Musk's name for AI chatbot Grok 'stolen' according to one startup founder

If you've been on X, formerly Twitter, then you'll be familiar with the AI chatbot Grok, from Elon Musk's xAI - but the name "Grok" is at the center of a potential trademark dispute.

xAI's trademark application was suspended by the US Patent and Trademark Office, as it argued the name could be confused with two companies - AI chipmaker Groq and software company Grokstream.

In the latest development, a third company has come forward, tech startup Bizly, and says it owns the rights to the name, WIRED reported.

Here's everything you need to know:

How did all three parties each come up with "Grok"?

Musk says he named his chatbot "Grok" after the word created by writer Robert A. Heinlein, meaning “to understand", which is used in his 1961 science fiction novel Stranger in a Strange Land, as per The Times of India.

Photo by VINCENT FEURAY/Hans Lucas/AFP via Getty Images

Then there's Bizly and xAI, which according to WIRED, both companies independently came up with this name.

As for Bizly, its founder, Ron Shah, says "Grok" was the result of a brainstorming session with a colleague who used the word as a verb and in 2021 made a trademark application for the name.

Bizly founder shares timeline

In 2023, Musk announced his Grok chatbot, and at this time, Shah had been launching his AI-powered live events app of the same name as he described how the billionaire's announcement came as a "complete shock".

"I woke up and looked at my phone, and there were so many messages from friends saying ‘did you get acquired by Elon? Congrats!’" the founder told the same publication.

Photo by RICCARDO MILANI/Hans Lucas/AFP via Getty Images)

Today, Shah says Bizly is close to shutting down and expressed this in an email to xAI attorney Robert Keele last Monday, WIRED reported.

“We are on the verge of company shutdown and need to recoup the damages in order to survive."

But Shah had hoped to come to an amicable resolution, as the startup founder offered to partner with Musk’s company or sell it the Grok trademark for a fair price, but claims he hasn't received a response from xAI.

What are the trademark requirements?

To register a trademark, the owners must prove it is being used to sell goods or services in at least two states.

In this case, Bizly was still in beta and running a pilot of its "Grok" app with financial services company Carta when Musk shared the news of his chatbot, and since Bizly's app never made it to the market, there are question marks over what trademark rights the company has in this instance.

According to Shah, his startup was close to securing a fundraising round, but ultimately didn't happen after the potential investors were spooked over trademark concerns.

Josh Gerben, founder of Gerben IP, a law firm focused exclusively on trademarks, told the same publication: "The goal is to not have confusion as to who is behind a product or service."

Consumers are less likely to get an AI software tool confused with an AI-powered kids toy, for instance, (something which Musk’s former partner Grimes trademarked the name "Grok" for), and with this in mind, Gerben also noted how "The details matter".

Musk's trademark history

When it comes to trademark trouble, this isn't Musk's first as the billionaire's social media platform settled a lawsuit last month with a marketing company who claimed it owns exclusive rights to the name X.

Indy100 has reached out to Elon Musk's representatives for comment.

Elsewhere, Musk calls Tim Walz a 'jerk' for mocking Tesla's falling stock price, and what are Elon Musk's kids' names? Learn the meanings behind their monikers.

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