Questions

Straight answers about how Codex Vivendi works. The Terms of Service and Privacy Policy carry the full detail. This page is the plain version. If something here is not clear, write to us and we will fix the wording.

What you make

What is a Codex?

Your Codex is the collection of what you believe, gathered in one place and written for the people you love. It has four parts. When it is ready, you can print it, frame it and pass it on. Something permanent.

What are the four parts?

Life Principles are what you believe and why, the core of your legacy. Identity is the values that shaped you, your inner and outer world. Influences are the books, people and ideas you would point someone to if they wanted to understand you. Wisdom is the quotes and insights you keep coming back to.

Do I have to write a lot?

No. You can start with one principle. Some Contributors write thirty, some write five. There is no correct number, and there is no rush.

The community

Is Codex Vivendi social media?

There is a community here, with Groups and Forums where Contributors talk about meaning, legacy and the questions worth asking. But it does not work like the feeds you know. No algorithm decides what you see. Nothing is built to hold your attention or steer your thinking. You read what Contributors chose to write, in the order they wrote it.

Who can see what I write?

You decide, for each part of your Codex. There are four levels. Only Me means no other Contributor can read it. My Connections means the people you have approved. All Members means anyone with an account. Public means anyone on the open web. Your Codex starts private, set to Only Me, until you choose otherwise. Whether your writing becomes part of the shared record is a separate question, answered below.

Is it moderated?

What you believe is yours to write, however uncomfortable others might find it. How you treat other Contributors is another matter. Threats, harassment and attacks on specific people are not allowed, and we act on them. We moderate conduct, not beliefs.

Your writing and the shared record

Is my writing used to help train AI?

Yes. The patterns of what Contributors value become part of a shared record, with the details that identify you removed first. That record can be used to help AI understand what people actually believe. This is the second purpose of Codex Vivendi, alongside your personal legacy. (The Terms call this record the Aspirational Dataset. See Terms, Section 5.)

Is that optional?

No. Codex Vivendi is built on two purposes that belong together: preserving what you leave for the people you love and adding to a shared record that can help guide future AI. The two cannot be unlinked. If what you want is a private notebook that stays only yours, this may not be the place for you, and we understand.

Is my private writing included too?

Yes. Even writing you keep set to Only Me is part of the shared record. The visibility setting decides who can read your words. It does not decide whether the record includes them. In both cases, the details that identify your account are removed first.

What is removed before my writing is used?

We separate out the details that identify your account: your name, your email, your display name. Location is generalized to a region. But we do not read or rewrite what you wrote. So if you type a personal detail into your own text, a name or an address, it stays in. For that reason, please keep personal details out of what you write. (Privacy Policy, Sections 4.2 and 4.4.)

Can I delete my writing or my account?

You can ask us to delete your account at any time, and we remove it from the live platform within 30 days. Two honest limits. Backups clear on their own rolling schedule, which takes a little longer. And anything already gathered into the shared record cannot be pulled back out, because at that point it is no longer traceable to you. Whatever happens, what you wrote stays yours. You can export your Codex at any time and keep it, print it and pass it on. (Terms, Section 14. Privacy Policy, Section 9.)

Do you sell my data?

No. We never sell raw writing that can be traced to you. We license the shared record, with identifying details already removed, to research and AI organizations, and that licensing helps fund the work. The two are not the same thing. (Terms, Sections 5.4 and 5.5.)

The bigger purpose

What do you mean by Beneficial AI?

AI built to help people, nature and the generations after us live well together. AI shaped by what people actually value, rather than by whatever gets the most reaction online.

How does the work with AI organizations actually work?

The shared record can be licensed to research and AI organizations under agreements that require them to use it responsibly and in line with our mission. The hope is to give AI a better picture of human values than the reactive noise of the internet. We do not know if it will make a difference. We believe it is worth trying.

Why would AI need this?

Most AI today learns from what people say in passing, the quick comments and the arguments. This is a record of what people believe when they slow down and think about what they want to leave behind.

Who is behind it

Who runs Codex Vivendi?

One person. Niklas Fjellman, a father in Sweden, building this through his company VisSight AB with the help of AI tools and of family, friends and early Contributors. You can read his Codex and see who he is.

Does AI write my Codex for me?

No. Everything in your Codex is written by you. You may use a writing tool to help you find the words if you want to, but the belief has to be yours. Everything in the shared record comes from people.

Is it free?

Yes. It is free to start and there is no credit card required. There is no paid tier yet. If that ever changes, we will explain it clearly first.

What happens if Codex Vivendi shuts down?

We are building this to last, but we are honest about uncertainty. If it ever had to close, we would give at least six months notice, keep the export feature open so you can download everything you wrote, and pass the shared record to a mission-aligned archive so it is not lost.

Do I have to be older to use this?

You need to be 18 or over. Beyond that, no. You do not need to be old to have something worth passing on. Start with one principle.

Begin Your Codex

Free to start. No credit card required.

Begin Your Codex