Terms & conditions.

Accepting these terms.

These Terms and Conditions ("Terms") govern your use of the Tom Talks website, community, volunteer mentorship, and any in-person or virtual events (together, the "Services"). "Tom Talks," "we," "us," and "our" refer to Tom Talks, a live storytelling community hosted by Thomas Ma in Los Angeles and New York.

By visiting the site, sending a form, RSVPing, applying to speak or volunteer, or attending a room, you agree to these Terms and to the privacy practices on this page. If you do not agree, do not use the Services.

You need to be at least 13 to use the website. You need to be at least 18 to attend an in-person event, unless we say a room is 21+ because alcohol is served.

Joining the community.

Applying

When you ask for the guest list, volunteer as a mentor, request mentor time, apply to speak, or send a partner note, you agree to give us accurate information about who you are and how to reach you. Sending a form does not create an account, a ticket, a partnership, or a right to attend.

Access

We may accept, waitlist, decline, or later revoke access for capacity, safety, community standards, brand fit, or any other reason we decide matters for the room.

Roles

• Mentors. Alumni and builders who volunteer time with community groups, nonprofits, and organizers. Mentoring is unpaid unless we say otherwise in writing. Mentors are not employees, agents, or official spokespersons of Tom Talks.
• Organizers. Community groups, nonprofits, or teams who request mentor time through Tom Talks.
• Guests and speakers. Everyone invited into a room.

Leaving

We can remove you from the guest list, a room, the volunteer program, or any other form of participation if you violate these Terms or the code of conduct. To ask us to delete information you sent, use Contact us.

Events and the room.

Tom Talks events are invite-only unless we post them as open. Confirming an RSVP is a commitment to attend. If you cannot make it, cancel at least 48 hours before so we can offer the seat to someone on the waitlist.

An RSVP, invitation, or application does not guarantee entry. We may limit attendance, move the night, change the lineup, or cancel a room.

Some rooms serve alcohol and are limited to attendees aged 21 or older in the United States. Follow venue rules and staff instructions.

Photos, video, and event media

Photo, video, and audio are captured at every event. By attending, you agree that Tom Talks, Thomas Ma, and authorized collaborators may photograph, film, record, and otherwise capture you and the room. You grant Tom Talks a worldwide, perpetual, royalty-free right to use, edit, reproduce, publish, distribute, display, and license that media in any format or channel, including websites, social media, marketing, partner recaps, press, and other promotional or commercial uses, without further notice, approval, or compensation.

You waive any right to inspect or approve the finished media, and any claim related to likeness, privacy, publicity, or similar rights arising from that use, to the fullest extent permitted by law. If you do not agree, do not attend. If you would prefer not to be featured, tell us at the door and we will try to keep you out of close portraits. We cannot promise you will not appear in wide shots of the room.

We may cancel or reschedule any event. If a paid ticket is ever involved, refund terms will be posted at the time of purchase.

Community code of conduct.

The room only works if the people in it show up with the right energy. By joining the community you agree to:

• Come to give, not take. Contribute before you ask.
• Skip the pitch. Rooms are not sales floors. Save the deck for a follow-up coffee.
• Treat everyone with respect. No harassment, discrimination, or targeted meanness. In the room, on the site, or in messages that started from a room.
• Keep confidences. Stories told on the mic are told once. Do not post them, do not clip them, and do not repeat them out of context.
• Leave the format in the room. Do not record, livestream, or republish a talk without written permission from Tom Talks.

We may remove anyone from the community, a form of participation, or any event for behavior that undermines the room, without refund or explanation.

Your content and ours.

Your content

You own the content you send us (applications, bios, messages, testimonials, ideas). By sending it, you confirm you have the right to share it, and you grant Tom Talks a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to use, store, review, and display it to operate the Services and promote the community. Do not send confidential ideas unless a separate written agreement says otherwise.

Our content

The Tom Talks name, wordmark, monogram, slogans, room format, photography, event recordings, website design, and related materials are owned by Tom Talks or its licensors. All rights not expressly granted are reserved.

You may not copy, reuse, modify, redistribute, scrape, frame, or commercially exploit Tom Talks materials without prior written permission. This includes logos, flyers, agendas, photography, video, website copy, and partnership decks.

Press and confirmed partners may use approved marks only as described in the media kit, and only for the placement and window we approve.

Brand and identity.

No implied endorsement

Submitting an inquiry, attending an event, appearing in a room, or being listed among past guests does not create a partnership, sponsorship, endorsement, joint venture, or agency relationship. You may not claim to be a Tom Talks partner, sponsor, alumni program, or affiliate unless we have confirmed that relationship in writing for a specific room or campaign.

