Effective Date: May 1, 2026 Last Updated: May 29, 2026 Version: 1.0

1. Overview

Ziru Labs makes its research publications available under terms that support broad analytical, academic, regulatory, journalistic, and commercial reference use while preserving the company's rights in its trademarks, patented technology, trade secrets, and proprietary commercial interests. This Research Licensing page explains the licensing terms applicable to Ziru Labs research publications and the operational guidance for permitted use.

This page supplements but does not modify the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) license under which Ziru Labs research publications are distributed. In the event of any inconsistency between this page and the CC BY 4.0 license text, the CC BY 4.0 license text controls with respect to the rights it grants. This page also supplements but does not modify the Ziru Labs Terms of Use, which govern your access to and use of zirulabs.com generally.

2. Publications Covered

This Research Licensing page applies to research publications, white papers, primers, reference frameworks, threat taxonomies, technical analyses, and similar analytical materials published by Ziru Labs at zirulabs.com/research and successor or designated distribution channels.

Each publication carries its specific license designation in the metadata block at the top of the document and in the closing block at the bottom. Where a publication's metadata identifies a license other than CC BY 4.0, the terms of that publication's designated license govern its use.

This Research Licensing page does not apply to: (a) Ziru Labs trademarks, service marks, trade names, or design marks, which are governed by Section 5 below and by the Ziru Labs Terms of Use; (b) Ziru Labs patented or patent pending technology, trade secrets, software, hardware designs, schematics, or other technical materials not published as research publications; (c) Ziru Labs commercial content including marketing materials, product documentation, internal analyses, customer communications, or financial materials; (d) materials produced by Ziru Labs in connection with separately contracted engagements with counterparties, which are governed by the applicable agreements; or (e) materials produced by third parties and referenced or cited within Ziru Labs publications, which remain subject to the licenses and rights of their respective owners.

3. CC BY 4.0 License Grant

Subject to the terms and limitations set forth in this Research Licensing page, Ziru Labs publications covered under Section 2 are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Under this license, you are free to:

Share - copy and redistribute the publication in any medium or format, in whole or in part;

Adapt - remix, transform, and build upon the publication for any purpose, including commercial purposes;

provided that you comply with the attribution and other requirements of the CC BY 4.0 license.

The complete text of the CC BY 4.0 license is available at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode and is incorporated by reference. A human-readable summary is available at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0. The CC BY 4.0 license terms control the scope of the licensing grant; this Research Licensing page provides operational guidance and identifies reservations and limitations that the CC BY 4.0 license itself does not displace.

This license is granted by Ziru Labs as the copyright holder of the publications. Where individual contributors or third parties hold rights in specific portions of a publication, those rights are governed by the applicable arrangements identified in the publication.

4. Attribution Requirements

Attribution under CC BY 4.0 requires that you provide appropriate credit to Ziru Labs, indicate any changes you have made to the original publication, and provide a link or reference to the CC BY 4.0 license. To satisfy these requirements when using a Ziru Labs publication, you must include attribution in the form prescribed by the publication's citation block, which generally follows the structure:

Ziru Labs. [Publication Title], [Version]. Published at zirulabs.com/research. Distributed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0).

For academic and standards-body citations, you should follow the citation convention applicable to the publication venue (APA, IEEE, ACM, ISO, or similar) while preserving the essential elements: author (Ziru Labs), publication title, version, year, source URL, and license designation.

For derivative works (translations, summaries, analyses, adaptations, extensions, or integrations), you must additionally identify the modifications you have made and clearly distinguish your contributions from the original Ziru Labs publication. You may not represent your derivative work as the original Ziru Labs publication or as endorsed by Ziru Labs unless Ziru Labs has provided express written endorsement.

Attribution must be reasonably prominent given the medium and context of your use. In written publications, attribution typically appears in the citations section, in footnotes, or in a clearly designated attribution block. In presentations, attribution typically appears on the slide containing the cited material and in a final citations slide. In online use, attribution typically appears proximate to the cited material with a hyperlink to the publication's canonical URL at zirulabs.com/research.

5. Trademark and Brand Reservations

The CC BY 4.0 license does not grant rights in any trademark, service mark, trade name, or other source-identifying mark held by Ziru Labs or its licensors. The Ziru Labs name, the Ziru Labs logo, and any other trademarks, service marks, trade names, design marks, or similar source-identifying material displayed on the Website, in the publications, or in connection with Ziru Labs activities (collectively, "Ziru Labs Marks") remain the exclusive property of Ziru Labs.

