system prompts, internal data, or API keys, or to facilitate denial-of-service or token-burn attacks against the Service or upstream providers.
  • 5.9 Copying or impersonating a website, brand, or business you do not own or are not authorized to represent, including using RunCabin's tools to move ("port") another party's website onto RunCabin.

6. Reputation and Platform Integrity

RunCabin operates on shared infrastructure and its reputation directly affects the reliability of the platform for all customers. RunCabin reserves the right to immediately terminate your Cabin if, in RunCabin's sole reasonable judgment, your Cabin or conduct:

  • Damages or poses a material risk to RunCabin's business reputation;
  • Causes RunCabin to be suspended, rate-limited, or penalized by an upstream AI provider (Anthropic, OpenAI, etc.);
  • Violates the terms of our domain registrar or causes domain-related penalties;
  • Causes RunCabin's IP addresses, domains, or sending reputation to be blacklisted by any major spam, fraud, or security authority (e.g. Spamhaus, Google Safe Browsing, or similar).

Termination under this section is termination for cause. No refund of any fees or unused Cabin tokens will be issued.

7. Termination

7.1 Termination for Cause. RunCabin may terminate your account immediately and without prior notice for violation of these Terms. No refund will be issued upon termination for cause.

7.2 Termination for Convenience. Either party may terminate the Service without cause at any time. RunCabin will provide a prorated refund of the publishing or hosting fee for the current billing period, whether monthly or yearly, if RunCabin initiates termination without cause. You may cancel at any time per Section 3.7; partial-period refunds are not issued for customer-initiated cancellations, whether you are billed monthly or yearly.

7.3 Effect of Termination. Upon termination, your Cabin will be taken offline and its container, Postgres data, and uploaded media may be deleted after a reasonable retention period (typically 30 days). Your Cabin's source-code repository is retained by RunCabin and remains available for ownership buyout (Section 8.4, or Section 8.8 for a website plan order) after termination. Domains registered through RunCabin are yours regardless of how or why the Service ends - we will release the domain to you per Section 3.4. You are responsible for exporting any data you wish to retain prior to termination.

8. Intellectual Property & Code Ownership

8.1 Your Content. You retain all ownership rights to content you create and upload to your Cabin. By using the Service, you grant RunCabin a limited, non-exclusive license to host, display, and back up your content solely for the purpose of operating your Cabin.

8.2 Your Cabin's Source Code. Except for a website ordered through the site planner (Section 8.8), each published Cabin's generated source code (HTML, CSS, JavaScript, server-side code, the AGENTS.md contract, and configuration) is maintained in a private GitHub repository operated by RunCabin. While your subscription is active, RunCabin hosts and operates that code for you as part of the Service. You may purchase full ownership of the repository at any time through a Repository Buyout (one-time fee of $99.99, Section 3.8). Upon completion of a Repository Buyout, RunCabin transfers the repository to your GitHub account or organization and grants you a perpetual, irrevocable, royalty-free license to use, modify, copy, and host the generated code on infrastructure of your choosing, with or without RunCabin. That license survives termination of the Service.

What the licence does not include: the RunCabin orchestrator, AI builder ("Cobble"), meter proxy, dashboard, billing system, the Vibe SDK server runtime, or any other RunCabin-owned infrastructure that lives outside your Cabin's repository. Those remain RunCabin's intellectual property under Section 8.3.

8.3 RunCabin Platform. RunCabin retains all rights, title, and interest in the platform, orchestrator, AI builder, meter proxy, dashboard, infrastructure tooling, and any software that is not delivered to you via your Cabin's GitHub repository. Nothing in these Terms transfers ownership of those components to you.

8.4 Repository Buyout & Access After Cancellation. Your Cabin's repository is retained after cancellation and remains available for a Repository Buyout ($99.99 one-time, Section 3.8) at any time. To complete a buyout, email hello@runcabin.com; we will invoice you and transfer the repository to your GitHub account or organization, at which point the license in Section 8.2 takes effect.

8.5 Feedback. Any feedback, suggestions, or feature requests you submit may be used by RunCabin without obligation.

8.6 Customers Before June 10, 2026. If your publishing subscription began before June 10, 2026, the prior version of this Section 8 continues to apply to you: repository access is included with your subscription, the license in the prior Section 8.2 applies to you without any buyout, and ownership transfer of your repository is available on request at no cost. The Repository Buyout fee applies only to subscriptions started on or after June 10, 2026.

