Terms of Service

Resource URI: xekta://docs/terms-of-service · Public copy: https://www.xekta.com/legal/terms

Version 2026-10-10 · Effective 10 October 2026

These terms are between you — a person buying through XEKTA with the help of your own AI agent — and Aumere, Inc., a Delaware corporation doing business as XEKTA ("XEKTA", "we"). You accept them yourself, on a XEKTA web page while signed in to your own account, before you can save a card; your agent can give you the link but cannot accept for you. If you do not accept, nothing is saved and nothing is bought.

You must be at least 18 years old to use XEKTA. By accepting these terms you confirm that you are.

1. What XEKTA is — and is not

XEKTA is a marketplace built for a simple idea: your AI agent should be able to buy real things from real shops, and never without your say-so. Shops list what they actually have in stock; your agent finds it, builds a cart, shows it to you, and places the order only after you approve it.

Today XEKTA is a pilot, and it does one thing: in-person pickup. You collect the goods at the shop and your card is charged at the counter, when you hand over your pickup code. Right now that means a small number of invited shops in one city. XEKTA does not deliver, ship, store or inspect goods, and nothing in these terms promises that it will.

What may change. XEKTA intends to grow beyond pickup — more shops, more cities, and other ways of getting goods to you, including delivery or shipping. Those are plans, not promises, and none of them exists today. If and when they arrive, the arrangement can change in ways that matter to you — including who the seller is (see the next paragraph), when your card is charged, and who handles a return. We will not apply any of that to you quietly: you will be asked to accept a new version of these terms first, and you can decline and stop using XEKTA instead.

Today the shop is the seller. Every purchase is a contract between you and the shop whose name appears in the cart. The shop sets the price, holds the stock, hands you the goods and is responsible for them. XEKTA provides the tools that connect your agent to the shop; XEKTA is not a party to the sale. If XEKTA ever sells to you directly — which would be the case for shipped orders — that is a different arrangement and requires a new version of these terms, which you would have to accept.

2. Your agent

You use XEKTA through an AI agent that you run and control. You are responsible for that agent and for the instructions you give it. XEKTA requires every agent to do three things, and refuses orders when they are skipped:

• Show you the cart — every item, quantity and price, the sales tax, any service fee, the total, the shop's name and pickup address — and wait for your answer before ordering.
• Never handle your card in chat. Cards are saved on a page hosted by our payment processor. No agent should ask you for a card number, and you should never type one into a conversation.
• Never place an order you did not approve. Any change to a cart after you approved it drops the approval; the agent must show it again.

An order your agent places after you approved the cart is your order. If you believe your agent placed an order you did not approve, cancel it at once: cancelling is free until the shop starts preparing it (see Free cancellation in section 3). If it has already been handed over, tell the shop through your agent (user.delivery.contest) or write to us at info@xekta.com within 24 hours of the handover. Do not simply leave an unwanted order uncollected: once a person at the shop has prepared it and marked it ready, it is charged even if nobody collects it (see Not collecting in section 3).

