OpenAI has temporarily taken down the announcement page for its $6.5 billion acquisition of IO, the artificial intelligence startup founded by former Apple design chief Jony Ive, following a trademark complaint from another tech company.
A court issued a takedown order after IYO, a separate AI hardware firm, filed a legal challenge claiming trademark infringement over the name “IO.” In response, OpenAI said it does not agree with the complaint and is “reviewing our options.”
One of the most high-profile recent partnerships in AI — bringing together OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Ive — has thus been briefly erased from the web, though the companies behind the deal maintain it remains intact.
“We don’t agree with the complaint and are reviewing our options,” OpenAI said in a statement. “This does not affect our plans with IO.”
A spokesperson for Ive dismissed IYO’s challenge as “utterly baseless” and vowed to “fight it vigorously.”
The IO venture, which aims to create next-generation AI hardware and interfaces, has been widely watched since news of the collaboration broke. Despite the legal dispute, both OpenAI and Ive appear committed to moving forward with the deal.