Note: some vendored/third-party components and git submodules may carry their own
licenses; see the LICENSE files in those directories.
Q: Can I use Symthaea/Mycelix for my research? A: Yes. Academic research, education, and personal experimentation are fully permitted under the AGPL-3.0. No commercial license is needed. Cite us if you publish.
Q: Can I use the psych-bench suite to benchmark my own AI system? A: Yes. The benchmarks are AGPL-licensed. If you modify the benchmark suite itself and distribute it, share your modifications under the AGPL.
Q: Can I use this codebase for my thesis or coursework? A: Yes. No restrictions on academic use.
Q: Can I fork this and build my own project on top of it? A: Yes, as long as your project is also licensed under the AGPL-3.0-or-later and you make your source code available. The AGPL's copyleft applies to derivative works.
Q: What if I only use one crate (e.g., symthaea-core)? A: The AGPL applies to the crate and any work that links against it. If you distribute a binary or run a network service that includes an AGPL-licensed crate, the entire combined work must be available under the AGPL.
Q: Can I contribute a patch or feature? A: Yes. By submitting a pull request, you agree to our Contributor License Agreement (see CLA.md). You retain your copyright; you grant Luminous Dynamics the right to use your contribution under any license, including commercial licenses. Your contribution will always remain available to the public under the AGPL.
Q: I contributed code. Can I still use my own code however I want? A: Yes. The CLA is a license grant, not a copyright assignment. You retain full ownership of your contribution and can use it in any other project under any license.
Q: Can I use this software internally without a commercial license? A: Internal use (not distributed, not offered as a network service) is permitted under the AGPL. If you modify the software and only use it internally without making it available to third parties, no commercial license is needed.
Q: Can I run a modified version as a SaaS product? A: Under the AGPL, yes — but you must make the complete source code of your modified version available to all users of the service. If you cannot or will not do this, you need a commercial license from Luminous Dynamics.
Q: Can I embed this in a proprietary product I sell to customers? A: Not under the AGPL. The AGPL requires that the source code of the entire combined work be available to recipients. If your product is proprietary, you need a commercial license.
Q: How much does a commercial license cost? A: Pricing is negotiated based on scope of use. We offer favorable terms for cooperatives, public-benefit corporations, and mission-aligned organizations. Contact tristan.stoltz@evolvingresonantcocreationism.com.
Q: Can I evaluate the software before purchasing a commercial license? A: Yes. Evaluation and testing are always free. A commercial license is only required when you deploy in production in a way that conflicts with the AGPL.
Q: Can I use Luminous Dynamics code in my GPL-3.0 project? A: The AGPL-3.0 is compatible with GPL-3.0 in one direction: AGPL code can be combined with GPL-3.0 code, but the combined work must be distributed under the AGPL-3.0. See Section 13 of the AGPL for details.
Q: Is the AGPL compatible with MIT/Apache-2.0? A: You can include MIT/Apache-2.0 code in an AGPL project. You cannot include AGPL code in a MIT/Apache-2.0 project without the entire combined work becoming AGPL-licensed.
Q: What about the LGPL? Can I link against your libraries without the copyleft applying to my code? A: No. The AGPL does not have an LGPL-style linking exception. Any work that links against AGPL-licensed code is a derivative work and must be licensed under the AGPL. If this is a problem for your project, contact us about a commercial license.
Q: Wasn't this repository previously BSL 1.1?
A: Yes. The root license was previously the Business Source License 1.1,
which would have converted to Apache-2.0 on 2029-03-06. The legacy text is
archived at LICENSE-BSL-1.1.txt. We replaced the repo-root license with
the AGPL-3.0-or-later because:
- The AGPL provides stronger copyleft protection (especially the network interaction clause in Section 13).
- The AGPL is a true open-source license recognized by the OSI and FSF.
- The BSL's time-bomb conversion to Apache-2.0 would have eventually removed all copyleft protection, allowing extractive use without contributing back.
Q: Symthaea was already AGPL. What changed? A: The main Symthaea crate was already AGPL-3.0-or-later. This change aligns the repo-root license with Symthaea and reconciles first-party sub-crates/SDK metadata that previously reported MIT or Apache-2.0.
For questions not covered here: tristan.stoltz@evolvingresonantcocreationism.com