diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index fde9f66..ea1c78d 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@
 
 ### Every league. Any matchup. One auditable simulation engine.
 
-Waterboy is a production-capable sports intelligence command center for
+Waterboy is a technical-preview sports intelligence command center for
 current-week score projections and hypothetical games. It combines source-backed
 history, deterministic Monte Carlo, visible uncertainty, exact replay, and seven
 isolated league packs behind one fast interface.
@@ -21,6 +21,24 @@ isolated league packs behind one fast interface.
 
 ![Waterboy product presentation](./docs/assets/waterboy-dashboard.png)
 
+## Product truth
+
+| Contract | Current public state |
+|---|---|
+| **Portfolio role** | **Deterministic Sports Simulation Engine** — auditable projections, hypothetical matchups, exact replay, and seven isolated league packs. |
+| **Maturity** | **Technical preview** |
+| **Engineering evidence baseline** | [`7c0999ad`](https://github.com/ObtuseAI/waterboy/commit/7c0999ad5971e081ec9d0dff9822ad6e9905b068) · configured [quality workflow](https://github.com/ObtuseAI/waterboy/actions/workflows/quality.yml) |
+| **Proved now** | The public release implements query-only intake, provenance storage, seven league packs, deterministic Monte Carlo, semantic replay, API/CLI/UI surfaces, and a 74-test automated quality result. |
+| **Authority ceiling** | Simulation only. Waterboy has no wagering, sportsbook, brokerage, capital, or real-world action authority. |
+| **Clean demonstration** | Follow the [quick start](#quick-start), refresh the seven-day board, then build a hypothetical matchup with a retained seed and evidence envelope. |
+| **Known limit** | League calibration is provisional and data-dependent. Internal reference anchors and historical replay do not establish predictive supremacy, profitability, or current real-time completeness. |
+
+**Designed for:** sports-data, media, simulation, and product teams that need one replayable engine without hiding league semantics, uncertainty, or source quality.
+
+[Explore the ObtuseAI portfolio](https://github.com/ObtuseAI) ·
+[Inspect the simulation pipeline](#the-waterboy-pipeline) ·
+[Start a technical conversation](https://github.com/ObtuseAI/waterboy/issues)
+
 ## The product presentation
 
 Waterboy opens with a complete, evidence-backed explanation of the working