You may use the Ziru Labs name in nominative reference for the purpose of citing a Ziru Labs publication, identifying Ziru Labs as the publisher, or otherwise referring accurately to Ziru Labs in a context consistent with applicable trademark fair-use principles. Such nominative use does not constitute a trademark license.

You may not use any Ziru Labs Mark in any manner that would: (a) create confusion, deception, or mistake regarding the source, sponsorship, endorsement, certification, or affiliation of any product, service, publication, organization, or activity; (b) dilute, disparage, or tarnish the Ziru Labs Marks; (c) suggest that Ziru Labs has endorsed, approved, or affiliated itself with any party, product, service, or publication that Ziru Labs has not expressly endorsed in writing; (d) appear in the title, name, or primary identifier of any derivative work, product, service, or organization; or (e) violate applicable trademark, unfair-competition, false-advertising, or related law.

If you are uncertain whether a contemplated use of a Ziru Labs Mark is permissible, contact contact@zirulabs.com for guidance.

6. Patent, Trade Secret, and Technical Material Reservations

The CC BY 4.0 license grants rights in the copyrighted expression of Ziru Labs publications. It does not grant rights in any patent, patent application, trade secret, know-how, hardware design, integrated-circuit topography, mask work, technical data, or other technical or proprietary subject matter held by Ziru Labs or its licensors, even where such subject matter is referenced, described, illustrated, or analyzed within a Ziru Labs publication.

In particular and without limitation:

(a) Where a Ziru Labs publication describes a category of mechanism, a class of technical approach, an architectural pattern, or a structural property of a substrate technology, the description is provided for analytical and reference purposes. The description does not authorize you to practice any specific implementation that may be covered by Ziru Labs patents or pending patent applications. Implementation of any approach described in a Ziru Labs publication may require a separately negotiated patent license, trade-secret license, or other agreement with Ziru Labs.

(b) Where a Ziru Labs publication identifies operational characteristics, functional properties, threat-defense classes, or substrate properties of a technology, the identification is made at the analytical category level and does not constitute disclosure of the specific mechanisms by which Ziru Labs achieves those properties. The specific mechanisms are protected as trade secrets and intellectual property of Ziru Labs.

(c) Where a Ziru Labs publication references specific standards-body specifications, regulatory frameworks, or third-party technical materials, such references identify external sources of authoritative information and do not constitute representations by Ziru Labs regarding the current status, applicability, or interpretation of those sources. You are responsible for consulting the original source for current and authoritative information.

If you are interested in pursuing a patent license, trade-secret license, commercial engagement, or research collaboration with Ziru Labs concerning any technical subject matter referenced in a publication, contact contact@zirulabs.com to initiate the appropriate counterparty engagement.

7. Permitted Uses Beyond CC BY 4.0

In addition to the rights granted by CC BY 4.0, Ziru Labs expressly welcomes and authorizes the following uses of its publications:

Academic citation and reference. Citation in academic publications, theses, dissertations, conference papers, and research articles in accordance with applicable academic citation conventions.

Standards-body submission and reference. Citation in submissions to standards-development organizations (including IEEE, ISO, NIST, ITU, the Confidential Computing Consortium, the Trusted Computing Group, the European standards bodies, and analogous bodies) and incorporation by reference into standards specifications where such bodies accept reference materials under CC BY 4.0 terms.

Regulatory and policy reference. Citation in regulatory submissions, policy analyses, government reports, and procurement documentation, including in connection with U.S. federal, allied, and sovereign AI program development and procurement activities.

Journalistic and analytical reference. Citation in journalism, industry analysis, market research, and trade-press coverage in accordance with applicable journalistic conventions.

Educational and instructional use. Use in academic instruction, professional training, internal organizational education programs, and continuing-education curricula.

Internal organizational use. Reproduction, circulation, and reference within an organization for internal analytical, strategic, security, compliance, or procurement purposes, including reproduction in internal documents and presentations that are not published externally.

Library and archival use. Inclusion in institutional libraries, digital archives, preprint servers (including arXiv, ResearchGate, Academia.edu, Zenodo, and similar), and bibliographic databases (including Google Scholar, Semantic Scholar, OpenAlex, and similar) consistent with the metadata and citation conventions of those services.

