Hardware Purchase & Lease Agreements

Northstar AI Labs provides flexible procurement options for enterprise AI infrastructure. Our hardware agreements are designed to meet the diverse needs of organizations deploying sovereign AI systems, from outright purchases to managed lease arrangements.

1. Hardware Offerings

Northstar provides the following categories of hardware for enterprise AI deployments:

• GPU Compute Clusters: Enterprise GPU configurations optimized for large language model inference and training
• AI Server Infrastructure: Purpose-built server configurations with high-bandwidth memory, NVLink interconnects, and optimized cooling
• Networking Equipment: High-speed switching for distributed AI workloads
• Storage Systems: High-performance storage arrays designed for AI training data and model weights
• Security Appliances: Hardware security modules (HSMs), air-gap enforcement devices, and encrypted storage controllers

2. Purchase Agreements

Outright hardware purchases include the following terms and protections:

Ownership Transfer

• Full title transfer upon receipt of final payment
• All manufacturer warranties assigned to purchaser
• Complete documentation including certificates of authenticity
• Bill of sale with detailed hardware specifications and serial numbers

Warranty Coverage

• Manufacturer Warranty: Pass-through of all OEM warranties (typically 3-5 years depending on component)
• Northstar Extended Warranty: Optional extended coverage beyond manufacturer terms
• On-Site Support: Next business day or 4-hour response options available
• Parts Inventory: Critical spare parts maintained for rapid replacement

Pricing & Payment

• Firm fixed pricing at time of quote acceptance
• Standard payment terms: 50% upon order, 50% upon delivery
• Net-30 terms available for qualified enterprise customers
• Volume discounts for multi-system deployments

3. Lease Agreements

Hardware leasing provides flexibility for organizations that prefer operational expense models or require frequent technology refresh cycles.

Lease Structure Options

• Operating Lease: Lower monthly payments, equipment returned at end of term, off-balance-sheet treatment
• Capital Lease: Higher payments with ownership transfer at term end, on-balance-sheet asset
• Lease-to-Own: Hybrid structure with purchase option at predetermined price

Lease Terms

• Duration: 24, 36, 48, or 60-month terms available
• Early Termination: Available with 90-day notice and calculated buyout
• Technology Refresh: Mid-term upgrade options on 36+ month leases
• End of Term: Return, purchase at fair market value, or extend lease

Lease Inclusions

• All warranty coverage for duration of lease
• Proactive hardware monitoring and alerting
• Firmware and BIOS updates as released
• End-of-lease data destruction certification

4. Installation & Deployment

All hardware agreements include professional deployment services:

• Site Survey: Power, cooling, and space assessment prior to delivery
• Physical Installation: Mounting, cabling, and power connection
• Hardware Configuration: BIOS/UEFI settings, RAID configuration, firmware updates
• Documentation: As-built diagrams, serial number registry, and configuration records

5. Asset Management

Northstar provides comprehensive asset lifecycle management:

• Asset Tagging: Physical and electronic asset identification
• Maintenance Scheduling: Proactive component replacement before failure
• Decommissioning: Secure data destruction and environmentally responsible disposal
• Chain of Custody: Full documentation for compliance and audit requirements

6. Security Requirements

All hardware delivered by Northstar meets stringent security requirements for sovereign AI deployments:

• Verified supply chain with documented chain of custody from manufacturer
• Hardware integrity verification upon delivery

7. Upgrade & Expansion

Our agreements support infrastructure growth:

• Modular Expansion: Add compute, storage, or gpu incrementally
• GPU Upgrades: Swap to newer generations as available
• Memory Expansion: Swap to newer generations as available
• Trade-In Program: Credit for existing hardware toward new purchases

8. Compliance Documentation

Hardware agreements include documentation required for regulatory compliance:

• Certificates of conformity and compliance
• Environmental and safety certifications (UL, CE, FCC)
• Export control classification (ECCN) documentation
• Country of origin certificates
• Conflict minerals disclosure

9. Risk & Liability

• Risk of Loss: Transfers to purchaser upon delivery and acceptance
• Insurance: Lessee responsible for all-risk insurance during lease term
• Indemnification: Standard commercial indemnification terms apply
• Limitation of Liability: Consistent with our general Terms of Service

10. Governing Law

All hardware purchase and lease agreements are governed by the laws of the State of Minnesota. Any disputes shall be resolved through binding arbitration in Minneapolis, Minnesota, unless otherwise specified in the executed agreement.

Contact Us

To discuss hardware procurement options or request a quote:

Legal Entity: North Star Software, LLC (DBA Northstar AI Labs)
Email: hello@northstarsoftware.net
Address: Minneapolis, MN