NDA (non-disclosure agreement)
A contract that defines what counts as confidential information, how it may be used and for how long, usually signed before sharing details with a vendor.
A mutual NDA protects both sides, a one-way NDA only the discloser. Standard exclusions cover information that is public, already known or independently developed. In the EU, trade secrets also have statutory protection under the Trade Secrets Directive (in Poland, the Act on Combating Unfair Competition), but only for information the owner took reasonable steps to keep secret, and an NDA is one of those steps. With AI, check whether the NDA allows putting the information into AI tools; pasting it into a consumer chatbot may break it.
Related terms
- Shadow AI: AI tools employees use for work without the company knowing or approving, often with company data pasted into personal accounts.
- Data processing agreement (DPA): The contract GDPR requires when a vendor processes personal data on your behalf: what, why, how it is protected, who else gets it.
- Limitation of liability (liability cap): A contract clause that caps how much one side can owe the other for damages, often at the fees paid over a set period, and excludes some kinds of loss.
- Discovery call (disco): The first real sales conversation, which salespeople call a disco: the vendor learns your problem, its cost and who decides, before any demo or quote.
- Liquidated damages (contractual penalty): A sum agreed in advance that one side pays for a specific breach, such as a missed deadline, without having to prove the actual loss.