Each of the foregoing uses falls within the scope of the CC BY 4.0 license, subject to the attribution and other requirements set forth in this Research Licensing page.

8. Specifically Excluded and Restricted Uses

The following uses of Ziru Labs publications are excluded from the CC BY 4.0 license grant or restricted by the operation of other applicable law and the terms of this Research Licensing page:

Trademark infringement. Any use that would constitute trademark infringement, dilution, false designation of origin, false endorsement, or unfair competition under applicable law, regardless of whether the use otherwise complies with CC BY 4.0.

Misrepresentation as authoritative or sponsored. Use that represents your derivative work, product, service, or organization as the original Ziru Labs publication, as endorsed by Ziru Labs, or as sponsored by, certified by, or affiliated with Ziru Labs, unless Ziru Labs has provided express written endorsement.

Removal or alteration of license terms. Removal or alteration of the CC BY 4.0 license designation, copyright notice, citation block, or other rights-management information from the publication or any substantial portion of it. This restriction applies in addition to any restrictions on alteration of technical protection measures or rights-management information under applicable law.

Implementation in violation of intellectual-property rights. Implementation of any technical mechanism, system, or process described in a Ziru Labs publication in a manner that would infringe any patent, trade secret, or other intellectual-property right held by Ziru Labs or its licensors. See Section 6.

Export-controlled use. Use of any portion of a publication in a manner that would violate applicable export-control or sanctions law, including the Export Administration Regulations, the International Traffic in Arms Regulations, regulations administered by the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control, the United Kingdom Export Control Order, Council Regulation (EU) 2021/821 on dual-use items, or analogous regulations of other jurisdictions. See Section 11.

Unlawful use. Any use that is unlawful, fraudulent, deceptive, defamatory, or otherwise tortious under applicable law.

9. AI Training, Machine Learning, and Data Mining

The CC BY 4.0 license does not contain restrictions specific to AI training, machine learning, or computational text and data mining. Ziru Labs does not impose additional restrictions on the use of its publications for these purposes beyond the requirements identified elsewhere in this Research Licensing page, with the following clarifications.

Attribution in machine-learning contexts. Where Ziru Labs publications are used as training data, fine-tuning data, retrieval-augmented-generation reference corpus, or analogous machine-learning input, the attribution requirements of Section 4 apply to the resulting model, system, or output to the extent such attribution is technically feasible. Where attribution cannot be propagated to specific outputs (as is typical for foundation models), attribution should be provided at the level of the training corpus documentation or model card.

Substantive reproduction in outputs. Where a machine-learning system reproduces substantial portions of a Ziru Labs publication in its outputs, the reproduction is subject to the CC BY 4.0 license terms and attribution requirements as if the operator of the system had reproduced the material directly.

Trademark and patent reservations apply. The reservations in Sections 5 and 6 apply to machine-learning use as they apply to any other use. AI training does not implicitly grant trademark or patent rights, and use of Ziru Labs publications in training does not authorize the trained model or its operators to use Ziru Labs Marks or to practice patented technology beyond the rights expressly granted.

Citation of Ziru Labs publications in AI-generated content. Where AI systems cite Ziru Labs publications in generated outputs, citations should follow the conventions identified in Section 4. Ziru Labs encourages AI-system operators to implement citation discipline that preserves the connection between generated content and the underlying publications it draws from.

10. Standards-Body and Regulatory Submission

Ziru Labs publishes research publications in part to contribute to the standards-codification and regulatory-framework activity surveyed in the publications. Standards-body working groups, regulatory drafting committees, and similar bodies are expressly authorized to incorporate Ziru Labs publications by reference, to cite Ziru Labs publications in standards specifications and regulatory drafts, and to reproduce substantial portions of Ziru Labs publications within standards documentation, subject to attribution under Section 4.

Where a standards body or regulatory authority requires a license other than CC BY 4.0 for incorporation of reference materials, Ziru Labs is generally willing to provide a supplemental license appropriate to the standards-body or regulatory context. Such supplemental licensing is handled through direct counterparty engagement; contact contact@zirulabs.com to initiate such engagement.