3. Payment

• Saving a card. Your agent gives you a one-time link to a page run by Stripe, our payment processor. You enter your card there. XEKTA never receives or stores your card number.
• Placing an order. You approve a cart in the approval box your chat app shows, or on a secure XEKTA web page your agent links you to. A cart over $200 is always approved on that web page, never in the chat box. When you approve a cart, the shop places a temporary authorization on your card for the total shown. This is a hold, not a charge. For items sold by weight, the hold is for the "up to" total (see Items sold by weight).
• Free cancellation. You can cancel an order for free, with nothing charged, until the shop starts preparing it. There is no time limit and no clock: the only thing that closes this right is the shop marking your order as being prepared, which it may do within a minute of you ordering. Once it has, the order stands — you can still collect it and nothing extra is owed, but you cannot cancel it, and if nobody collects it, it can be charged (see Not collecting). After that point only the shop can cancel it, for example if it runs out of stock.
• Paying. The charge happens at the counter, when you read out your pickup code and the shop types it in. If the shop can only hand over part of the order, only the reduced amount is charged. The one charge that happens without your code is the no-show charge described in Not collecting.
• Items sold by weight. Some fresh food is sold by the pound. You ask for it either by count (for example 3 apples, at about the average weight the shop gives) or by weight, in quarter-pound steps, up to 50 lb on one line. For items sold by weight you approve an estimated price and an "up to" price. The "up to" price is the estimate plus 15%, rounded up to the cent, and the hold on your card is the "up to" total including tax. The shop weighs your items when it prepares the order; your card is charged the weighed price plus tax, never more than the "up to" total you approved, and no second hold is placed for the weighing. The tax on the weighed price is the tax shown for the "up to" price, scaled down in proportion; any rounding difference is in your favour. When the order is ready you are told the final total, through your agent and by email; if the shop then reports an item missing, you are sent the corrected total. If the shop has less of an item than you asked for, it weighs what it has and you pay for that. If it has none, it reports the item missing and you decide, as with any other shortage; an item sold by weight is never offered as a replacement. If a shop starts preparing an order with items sold by weight and never weighs them, the order is not marked ready and is not charged; the hold expires on its own, usually within seven days.
• Restaurant orders. Restaurant orders are prepared as soon as the restaurant accepts them; choosing a later pickup time isn't available yet. You may add an optional tip when you approve a restaurant order; the whole tip goes to the restaurant, and it is charged with your order at pickup. Only you choose the tip, on XEKTA's approval box or page (always the page when the order is over $200) — your agent cannot add one or change it, and if you choose none, there is none. If you don't pick up a restaurant order after it is ready, the food, tax and tip are charged. If items are missing, a percentage tip is recalculated on what you receive and a fixed tip is reduced to at most the food you receive; a tip is never more than the one you approved. A restaurant that runs short of an item does not offer a replacement: you choose between going without it and cancelling the order. Menu options you choose (such as a size or extras) and their prices are part of the order you approve, and a short note you write for an item is passed to the restaurant with it.
• Swapping in something dearer. If the shop runs short, your agent is offered replacements and told what each one does to your order total. If you choose one that costs more than the item it replaces, the total goes up and your card is authorised again for the new amount: a new hold is placed first and the earlier one is released, so your bank may briefly show two pending holds. This only ever happens because you chose it — the amount never rises on its own, and you can always take a cheaper replacement, go without the item, or cancel. If your bank declines the larger hold, the swap simply does not happen and your original hold stands.
• Not collecting. The pickup window is 48 hours. It starts when the order is marked ready or, if you scheduled a pickup time, at that time. If a person at the shop marked the order as ready for pickup before the window closed — confirming they prepared it and set it aside for you — and you do not collect it within the window, your card is charged and the money is paid to the shop, the same as if you had collected it. The amount is what you would have paid at the counter: the order total including sales tax, less any items the shop reported it could not supply, and including any dearer replacement you chose; for items sold by weight, the weighed price; for a restaurant order, the tip as well (see Restaurant orders). It is never more than the hold on your card. XEKTA's own timer never marks an order with items sold by weight as ready. By preparing the order the shop already closed your right to cancel it, and the goods were set aside for you and nobody else. Nothing is charged, and the hold is released, if the order reached "ready" only because XEKTA's own timer moved it there, if the shop marked it ready only after the window had closed, or if the charge cannot be made. Either way you keep the right to dispute the outcome through your agent (user.delivery.contest). Holds that are released also expire on their own if nothing else happens to them first — usually within seven days.
• Sales tax. Until XEKTA moves a shop to Stripe Tax calculation, sales tax on that shop's orders is calculated at the single rate XEKTA set for the shop, as before, and shown to you before you approve. From then on, sales tax is calculated by Stripe Tax, our payment processor's tax service, for the shop's pickup address, item by item according to each item's tax class. The tax shown in the cart and on the approval screen is the amount Stripe calculated for that cart. If the tax cannot be calculated, the order does not go through and nothing is charged; XEKTA never estimates the tax. You can try again a minute later, or buy from another shop. One exception: for a substitute you are offered after checkout because an item was short, if the tax service cannot answer, the substitute's tax is calculated at the rate that applied to the item it replaces, and the new order total shown to you before you accept already includes it. The shop, as seller, is responsible for reporting and paying the tax.
• Local meals tax. From the time XEKTA moves a shop to Stripe Tax calculation, where that shop is in an area XEKTA has a local meals tax rate for, food the shop marks as prepared (such as deli items or a salad bar) carries that tax too, as its own line, in addition to sales tax. It is shown, named for the jurisdiction (for example "Fairfax County meals tax (4%)"), before you approve and on your receipt. The shop is responsible for reporting and paying it, the same as sales tax.
• Service fee. XEKTA currently charges buyers no service fee, and the cart shows this line as $0.00. If we introduce one we will change these terms, and you will be asked to accept the new version on a XEKTA web page before it applies to you.
• Other charges, including recurring ones. XEKTA may later introduce other charges — a per-order fee, a membership, or another recurring plan. We will never start a recurring charge without asking you first. Before any such charge, we will show you what it costs, how often it is charged, and how to cancel, and you will have to say yes to that specific offer. Accepting these terms is not agreement to a future subscription, and continuing to use XEKTA is not either.

