OpenAI sues Open AI? In recent years, this AI giant has been embroiled in a trademark dispute, accusing a company using the trademark “Open AI” (with a space) and successfully obtaining a court order to temporarily suspend Open AI’s website operations in February this year, alleging that the other party’s brand may confuse consumers and infringe on OpenAI’s rights.
Although Open AI is referred to as a company, it is actually owned by an entrepreneur named Guy Ravine, who not only owns the Open AI trademark but also acquired the coveted open.ai domain before OpenAI was established, leaving OpenAI with no choice but to register openai.com.
Is Open AI a trademark troll or a coincidence? Why are tech giants speaking out for him?
However, the formal lawsuit is titled “OpenAI v. Open Artificial Intelligence.”
OpenAI cites an email from Ravine to CEO Sam Altman in 2022 in the lawsuit, stating, “Musk paid $11 million for the Tesla domain and trademark in 2017. And it is well known that OpenAI has the potential to surpass Tesla… So the ultimate value of the domain and brand of OpenAI is considerable.”
The court also decided to temporarily prohibit Ravine from using the Open AI trademark until the lawsuit is resolved, stating, “The plaintiff’s trademark is related to the most well-known and rapidly popularized AI tools. In contrast, the defendant’s trademark is only related to one website, and it was not operational until shortly before the lawsuit began.”
Former Apple executive Tom Gruber stated that Ravine had been pitching the concept of Open AI at least six months before OpenAI was introduced.
Seeing this, Ravine seems to be just a trademark troll under OpenAI’s narrative, trying to demand a large sum of money for the trademark and domain they desire. However, under scrutiny from the outside world, it is discovered that things are not that simple.
According to Bloomberg, shortly after the court prohibited Ravine from using the Open AI trademark, Ravine counter-sued OpenAI and its co-founders Altman and Brockman in April this year, claiming that in 2015, he had tried to raise $100 million for Open AI and had contacted several tech giants, including Google co-founder Larry Page and Meta’s Chief AI Scientist Yann LeCun.
In the lawsuit, he emphasized that the similarity between OpenAI and Open AI is not a coincidence, claiming that Altman and Brockman stole his idea. At first glance, this counter-suit may seem like the last struggle and unreasonable troublemaking of a scammer, but industry insiders have personally come forward to support him and help him clear his name.
“He (Ravine) is a serious AI entrepreneur,” said Tom Gruber, co-founder of Siri and former Apple executive. Gruber testified that Ravine had pitched Open AI to him at least six months before Altman appeared, and he had seen Ravine pitching the concept of Open AI to Larry Page.
“He’s not as charismatic as Altman,” Gruber defended Ravine. “But he is intelligent and honest, and he was the first to conceive and apply for his own trademark. Now OpenAI wants to ‘erase him from the story.'”
The backstory behind Open AI: It foresaw multiple tech trends and built a sharing platform 5 years ahead of Airbnb
So who is Guy Ravine, who is at odds with OpenAI? Like many tech entrepreneurs, he got his own computer at the age of 5, started programming from a young age, and first entered the AI field and the entrepreneurial circle in college. He co-founded a company called iNeed and claimed that Quora founder Adam D’Angelo had worked at his company.
Bloomberg describes Ravine’s career path as quite extraordinary. He has proposed many technology concepts that have had a significant impact: he created a shared room platform called Stayway 5 years before Airbnb; he believed in electric cars and built a single-seater electric car; he created the social platform We and launched a video sharing feature that later became used by Snapchat and TikTok; he even had the foresight to invest in Bitcoin.
Although Ravine has not become a well-known successful entrepreneur, he is by no means pretending to be one and trying to profit from OpenAI. Ravine emphasizes that he is the one being sued, not the one threatening OpenAI with the trademark. He even allowed the open.ai domain to automatically redirect to OpenAI’s official website, openai.com, without charging a penny for it.
Why did the trademark dispute reignite in recent years, and why is it only coming to light now? In fact, despite Ravine applying for the Open AI trademark, he did not use it to threaten OpenAI. He even let the open.ai domain redirect to OpenAI’s website for a long time without charging any fees.
Perhaps the turning point can be traced back to 2022 when Altman contacted Ravine after many years, expressing his intention to acquire the open.ai domain. In response, Ravine stated in his reply that he personally does not lack money and would be willing to hand over the domain and trademark if OpenAI donates to the non-profit AI research institution he planned.
This reply was also highlighted by OpenAI, citing the portion where Musk paid for the Tesla domain and trademark.
However, Ravine is now refusing to hand over the Open AI trademark to OpenAI. In the lawsuit, he mentioned that OpenAI is no longer open and has transformed from a non-profit organization trusted by humanity into a closed, profit-oriented entity, seemingly under Altman’s unilateral control. The lawsuit listed events such as a coup within OpenAI, a major shake-up of the board of directors, and the departure of the security team.
Musk has filed a lawsuit against OpenAI for the second time this year, accusing the AI company of violating its founding principles. In response to the letters disclosed by Musk, OpenAI hinted that openness was only temporary and sharing research results was a means to attract talent in the short to medium term. During the period after Ravine filed his counter-suit, OpenAI announced that it would completely change its structure and transform into a for-profit company, granting Altman a 7% stake.
Facing the hottest AI company of the moment, it may not be easy for Ravine to win the trademark battle. However, through this lawsuit, his story is finally known to the world, revealing the existence of an entrepreneur who was dedicated to open AI technology and tried to build “Open AI.”
Source:
Bloomberg
Reuters