Ziru Labs has not granted, and does not grant by virtue of publishing under CC BY 4.0, any patent license, trade-secret license, or implementation right under any standards-essential patent, fair-reasonable-and-non-discriminatory (FRAND) commitment, or analogous standards-licensing framework. Standards-licensing arrangements concerning Ziru Labs patents are negotiated separately with the relevant standards body and counterparties.

11. Export-Control and Sanctions Compliance

Ziru Labs publications are made publicly available for analytical and informational purposes and are not in themselves subject to export-control or sanctions restrictions as published. The publications operate at the category and analytical level rather than at the implementation-specification level, and do not transfer controlled technology, technical data, defense articles, or services that would be subject to licensing or authorization requirements under the Export Administration Regulations, the International Traffic in Arms Regulations, regulations administered by the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control, the United Kingdom Export Control Order, Council Regulation (EU) 2021/821, or analogous regulations.

You are responsible for ensuring that your use of any Ziru Labs publication, including any derivative work, complies with all applicable export-control, sanctions, anti-money-laundering, and anti-corruption laws in your jurisdiction and in any jurisdiction where you operate or distribute your derivative work. You may not use, distribute, or build upon Ziru Labs publications in any manner that would result in a violation of such laws.

In particular, you may not export, re-export, transfer, or otherwise distribute Ziru Labs publications, or any derivative works, to any party in any jurisdiction subject to comprehensive trade sanctions administered by the United States or other competent authorities, or to any party identified on a denied-parties list, sanctions list, or analogous restricted-parties list maintained by any applicable jurisdiction.

Implementation of any technical approach described in a Ziru Labs publication may be subject to export-control or sanctions law depending on the specific implementation, the parties involved, the destination, and the use. The compliance analysis for implementation activity is separate from the licensing analysis for the publication itself, and you are responsible for conducting your own implementation-level compliance review.

12. Counterparty Licensing and Commercial Engagement

The CC BY 4.0 license under which Ziru Labs publications are distributed supports broad reference, citation, and analytical use, including in commercial contexts. The license does not, however, address counterparty-specific arrangements that may be appropriate where:

(a) An organization wishes to enter into a sponsored research arrangement with Ziru Labs concerning a specific topic, vertical, or program;

(b) An organization wishes to obtain a patent license, trade-secret license, technology license, or other intellectual-property license from Ziru Labs in connection with implementation of substrate-category technology;

(c) An organization wishes to engage Ziru Labs in standards-body collaboration, joint specification development, or analogous activity beyond what unsolicited CC BY 4.0 use supports;

(d) An organization wishes to obtain advance access to, or input into, a forthcoming Ziru Labs publication, the quarterly State of Physics-Layer AI Trust report, or successor research products;

(e) An organization operates in a sovereign, defense, or other regulated procurement context where contractual and security frameworks beyond the CC BY 4.0 license are required; or

(f) An organization wishes to discuss any other commercial, research, or licensing arrangement involving Ziru Labs technology, intellectual property, or expertise.

For any such engagement, contact contact@zirulabs.com to initiate the counterparty engagement workflow. Engagements proceed through Ziru Labs's standard counterparty diligence and contracting process, including the export-control and sanctions screening described in Section 14 of the Ziru Labs Privacy Policy and Section 11 of the Ziru Labs Terms of Use.

13. Trademark Licensing

Use of Ziru Labs Marks beyond nominative reference and other fair-use principles requires a separately negotiated trademark license. Trademark licensing is available in specific operational contexts, including:

(a) Standards-body co-development arrangements where joint identification is appropriate;

(b) Co-authored or co-published research where joint attribution is appropriate;

(c) Procurement-counterparty contexts where mark use is required for security or contractual reasons;

(d) Authorized educational use where mark use supports the educational purpose; or

(e) Other arrangements specifically authorized in writing by Ziru Labs.

For trademark licensing inquiries, contact contact@zirulabs.com with "Trademark Licensing" in the subject line.

14. Disclaimers Specific to Research Publications

In addition to the disclaimers set forth in Section 8 of the Ziru Labs Terms of Use, the following disclaimers apply specifically to Ziru Labs research publications:

Analytical reference, not professional advice. Ziru Labs research publications are analytical and reference materials intended for technical, regulatory, academic, and professional audiences. They do not constitute legal advice, regulatory advice, financial advice, investment advice, procurement advice, security advisory services, or professional services of any kind. You should consult qualified professionals before taking any action based on the publications.