4. Pickup

Your pickup code is your proof of purchase. Only you see it — XEKTA never shows it to the shop. You read it out at the counter, the shop types it in, and XEKTA checks it. Say it, or show it, only to the shop, at the counter. Anyone who has the code can collect your order and have your card charged for it.

5. If something is wrong

• Wrong or missing items, damaged goods. Tell your agent within 24 hours of the handover; it files a contest (user.delivery.contest) and the shop's payout is held while the shop responds. Refunds are issued by the shop through Stripe, back to the card you paid with.
• Substitutions. Your agent asks the shop to follow the substitution preference you set; a shop that cannot honour it will ask, through your agent, before handing over something else.
• Disputes with your card issuer. You may also dispute a charge with your bank. Because the shop is the seller, the shop answers the dispute. Please try the shop first — it is faster.

6. What you cannot buy here

XEKTA refuses to list, search for or sell the following, and your agent will tell you so: prescription and over-the-counter medication, supplements and vitamins, pharmacy items, baby formula, alcohol, tobacco and nicotine, firearms and ammunition, regulated goods, hazardous chemicals, controlled substances, adult products, medical devices, and anything that requires professional health judgement. Packaged food is in scope, and so is fresh food — produce, meat and seafood, deli, dairy and eggs, bakery and frozen — and prepared meals, from a restaurant or a shop's deli counter; the list above still applies to all of it.

7. Using XEKTA honestly

Do not use XEKTA to defraud a shop, to collect orders you did not place, to test stolen cards, to interfere with other buyers or with the service, or to make your agent bypass the approval step. We may suspend an account that does.

8. Your data

How we handle your data is in the Privacy Policy (https://www.xekta.com/legal/privacy.html). Accepting these terms includes accepting it.

9. What XEKTA does not promise

• Product information comes from the shop. XEKTA does not verify descriptions, ingredients, allergens, certifications or ratings and does not add any of its own. Your agent is required not to invent them either. If an allergen matters to you, ask the shop before you collect.
• Availability. Stock is real at the moment of search; a shop can still run out before you collect. You are then charged only for what you receive.
• The service is provided "as is". To the extent the law allows, XEKTA's total liability to you for anything arising from these terms is limited to the greater of $100 and the service fees you paid XEKTA in the three months before the claim. XEKTA is not liable for the goods themselves, for the shop's conduct, or for actions your agent takes outside the controls described in section 2. Nothing here limits liability that cannot be limited by law.

10. Changes to these terms

Each version carries a date, like the one at the top. When we change these terms, you accept the new version on a XEKTA web page while signed in to your account. Until you do, you cannot place new orders or save a card: your agent is given the link to pass on to you, and it cannot accept for you. Orders you placed before the change are not affected and carry on as normal: your orders page and your pickup codes stay available in the meantime. You can always stop using XEKTA instead.

Version history: the 2026-10-10 version changes the wording of nothing in these Terms; the Privacy Policy of the same version says what XEKTA puts into a shop's Square when the shop connects it.

The 2026-10-09 version changes the wording of nothing in these Terms; the Merchant Agreement of the same version says that Stripe's card processing fee is charged to the shop by Stripe.

The 2026-10-08 version changes the wording of nothing in these Terms; the Privacy Policy of the same version says the one-time code that confirms a buyer's phone number is sent through Prelude instead of Twilio.

The 2026-10-04 version adds to Placing an order in section 3 where you approve a cart: in your chat app's approval box or on a secure XEKTA web page your agent links you to, and a cart over $200 is always approved on that page; Restaurant orders now says the tip on such an order is chosen on that page. The same version of the Privacy Policy describes address suggestions and Use my current location.

