OpenAI Withdraws Jony Ive's Promotion Video Due To Trademark Dispute

Legendary designer Jony Ive and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman (photo; x @akhilsonga1)

JAKARTA - A nine-minute video featuring interviews between legendary designer Jony Ive and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has been withdrawn from circulation. The reason for the withdrawal is legal dispute over the name of their new AI company, "io".

Although Ive and Altman's AI startup has been reported since April 2024, its official name was only revealed a year later. In April 2025, the company was reportedly named "io Projects", and when acquired by OpenAI in May 2025 for US$6.5 billion (around Rp106.1 trillion), its official name was simplified to "io".

But now, as TechCrunch first reported, the name is a source of legal problems. A company called "iyO" sued the use of the name "io", arguing it could cause confusion among consumers due to the similarity of name and products that are both AI-based.

The iyO company is the result of the development of the Alphabet X research project, and is known for its AI products that are fully controlled by voice orders. Its CEO, Jason Rugolo, has showcased their first iyO One device at the TED Talk event in April 2024.

In a trial held around June 18, 2025, Judge Total L. Thompson reportedly gave an interim prohibition order (temporary restoring order) against the use of the name "io". Although official details have not been released to the public, OpenAI has removed all promotional material that mentions the name, including a video interview between Ive and Altman.

On the official OpenAI website, the page where the video was previously available now displays a statement:

"This page is temporarily unavailable due to a court order in connection with a trademark complaint from iyO regarding the use of the name 'io'. We disagree with the complaint and are reviewing our legal options."

Until now, not much information is known about AI devices being developed by Ive and Altman, apart from that the product is artificial intelligence-based.

Meanwhile, iyO One, a smart earbud device worn on the ear and claimed to represent a new form of natural language computing through a natural and interesting conversation, is already available for pre-order at a price of 99 US dollars (around Rp. 1.6 million) and is scheduled to start shipping in August 2025.