Do you own the code when a company builds your AI?

Paying for a custom AI build does not automatically mean you own it.

A lot of buyers find that out later: the assistant dies when they cancel, the export is a spreadsheet, and the running system stays with the vendor.

We assign the custom code, the configuration, and the data to you. That is the offer. It is not legal advice, and it is not a substitute for a contract you actually read.

Paying is not owning

Under US copyright, the person who writes the software usually owns it unless there is a written transfer.

An invoice is not that transfer. A slide that says “it’s yours” is not that transfer. “Custom” in the sales deck often still means you are licensed to use a system the vendor keeps.

If you cannot take the source to another developer and keep it running after you stop paying the original shop, you do not own it. You are renting it.

Work-for-hire vs assignment (plain English, not legal advice)

Two phrases show up in contracts. They are not the same.

Work-for-hire is a narrow legal category. Some work made by employees for an employer falls under it. Most work done by an outside company does not, unless the contract is written to meet the statute and the work fits. Software often does not fall into it by default.

Assignment is a written transfer of the copyright from the author to you. That is the mechanism most independent builds actually use, when they use one at all.

Ask which one is in the paper. Ask when it takes effect. Ask what happens if the relationship ends. We are not your lawyer. Have someone who is read the document before you pay.

What you get here

USA Pro AI is a custom-software studio. We build the system around the operation, then hand over source code, configuration, and data.

You get:

• The custom code we write for your system
• The configuration that makes it yours
• The data the system collects for you: leads, transcripts, logs, uploads
• The prompts we write for your workflows
• Documentation and a handover so another developer can run it

You can keep using it if you stop paying for support. Support is optional. The $2,500 / month retainer and the $500 / month phone tune are how we stay on it. They are not a lock.

Prices for the builds themselves are public: pricing and how much custom AI costs.

This site is a production system of the same class. See /proof.

What you do not get

You do not own the foundation models. OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, and anyone else behind an API keep their models. You pay them under their terms, or we pass that cost through.

You do not own third-party libraries beyond the licenses those libraries already use. Open-source stays open-source. A paid API stays a paid API.

You do not own software you still subscribe to. If the system talks to a CRM, email host, or phone carrier you already pay, that vendor’s contract is still that vendor’s contract.

We will not put clauses on this page that are not in the engagement you actually sign. Read that document. If a sentence here and a sentence there ever disagree, the signed paper wins.

SaaS vs a system you keep

SaaS is a product you log into. When you stop paying, access ends. You might get a CSV. You do not get the workflows, the prompts, or a system another shop can pick up.

A custom build you own is source, config, and data on your side. Cancel support and the software does not vanish. You may need someone to maintain it. That someone does not have to be us.

If a standard product already does the job, buy the product. We said the same thing on the cost page. Custom is for the path those products do not run.

Ask this in every contract

Before you hire anyone, including us:

1. Who owns the source after I pay? Is that an assignment, a license, or a work-for-hire clause?
2. Who owns prompts, logs, recordings, and customer data?
3. What do I keep if I stop paying for support or hosting?
4. Can another developer run this without you?
5. Which parts are yours, and which parts belong to model providers or other APIs?

If the vendor cannot answer those in writing, you are renting.

Describe the leak. We send a written build plan and a number in one business day. No call required.