- A data sharing agreement governs data exchanged for a defined joint purpose, often in both directions.
- It sets roles, purpose, security, publication rights and who owns results.
- Use a data use agreement instead when one party licenses data to another for model training.
- This template is a starting point for discussion, not legal advice. Have a lawyer review any agreement before you sign it.
When to use a data sharing agreement
Use one when organizations exchange data for a shared project: a pilot to test whether data improves a model before a full license, an academic collaboration, or a partnership where each side contributes data. If one side is paying to train models on the other's data, use the AI training data use agreement.
Clause by clause
Parties and roles
States who provides which data and, for personal data, whether each party acts as a controller or processor (or business and service provider under the CCPA).
Project and purpose
Describes the project in enough detail that any other use is clearly outside it. Purpose limitation is the core protection.
Data description
Lists each party's data in a schedule. A data manifest works well.
Security and access
Where data is held, who can access it, and breach notification.
Results and intellectual property
Who owns models, findings and derived data. Common options are joint ownership, ownership by the party that created the result with a license back, or ownership by the data provider.
Publication
For research, the right to publish findings, subject to a review period and a ban on publishing the underlying data.
Term, return and deletion
Data is returned or deleted at the end of the project, with certification.
Privacy compliance
Each party confirms it has a lawful basis and appropriate notices for sharing personal data, and data is de-identified where possible. See de-identification.
Pilot to license
A short data sharing agreement for a paid or unpaid pilot lets a buyer test a sample before committing to a full license. Keep the sample small and the deletion obligation firm. Read how to evaluate a data sample.
Read next
Questions
What is the difference between a data sharing agreement and a data use agreement?
A data sharing agreement usually covers exchange for a joint purpose, often both ways. A data use agreement licenses one party to use the other's data, usually for a fee. See data sharing agreement.