8.7 Moving an Existing Website to RunCabin. You may use RunCabin's tools, including its AI assistant tools and transfer wizards, to move an existing website that you own or control to RunCabin. When you do:

  • (a) Proof of control. Before RunCabin fetches or copies any part of an existing website, you must show that you control its domain (for example, by adding a DNS verification record RunCabin gives you). RunCabin may refuse or stop a move when that proof is missing or doubtful.
  • (b) Your rights in what you move. You represent and warrant that you own, or have every right needed to use, all text, images, logos, video, and other materials you move to RunCabin ("Imported Content"), and that moving them does not breach any agreement, including your previous provider's terms.
  • (c) What is not yours to move. Materials your previous website platform licensed to you only for use on that platform, such as its templates, designs, page code, stock media, and fonts, are not Imported Content. RunCabin rebuilds your site's design rather than copying the platform's, and flags such materials so they can be replaced. You are responsible for replacing any you choose to keep.
  • (d) Access you authorize. You authorize RunCabin, acting on your instructions, to read your existing website's public pages and, only when you approve it for a specific move, to change your domain's DNS settings through a connection you grant, a nameserver change, or records you add yourself, solely to complete that move. Any access credential you provide is stored encrypted, used only for the move, and deleted or revoked when the move is complete.
  • (e) Email and other services. Changing a domain's DNS settings can affect email and other services that use the domain. RunCabin copies the domain's existing records before a change and shows you each change before it is made, but you are responsible for reviewing them, and RunCabin is not liable for interruptions caused by records or settings held at your previous provider.
  • (f) No affiliation. RunCabin names other website platforms (for example, Wix, Squarespace, or GoDaddy) only to identify where a site is moving from. RunCabin is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by them, and their names and marks belong to their owners.
  • (g) Fees. Any fee for a move is shown before you pay and is governed by Section 3. If RunCabin cannot complete a move you paid for, RunCabin refunds that move's fee, except when the move is stopped because of your breach of these Terms (including under Section 5.9) or under Section 8.7(a). In every other case the move's fee is non-refundable. A domain that has been registered is not refunded in any case (Section 3.5).

8.8 Website Plan Orders: Your Domain and Your Site's Code. For a website ordered through the site planner (Section 3.9), this section applies instead of Sections 3.8, 8.2, 8.4 and 8.6:

  • (a) What is yours. Your domain (Section 3.9) and your content - your text, photos, logo, business name, and the leads and messages your site collects - belong to you (Section 8.1), whether or not you buy the code.
  • (b) What is RunCabin's. RunCabin owns your site's code: its HTML, CSS, JavaScript, templates, tools and configuration, including any changes made to it by you or by anyone working for you. RunCabin keeps it in a private repository.
  • (c) Changing the code. While RunCabin hosts your site, you may change its code yourself or have someone you choose change it for you. Email hello@runcabin.com for access.
  • (d) Buying the code. If you want to move your site away from RunCabin, you may buy its code for a one-time fee of $1,999 USD, while your hosting is active or after you cancel. Email hello@runcabin.com; we invoice you and, once it is paid, transfer the site's repository to your GitHub account or organization (or send you a copy of its files). From then on the code is yours to use, change, copy and host anywhere, with or without RunCabin. RunCabin may keep reusing its own templates, components and know-how in other websites. The buyout does not include the RunCabin platform (Section 8.3) or anything licensed from someone else, such as third-party services, fonts or stock images, which you license or replace yourself.
  • (e) Leaving without buying. If you cancel without buying the code, your site goes offline when your hosting ends (Section 3.7). You keep your domain and the rights to your content; the code stays with RunCabin.
  • (f) Earlier orders. This section applies to planner orders paid on or after October 15, 2026. An order paid before then keeps the terms in place when it was paid, except that its domain belongs to you as Section 3.9 now says.

9. DMCA / Copyright Complaints

RunCabin hosts websites created by its customers and acts as an online service provider under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act ("DMCA," 17 U.S.C. § 512). We respond to valid notices of claimed copyright infringement concerning content hosted on a Cabin and, in appropriate circumstances, remove or disable access to that content and terminate the accounts of repeat infringers.

9.1 Filing a Notice of Infringement. If you believe content on a RunCabin-hosted site infringes a copyright you own or are authorized to act for, send a written notice to our Designated Copyright Agent (Section 9.2) that includes all of the following:

  • Identification of the copyrighted work you claim has been infringed.
  • Identification of the material you claim is infringing, with enough detail and the URL(s) for us to locate it.
  • Your name, mailing address, telephone number, and email address.
  • A statement that you have a good-faith belief that the use of the material is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law.
  • A statement that the information in your notice is accurate and, under penalty of perjury, that you are the copyright owner or authorized to act on the owner's behalf.
  • Your physical or electronic signature.

