The Aletay Founders' Prize

The Aletay Founders' Prize (the Contest) is offered and administered by SAPIOX MG, LLC, operator of the Aletay reading platform at aletay.io (the Sponsor or Aletay). Where these Official Rules refer to we, us, or our, they mean the Sponsor.

These Official Rules govern the Contest in full. By entering, you accept them and agree that the Sponsor's decisions are final and binding on all matters relating to the Contest. If any Contest communication conflicts with these Official Rules, these Official Rules control.

The Contest runs from September 25, 2026 through December 15, 2026 at 11:59 PM Eastern Time (the Contest Period). Only qualifying activity that occurs during the Contest Period counts toward scoring.

• Entry opens: September 25, 2026.
• Entry and scoring close: December 15, 2026, 11:59 PM ET.
• Verification: the week following the close, during which the Sponsor validates standings and confirms winners.
• Winners announced: on or about the week of December 15, 2026, after verification.
• Payout: on or about December 22, 2026, to verified winners who have completed all required documentation.

The Sponsor's server clock is the official timekeeper for all entries and activity. The Sponsor may extend, shorten, suspend, or modify these dates if required by circumstances outside its reasonable control, and will post any change to these Official Rules.

The Contest is open to individuals who, as of entry and throughout the Contest Period, meet all of the following:

1. Are at least 18 years of age (or the age of majority in their place of residence, whichever is greater);
2. Hold a valid Aletay author account in good standing and have completed Aletay University, the required author onboarding;
3. Hold an active Aletay Premium membership (see the participation requirements below and Section 5);
4. Have at least one eligible book published on or added to Aletay during or before the Contest Period, in accordance with Section 4;
5. Are legally permitted to receive a cash prize and to complete the tax documentation described in Section 9; and
6. Are not residents of any jurisdiction where the Contest is prohibited, restricted, or would require registration or bonding the Sponsor has not completed.

Participation requirements to qualify for a prize

To be eligible to win any prize, an entrant must, during the Contest Period:

1. Maintain an active Premium membership;
2. Host at least 3 Live sessions, at a pace of about one per week; and
3. Publish at least 5 posts in Margins that share information relevant to the entrant's book.

An entrant who does not meet each of these minimums is not eligible to win, regardless of Score.

Not eligible: employees, officers, and contractors of the Sponsor, and their immediate family and household members, are not eligible to win. Automated accounts, duplicate accounts, and accounts created to inflate activity are not eligible.

To enter, hold an active Premium membership, publish or add at least one eligible book to Aletay, and begin sharing it during the Contest Period. Entry is automatic once you have an active Premium membership and an eligible published book, and qualifying activity is recorded against it.

An eligible book is original work you own or are authorized to publish, that complies with Aletay's content policies and Author Terms, and that is published under your author account. A book removed, unpublished, or found to infringe third party rights is disqualified along with the activity attributed to it.

Content and quality

Using AI to assist in writing your autobiography, or any entered book, is permitted and not penalized. The Sponsor may, however, remove or discount low quality content, and content removed for quality does not count toward any Score. Well produced book titles and cover art are encouraged: they raise the quality of your entry and help readers find and finish your work.

You may enter more than one eligible book. Your standing in each category reflects the combined qualifying activity attributed to your eligible books, except where a category is scored per book, as noted in Section 6.

Three cash prizes will be awarded, for a total prize pool of $2,000 USD:

Grand Prize — Best Autobiography, $1,000

Awarded to the author of the top scoring autobiography or memoir, measured by verified sales to and completed reads by real readers during the Contest Period.

Additional eligibility for this category: every entrant must hold Premium (see Section 3). For the Grand Prize specifically, the entrant must have held an active Aletay Premium membership for at least 30 consecutive days falling within the Contest Period, and it must remain active through verification.

The entrant's book must also meet the minimum real-buyer threshold described in Section 7 to be eligible for the Grand Prize.

Engagement Award — Top Community Builder, $500

Awarded to the author with the highest score for bringing new, active people into Aletay and participating in the community, in any genre.

Engagement Award — Readers' Favorite, $500

Awarded to the author whose book readers rate highest and complete most, in any genre.

Each entrant may win no more than one prize. If an entrant places first in more than one category, the entrant receives the higher prize, and the next eligible entrant receives the other. Prizes are not transferable and no cash equivalent or substitution is offered, except that the Sponsor may substitute a prize of equal or greater value if necessary. Any prize not awarded, for example because no entry qualifies, is retained by the Sponsor.

Winners are selected by merit, using a composite scoring system (the Score) maintained by the Sponsor. Standings update on an entrant-visible leaderboard throughout the Contest Period. Only verified, qualifying activity counts, as defined in Section 7.

Weighting

Across the Contest, the Score is weighted in this order, from heaviest to lightest:

1. Total verified book sales (the heaviest factor);
2. Referrals that bring new, active users to the platform; then
3. Total engagement on the platform, including completed reads, ratings, Live sessions, and Margins participation.

Each category emphasizes the factors that define it: the Grand Prize turns on sales of the autobiography or memoir to distinct real buyers; Top Community Builder turns on referrals and community participation; Readers' Favorite turns on completion rate and verified ratings, in any genre. Winners are chosen fairly, and the Sponsor applies reasonable, good-faith discretion in evaluating quality and confirming that activity is genuine.

Ties. If two or more entrants are effectively equal in a category, the tie is broken in favor of the entrant with the greater number of verified distinct real readers, and, if still tied, in favor of the entrant who reached that standing earliest by server timestamp.

The Sponsor calculates all Scores, and its determinations are final. The Sponsor may correct scoring errors and adjust standings at any time before payout.