Living references. Research publications are designated as living references that Ziru Labs may update from time to time to reflect changes in the underlying analytical landscape, in standards-codification activity, in regulatory developments, or in other relevant factors. Each version of a publication is identified by its version designation, and prior versions remain accessible through the publication archive at zirulabs.com/research. You should consult the current version before relying on any publication.

No warranty regarding accuracy or completeness. Ziru Labs makes no representation or warranty regarding the accuracy, completeness, currency, or suitability of any publication for any particular purpose. Standards-body references, regulatory references, and government-procurement references are based on publicly available information at the time of publication and may not reflect subsequent changes. You are responsible for verifying any reference before relying on it.

Forward-looking statements. Certain statements in the publications concern future events, technologies, regulatory developments, market dynamics, or strategic positioning. Such statements are inherently uncertain. Ziru Labs makes no representation or warranty regarding the realization of any forward-looking statement and undertakes no obligation to update any such statement.

15. License Versioning

This Research Licensing page is published as Version 1.0. Ziru Labs may update this page from time to time to reflect changes in licensing practice, in applicable law, in supported publication formats, in standards-body engagement, in regulatory developments, or in other relevant factors. Material updates will be reflected in the Last Updated date at the top of this page and, where significant, communicated through additional notice on the Website or by direct communication to relevant counterparties.

Each Ziru Labs research publication carries the license designation under which it was published. A later update to this Research Licensing page does not retroactively modify the license terms applicable to publications previously published, except where the update is expressly designated as retroactively applicable and is consistent with the original license grant.

16. Termination and Reinstatement

Your rights under the CC BY 4.0 license terminate automatically if you fail to comply with the license terms or with the applicable provisions of this Research Licensing page. The CC BY 4.0 license provides for limited reinstatement of rights in specified circumstances; the reinstatement provisions of the CC BY 4.0 license text govern.

Termination of your rights under CC BY 4.0 does not affect Ziru Labs's separately retained rights, including the right to seek remedies for trademark infringement, patent infringement, trade-secret misappropriation, breach of the Ziru Labs Terms of Use, or other applicable claims.

17. Governing Law and Dispute Resolution

This Research Licensing page and any dispute arising out of or in connection with the license terms, the publications, or your use of the publications are governed by the same governing-law, forum-selection, informal-resolution, class-action-waiver, and equitable-relief provisions set forth in Section 16 of the Ziru Labs Terms of Use, which are incorporated by reference.

The choice of governing law set forth in the Terms of Use does not override the terms of the CC BY 4.0 license itself, which is a worldwide license with its own internal interpretive framework administered by the Creative Commons organization.

18. Relationship to Other Documents

This Research Licensing page operates alongside the Ziru Labs Privacy Policy and the Ziru Labs Terms of Use. In the event of any inconsistency among the three documents:

(a) Where the inconsistency concerns the licensing terms applicable to Ziru Labs research publications, this Research Licensing page controls.

(b) Where the inconsistency concerns the collection, use, or disclosure of personal information, the Privacy Policy controls.

(c) Where the inconsistency concerns the general terms governing access to and use of the Website, the Terms of Use controls.

(d) Where the inconsistency concerns rights granted under the CC BY 4.0 license itself, the CC BY 4.0 license text controls with respect to the rights it grants.

In all cases, the documents are intended to operate as a consistent and complementary set, and any apparent inconsistency should be interpreted in a manner that gives effect to the spirit and operational purpose of each document.

19. Contact

For questions regarding research licensing, attribution, counterparty engagement, trademark licensing, or any other matter addressed in this Research Licensing page, contact us at:

Email: contact@zirulabs.com Subject Line: Research Licensing Inquiry

Postal Address: Martin Ventures Ltd. dba Ziru Labs, Attention: Research Licensing, 1375 East 9th St., One Cleveland Center 29th Floor, Cleveland, OH 44114.

For specific subject-matter inquiries, the following subject-line conventions help route your inquiry promptly:

• Citation and attribution questions: "Citation Inquiry"

• Trademark licensing: "Trademark Licensing"

• Patent licensing or implementation: "Patent / Technology Licensing"

• Standards-body collaboration: "Standards Engagement"

• Counterparty engagement (procurement, partnership, sponsored research): "Counterparty Engagement"

• Permissions beyond CC BY 4.0: "License Permission".