Code of Conduct

Preamble

The COAI is building a community dedicated to open, responsible, and collaborative research on LLMs and their internals.
This Code of Conduct applies to all individuals interacting with COAI infrastructure and activities — including the eDIF platform, events, online communities, and publications.

We aim to create a respectful, safe, and inclusive environment for research, experimentation, and exchange.

§ 1 Core Principles

At COAI, we are committed to:

  • Upholding scientific integrity and transparency

  • Encouraging open knowledge sharing and reproducibility

  • Valuing diverse backgrounds, disciplines, and viewpoints

  • Supporting collaboration over competition

  • Fostering thoughtful, critical engagement with LLMs and their societal impact

§ 2 Expected Behavior

We expect all participants and users to:

  • Treat others with professionalism, kindness, and respect

  • Communicate clearly and constructively, especially in disagreement

  • Provide feedback in good faith and receive it with openness

  • Contribute to a collaborative spirit — during events, on platforms, and in research

  • Credit contributions fairly and acknowledge sources properly

  • Follow all applicable laws, licenses, and research ethics guidelines

§ 3 Unacceptable Behavior

Unacceptable behavior includes (but is not limited to):

  • Harassment, discrimination, or targeted exclusion of any kind

  • Degrading, threatening, or aggressive language or behavior

  • Sabotaging or disrupting experiments, sessions, or discussions

  • Sharing private data or content without consent

  • Misuse of shared infrastructure or bypassing access controls

  • Prompting or deploying LLMs in ways intended to generate harmful content

§ 4 Responsible Use of Infrastructure

When using infrastructure provided during COAI events (such as cluster or API access via the eDIF infrastructure), users must:

  • Use only your assigned credentials (e.g., API keys) and do not share access

  • Respect fair-use limits and any access conditions set by the provider

  • Report unexpected behavior or bugs to the appropriate contact point

  • Do not use the platform for unauthorized data extraction, re-hosting, or commercial purposes

  • You are responsible for your inputs and for how you use the outputs

§ 5 Events & Community Spaces

COAI-organized events (e.g. the eDIF Hackathon, workshops, Discord, and other community spaces) are collaborative and inclusive spaces.

Please:

  • Engage constructively with fellow participants

  • Respect event organizers, facilitators, and mentors

  • Observe time limits, moderation rules, and communication guidelines

  • Refrain from trolling, grandstanding, or dominating discussions

  • Use public channels rather than DMs for event-related help or requests (unless invited)

§ 6 Attribution & Publication

If your project during a COAI-supported activity (e.g., the eDIF Hackathon) leads to publication, you are expected to:

  • Acknowledge COAI’s event and the infrastructure you used (e.g., “access provided via eDIF”)

  • Follow any citation guidelines provided by COAI or infrastructure providers

  • Respect the open-source and licensing terms of tools and datasets used

§ 7 Enforcement & Reporting

Violations of this Code of Conduct may be reported confidentially to:
📧 edif@coairesearch.org

We take all reports seriously. Consequences of confirmed violations may include:

  • Informal or formal warnings

  • Temporary or permanent revocation of access (event, platform, or API)

  • Reporting to affiliated institutions (in cases of severe or repeated misconduct)

Reports will be handled with confidentiality, care, and a presumption of good intent — but with a clear commitment to protecting the integrity of our community.

§ 8 Continuous Feedback

We view this Code of Conduct as a living document.
We welcome feedback and suggestions from our community and expect it to evolve as COAI grows.

Maintained by COAI
Last updated: August 2025