OpenAI has pulled a much-discussed video selling the friendship between CEO Sam Altman and legendary Apple designer Jony Ive (plus, by the way, OpenAI’s $6.5 billion deal to amass Ive and Altman’s gadget startup io) from its web site and YouTube web page.
Does that counsel one thing is amiss with the acquisition, or with plans for Ive to guide design work at OpenAI? Not precisely, based on Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, who stories that the “deal is on monitor and has NOT dissolved or something of the kind.” As an alternative, he mentioned a choose has issued a restraining order over the io identify, forcing the corporate to tug all supplies that used it.
OpenAI subsequently confirmed that is the case, updating the outdated announcement web page with the assertion, “This web page is quickly down resulting from a court docket order following a trademark criticism from iyO about our use of the identify ‘io.’ We don’t agree with the criticism and are reviewing our choices.”
The corporate mentioned this doesn’t have an effect on the take care of io.
The iyO in query emerged from the Alphabet X “moonshot manufacturing facility,” and its first introduced product is a set of generative AI-powered earbuds. An earlier report at Bloomberg Legislation famous that iyO had introduced a trademark lawsuit in opposition to OpenAI, with the choose suggesting she’s open to the corporate’s argument that OpenAI’s promotional video may already be creating client confusion.
For now, not less than, the video stays viewable on X.
This submit has been up to date with affirmation from OpenAI.