You may not use the Tom Talks name, look, slogans, or "in the style of Tom Talks" to promote your own event, product, or company.

Partner brand use

When a partnership is confirmed, each party may use the other’s name and approved marks only as agreed for that room or campaign. Unapproved edits to Tom Talks marks, event creative, or recap materials are not allowed. We may decline, revise, or remove partner creative that conflicts with community standards, venue rules, or the integrity of the room.

Past mentions

Names of companies, creators, or attendees shown on Tom Talks pages are for context and proof of rooms that have already happened. Those mentions do not grant you rights to use those third-party brands, and they do not mean those parties endorse you.

Enforcement

We may ask for removal of unauthorized Tom Talks brand use, misleading partnership claims, copied creative, or confusingly similar names or materials. We may also refuse service, revoke event access, end a partnership discussion, or pursue available legal remedies to protect the brand and the room.

Partnerships and payments.

Any sponsorship, gifting, or brand integration is subject to a separate written agreement. Fees, deliverables, timelines, and cancellation terms will be spelled out there. Nothing on this website, including the Partners page, constitutes an offer to contract.

All payments are non-refundable unless the written agreement says otherwise.

Privacy, in short.

Overview

This section explains what information we may collect when you visit the website, RSVP, apply to speak, apply to volunteer, submit a partner inquiry, or otherwise interact with Tom Talks online. By using the site or sending us information, you agree to this use.

What we collect

We may collect information you choose to provide, such as your name, email address, city, company or brand details, social profiles, RSVP details, speaker or mentor application details, partnership type, message content, and anything else you include.

If you use the community join form, we may store your name, email, social profiles, city, and what you are building.

If you use the partner form, we may store your partnership type, name, email, how you want to partner, your ask, and whether you acknowledged sponsorship pricing.

If you use the volunteer form, we may store the details you submit as a mentor or organizer.

We may also receive basic technical information, such as device type, browser type, referring pages, pages visited, approximate location, and usage data from hosting, analytics, RSVP, or embedded content providers.

How we use it

We use information to operate the website, manage RSVPs, review speaker and volunteer interest, evaluate partnership inquiries, send practical follow-ups, respond to messages, improve the experience, maintain security, and meet legal obligations.

If you RSVP or interact through a third-party service, such as Partiful, Instagram, or a hosting provider, that service may also process your information under its own privacy policy.

Sharing

We do not sell personal information. We may share information with service providers that help us run the site, host content, store form submissions, manage RSVPs, send messages, or support events. We may also share information if required by law, to protect rights and safety, or in connection with a business or organizational transition.

Cookies and embeds

The site may use cookies or similar technologies through hosting, analytics, social media, RSVP, or embedded content tools. You can manage cookies through your browser settings.

Retention

We keep information for as long as reasonably needed for the purposes above, including event administration, partnership review, communication records, security, and legal or operational needs.

Children

This website and event experience are not directed to children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13.

Requests

To ask a question about your information, or to request that we delete what you sent us, use Contact us.

Disclaimers and liability.

The Services are provided "as is" and "as available", without warranty of any kind, express or implied. We do not guarantee that the site will be uninterrupted, error-free, or always current, or that any partnership, introduction, or mentor conversation will produce a particular result.

Mentors, speakers, and guests speak for themselves. Tom Talks does not guarantee that any advice given on the site, in the room, or by a mentor is accurate or suitable for your situation.

The site may link to third-party services, including RSVP platforms, social platforms, embedded media, or external profiles. We are not responsible for third-party websites, policies, content, or practices.

To the fullest extent permitted by law, Tom Talks, Thomas Ma, and their organizers, contractors, mentors, and affiliates will not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages arising out of your use of the Services. Our total liability for any claim relating to the Services will not exceed $100 USD, or the amount you paid us in the 12 months before the claim, whichever is greater.

If you misuse the Tom Talks name, copy our materials, or send content you do not have the right to share, you agree to cover the losses we reasonably incur because of that.

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of New York, without regard to conflict-of-law rules. If a court in New York is the right place for a dispute, that is where it will be heard.

Changes to these terms.

We may update these Terms from time to time. When we do, we will bump the version number at the top of this page and update the effective date. The posted version is the binding version. If we have a way to reach you from a form you already sent, we may also send a note about material changes. Continued use of the Services after changes are posted means you accept the updated Terms.

How to reach us.

For privacy requests, terms questions, brand permission, or anything related to Tom Talks, use Contact us. That form is the only way to reach us. We do not publish a public inbox, and a social comment or DM is not a notice to us.

Tom Talks. Los Angeles and New York.