The 2026-10-03 version adds Restaurant orders to section 3: a restaurant order is prepared as soon as the restaurant accepts it, with no later pickup time yet; you may add an optional tip when you approve it, which only you choose and which goes wholly to the restaurant; if you don't pick up after it is ready, the food, tax and tip are charged; a tip follows the food you receive and is never more than the one you approved; and a restaurant short of an item offers no replacement. Not collecting now says a no-show on a restaurant order includes the tip, and section 6 adds prepared meals to what is in scope; the list of what you cannot buy is unchanged. The same version of the Privacy Policy says how item notes are shared and kept, and that XEKTA's websites now ask before running analytics.

The 2026-09-08 version number change is the Merchant Agreement's acceptance clause (shops now accept orders automatically at checkout); nothing in these Terms of Service changed. The 2026-09-13 version adds one clause to section 3: if you choose a replacement that costs more than the item it replaces, your card is authorised again for the new total. The amount can only rise because you chose it, and you are shown the new total before you choose. The 2026-09-13.1 version rewrote Free cancellation in section 3: the old text gave you 20 minutes from placing the order, and that clock is gone — you can now cancel for free until the shop starts preparing your order, however long or short that is. Not collecting was reworded to match; what it does has not changed. The 2026-09-13.2 version changed only the Merchant Agreement (two clauses there were out of date); nothing in these Terms of Service changed. Nothing in these Terms of Service changed in 2026-09-13.3, 2026-09-20 or 2026-09-22 either: those versions changed the Merchant Agreement (the auto-ready timer, the sales-tax rate, the commission date) and, in 2026-09-20, the Privacy Policy.

The 2026-09-29 version changes Sales tax in section 3: the tax is now calculated by Stripe Tax for each item, instead of at one rate XEKTA recorded for the shop, and if it cannot be calculated the order does not go through and nothing is charged. Until XEKTA moves a shop to Stripe Tax calculation, that shop's orders are still taxed at the single rate XEKTA set for it. It also adds a new Local meals tax clause, in effect from that same switch: where it applies, that tax is shown as its own line, in addition to sales tax, named for the jurisdiction. An earlier draft, 2026-09-28.3, was never published; its changes are included here. The same version adds Items sold by weight to section 3: you approve an estimated price and an "up to" price, the shop weighs your items, and your card is charged the weighed price plus tax, never more than the "up to" total you approved. Placing an order and Not collecting now say which amount applies to such items, and section 6 adds fresh food to what is in scope; the list of what you cannot buy is unchanged.

The 2026-09-27.2 version corrects statements that did not match how XEKTA works. You now accept these terms on a XEKTA web page, not through your agent, and until you accept a new version you cannot place new orders, while orders already placed carry on (introduction and section 10); you must be at least 18 (introduction). Section 2 no longer says an order you do not collect "simply expires": an order a person at the shop prepared and marked ready can be charged if you do not collect it, as section 3 already said. Section 3 now says exactly when the pickup window starts, which amount a no-show charge takes and when nothing is charged, and that XEKTA — not the shop — records the sales-tax rate. Section 4 now says the shop never sees your pickup code. What XEKTA does has not changed. This version replaces 2026-09-27, which was published in two different forms: one carried the corrections above, the other only the Privacy Policy's text on confirming a phone number. 2026-09-27.2 is the one text that carries both, so anyone who accepted 2026-09-27 is asked to accept again.

10a. Changes to XEKTA itself

XEKTA is early, and the service will change. We may add, alter or remove features, shops and delivery areas, and we may stop offering XEKTA altogether. If we stop, we will finish or cancel the orders already placed and tell you at the email address on your account.

We may also transfer this agreement and your account to another company if Aumere, Inc. is acquired, merged or reorganised. If that happens, the new owner is bound by these terms and by the Privacy Policy version you accepted until it asks you to accept a new one.

11. Leaving

You can stop using XEKTA at any time; there is nothing to cancel. To have your account and saved cards deleted, write to info@xekta.com from the email address on the account; we do it by hand, after confirming with you, within 30 days. Records of completed orders are kept for as long as tax and card-network rules require, as described in the Privacy Policy.

12. Governing law

These terms are governed by the laws of the State of Delaware, without regard to its conflict-of-law rules. Disputes that cannot be resolved directly are brought in the state or federal courts located in Delaware, and you and XEKTA consent to their jurisdiction. If you are a consumer in a jurisdiction that gives you the right to bring claims in your own courts, nothing here takes that away.

13. Contact

Aumere, Inc. (XEKTA) · info@xekta.com · https://www.xekta.com