Qualifying activity. Only genuine activity by real, independent users during the Contest Period counts, including: verified paid book sales; completed reads; hosted Live sessions; posts and participation in Margins; and referrals of new users who join and become active.

Sales formats. Book sales are counted across the formats Aletay offers, including audiobook, paperback, and hardcover. Each verified sale to a distinct real buyer adds to your count.

Refunds. A refunded, charged back, or reversed sale is subtracted from your book count. The refund removes the credit for that sale, so a wave of refunds lowers your standing.

Minimum real-buyer threshold. To be eligible for the Grand Prize, an autobiography or memoir must reach a minimum number of distinct verified real buyers during the Contest Period, as set and published by the Sponsor on the leaderboard. This floor prevents a single large or coordinated purchase from deciding the category.

Does not count. The following are excluded from all Scores and may trigger disqualification:

• Purchases of your own book, and purchases funded or reimbursed by you;
• Self referrals and referrals of accounts you control;
• Activity from duplicate, automated, incentivized, or fake accounts;
• Coordinated schemes, reciprocal buying or reading rings, and any activity designed to inflate a Score rather than reflect real interest;
• Reads or ratings generated by scripts, bots, or emulators.

The Sponsor may, at its sole discretion, investigate, discount activity from, suspend, or disqualify any entrant it reasonably believes has violated these Official Rules, manipulated the Contest, tampered with the entry or scoring process, or acted in bad faith or in a way that is unfair to other entrants.

Disqualification may include removing an entrant from the leaderboard, voiding a Score, and withholding or reclaiming a prize. If manipulation is discovered after a prize is paid, the entrant agrees to return the prize on request.

Any attempt to deliberately damage the platform or undermine the legitimate operation of the Contest may violate law, and the Sponsor reserves the right to seek remedies to the fullest extent permitted.

Potential winners will be notified after the Contest Period through the email or account contact on file. To claim a prize, a potential winner must, within 7 days of notification:

1. Confirm eligibility and respond to the notification;
2. Verify identity to the Sponsor's reasonable satisfaction; and
3. Complete and return any required documents, including a tax form (for U.S. persons, an IRS Form W-9) and, where used, a declaration of eligibility and a liability and publicity release, except where prohibited.

A potential winner who cannot be reached, does not respond within the claim period, declines the prize, is found ineligible, or fails to complete the required documents forfeits the prize. The Sponsor may then award that prize to the next eligible entrant or retain it.

Prizes are paid in U.S. dollars, on or about December 22, 2026, to verified winners who have completed all requirements, by the electronic payment method the Sponsor designates. The Sponsor is not responsible for payment failures caused by incorrect account details a winner provides, or by a winner's inability to receive the designated payment method. A prize returned as undeliverable after reasonable attempts may be forfeited.

You keep all rights in your books. Nothing in the Contest transfers ownership of your work.

Except where prohibited by law, by accepting a prize you agree that the Sponsor may use your author name (including pen name), the title and cover of your winning book, your Aletay handle, and your general location, for announcing and promoting the Contest and its results, without additional compensation. The Sponsor will not use your legal name in public announcements if you write under a pen name and ask that your legal name be withheld, subject to any disclosure the law requires.

Information you submit in connection with the Contest is handled under Aletay's Privacy Policy. The Sponsor uses it to administer the Contest, verify eligibility and activity, prevent fraud, pay prizes, and meet tax and legal obligations. Verification and payment may require sharing limited information with service providers, such as a payment processor. The Sponsor does not sell entrant information.

By entering, you agree to release and hold harmless the Sponsor and its owners, members, officers, and service providers from any claim, loss, or liability arising out of participation in the Contest or acceptance, use, or misuse of a prize, to the fullest extent permitted by law.

The Sponsor is not responsible for technical failures, lost or delayed data, scoring or leaderboard errors, or any interruption that is outside its reasonable control, and may void affected activity and correct standings accordingly. If the Contest cannot run as planned because of fraud, technical failure, or other cause beyond the Sponsor's reasonable control, the Sponsor may suspend, modify, or end the Contest and determine winners from eligible activity recorded up to that point.

These Official Rules do not create any employment, agency, partnership, or joint venture between you and the Sponsor.

These Official Rules are governed by the laws of the State of Florida, without regard to conflict of law principles. Except where prohibited, you agree that any dispute relating to the Contest will be resolved individually, without class relief, in the state or federal courts located in Florida, and you consent to that jurisdiction and venue. Nothing here waives any right that cannot be waived by law.

This Contest is run solely by Aletay (SAPIOX MG, LLC). It is not sponsored, endorsed, administered by, or associated with Apple Inc. or Google LLC, or with any app store or social platform on which it may be mentioned. Any questions about the Contest should go to the Sponsor, not to those companies.

After the Contest, the names of winners (by author name or pen name) will be posted on aletay.io. You may also request the winners list through your Aletay account within 60 days after the Contest Period ends.

Contest Period

September 25, 2026 through December 15, 2026 at 11:59 PM Eastern Time.

Eligible book

An original work you own or are authorized to publish, compliant with Aletay's content policies, published under your author account.

Score

The composite, merit-based value the Sponsor calculates for each entrant in each category from verified qualifying activity.

Distinct real buyer

A unique, independent user who completes a genuine, non-refunded purchase, and who is not the entrant or an account the entrant controls, funds, or reimburses.

Premium

An active paid Aletay Premium membership, as offered on the platform.

Live session

A Go Live broadcast the entrant hosts on Aletay during the Contest Period.

Margins

Aletay's in-app community space, where entrants post information relevant to their books.

Qualifying activity

Genuine activity by real, independent users during the Contest Period, as described in Section 7.

Questions about the Contest? Reach the Sponsor through your Aletay account or at aletay.io.

SAPIOX MG, LLC, operator of Aletay (aletay.io).