Under Section 512(f) of the DMCA you may be liable for damages, including costs and attorneys' fees, if you knowingly materially misrepresent that material is infringing.

9.2 Designated Copyright Agent. Notices of infringement and counter-notices must be sent to RunCabin's Designated Copyright Agent:

RunCabin - DMCA Designated Agent
Ryan Mergen
Code Poetics, 306 W Redwood St Ste 200, Baltimore, MD 21201
hello@runcabin.com
Telephone: (443) 929-1313

RunCabin's designation of this agent is being filed with the U.S. Copyright Office's DMCA Designated Agent Directory. Notices sent to the agent above are acted on in the meantime.

9.3 Counter-Notification. If content you posted was removed or disabled and you believe this resulted from a mistake or misidentification, you may send a written counter-notice to the Designated Agent (Section 9.2) that includes: your physical or electronic signature; identification of the material that was removed and the location where it appeared before removal; a statement under penalty of perjury that you have a good-faith belief the material was removed as a result of mistake or misidentification; and your name, address, and telephone number, together with a statement that you consent to the jurisdiction of the federal district court for the district in which your address is located (or, if your address is outside the United States, the District of Maryland) and that you will accept service of process from the person who filed the original notice. If we receive a valid counter-notice, we may restore the material in 10 to 14 business days unless the original complainant first notifies us that they have filed a court action to restrain the activity.

9.4 Repeat Infringers. In accordance with Section 512(i) of the DMCA, RunCabin will, in appropriate circumstances, disable or terminate the accounts of customers who are repeat infringers. Such termination is a termination for cause under Section 7.

10. Customer Compliance Obligations

You are solely responsible for ensuring that your Cabin, its content, its AI agent's outputs, and your business operations comply with all applicable laws and regulations, including but not limited to: sales tax collection and remittance (if you sell products), business licensing, consumer protection laws, advertising disclosure rules, accessibility requirements, and the legality of your products or services in the jurisdictions where you operate. RunCabin provides hosting and tooling only and is not your legal, tax, or compliance advisor.

10.1 AI Agent Disclosures. You are responsible for any disclosures required by law for the AI features on your Cabin (for example: that visitors are talking to an AI, that automated decisions are being made, or that personal data is being processed). The default AI agent is configured to identify itself as an AI when asked; do not modify it to deny being an AI.

11. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless RunCabin, its owner, officers, and affiliates from and against any and all claims, damages, losses, liabilities, costs, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising out of or relating to: (a) your Cabin's content, products, or AI agent outputs; (b) your violation of these Terms; (c) your violation of any third-party rights; (d) any claim by a visitor, customer, or third party related to your Cabin; or (e) any Imported Content you move to RunCabin under Section 8.7.

12. Data and Backups

RunCabin makes reasonable efforts to maintain reliable infrastructure and periodic backups of Postgres data. However, RunCabin does not guarantee the availability, integrity, or retention of any backup data. You are strongly encouraged to maintain your own independent records and exports of all Cabin data, content, and customer information. RunCabin is not liable for any loss of data. Your GitHub repository (Section 8.2) is mirrored on GitHub's infrastructure and is the canonical copy of your Cabin's source code.

13. Disclaimer of Warranties

THE SERVICE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED. RUNCABIN EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, INCLUDING WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. RUNCABIN DOES NOT WARRANT THAT THE SERVICE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, ERROR-FREE, OR FREE OF HARMFUL COMPONENTS, OR THAT THE OUTPUTS OF ANY AI AGENT WILL BE ACCURATE, COMPLETE, OR FIT FOR ANY PARTICULAR PURPOSE.

14. Limitation of Liability

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, RUNCABIN'S TOTAL LIABILITY TO YOU FOR ANY CLAIM ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THESE TERMS OR THE SERVICE SHALL NOT EXCEED THE TOTAL PUBLISHING FEES PAID BY YOU IN THE THREE (3) MONTHS PRECEDING THE CLAIM. IN NO EVENT SHALL RUNCABIN BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, INCLUDING LOST PROFITS, LOST REVENUE, OR DATA LOSS, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

15. Governing Law and Dispute Resolution

These Terms shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Maryland, without regard to its conflict of law provisions. Any dispute arising under these Terms shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located in Baltimore, Maryland.

16. Changes to These Terms

RunCabin reserves the right to modify these Terms at any time. Material changes will be communicated via email to the address on your account or via notice on your dashboard at least 30 days before taking effect. Your continued use of the Service after the effective date constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms. If you do not agree to the revised Terms, your sole remedy is to cancel under Section 3.7.

17. Contact

Questions, concerns, or notices under these Terms should be directed to:

RunCabin
hello@runcabin.com
runcabin.com