Ignition Race — Disclaimer

Last updated: 15.04.2026

By participating in the Ignition Race (“the Race”) as a builder, backer, or community member, you agree to the terms below. Read them carefully.

About the Race

The Ignition Race is a 30-day competitive program operated by Surge to surface and reward early-stage AI projects. Participation is voluntary and free. Surge may modify, pause, extend, restructure, or terminate the Race — including prize pool, ranking criteria, quests, and timelines — at any time, without prior notice or liability.

Eligibility

The Race is open to projects that complete enrollment, including founder verification and any required KYC. Surge reserves the right to refuse, disqualify, or remove any project or participant at sole discretion — including for incomplete profiles, suspected manipulation of Ignites or quest completion, fraudulent claims, bot activity, multi-accounting, or violation of our Terms of Service. Participation may be unavailable in certain jurisdictions. You are responsible for ensuring participation is lawful where you reside.

Ignites Are an Engagement Signal

Ignites are a non-monetary signal used to measure community attention. Ignites are not securities, financial instruments, currency, or property of any kind. They carry no cash value, cannot be sold, transferred, or redeemed, and expire on a rolling 30-day basis. Leaderboard rankings are informational and do not guarantee any prize, funding, or future opportunity.

Prizes

The advertised $250,000 prize pool ($100K / $60K / $40K / $30K / $20K) is allocated as project funding to the top 5 ranked projects. The form, structure, and timing of funding will be mutually agreed between Surge and each winning project, and may include — without limitation — an Ignition Launch, direct grant, SAFE, SAFT, or equivalent instrument, milestone-based disbursement, credits, or a combination thereof.

Distribution is contingent on the winning project:

• Executing all required agreements with Surge

• Completing compliance and KYC checks

• Meeting any additional conditions Surge or its partners may set

If Surge and a winning project cannot reach mutual agreement on funding structure within a reasonable timeframe, Surge reserves the right to substitute an alternative arrangement of equivalent value or, at its discretion, reallocate the prize.

“Beyond Cash” benefits — including VC introductions, KOL exposure, co-marketing, advisory sessions, and Surge badges — are offered on a best-efforts basis. Surge does not guarantee specific partnerships, outcomes, or investment from any third party.

Judging

Final rankings are determined by a combination of community Ignition activity and an independent judging panel. Surge’s decisions on rankings, disqualifications, and prize allocation are final.

Not Investment, Legal, Tax, or Financial Advice

Nothing on this page, the Surge platform, project profiles, founder pitches, livestreams, or related materials constitutes investment, legal, tax, accounting, or financial advice. Backing a project on Surge does not grant equity, ownership, revenue rights, or any guaranteed return. Early-stage projects carry substantial risk, including total loss of any contributed funds. Consult qualified professional advisors before making any financial decision.

Project Information

Surge displays third-party data through integrations including Stripe, PayPal, Shopify, GitHub, Google Analytics, and Mixpanel. While we verify connections, we do not independently audit project claims, financials, technology, or roadmaps. All project information is provided “as is.” Backers are solely responsible for their own due diligence.

Forward-Looking Statements

Project roadmaps, milestones, projections, and pitches contain forward-looking statements that involve risk and uncertainty. Actual outcomes may differ materially. Surge makes no representation regarding any project’s future performance or commercial success.

User-Generated Content

Live pitches, founder chats, tweets, and other user content reflect the views of the individuals posting them — not Surge. Surge does not endorse or assume responsibility for statements made by founders, backers, or any third party on or about the platform.

Limitation of Liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, Surge, its affiliates, partners, and contractors disclaim all liability for any direct, indirect, incidental, consequential, or punitive damages arising from participation in the Race, reliance on platform information, or interaction with any project or participant.

Governing Terms

This disclaimer is incorporated into the Surge Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. In the event of conflict, the Terms of Service control.

Questions: [e-mail]