No ‘GPT’ trademark for OpenAI

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has rejected OpenAI’s bid to trademark “GPT,” stating that the term is deemed “merely descriptive.” This decision serves as a setback to OpenAI’s branding efforts. Despite this ruling, it is unlikely that competitors will rush to release their own versions of the popular chatbot.

ChatGPT has become a prominent name in the AI landscape, regarded as the leading conversational model in the industry and responsible for propelling large language models into the global spotlight. However, the USPTO’s contention that the term does not meet the criteria for trademark registration signifies a significant blow to OpenAI’s attempts to secure legal protection for the brand.

OpenAI maintained that it had popularized the acronym “GPT,” which stands for “generative pre-trained transformer,” aptly describing the machine learning model’s characteristics. Emphasizing its generative nature, pre-trained status, and transformer methodology, OpenAI argued that the term encapsulated the essence of their model. Nonetheless, the patent office rebuffed this assertion, highlighting that “GPT” was already in use across various industries and applications.

Essentially, the rejection hinged on the premise that “GPT” primarily describes a feature or function of the product, akin to attempting to trademark a generic term like “crunchy” for a cereal brand. While OpenAI has been synonymous with the GPT concept, the lack of trademark protection may result in other entities introducing similar products under different names without legal repercussions.

Although this denial may potentially diminish OpenAI’s exclusive rights to GPT-related terminology, the company’s established reputation and association with the term provide a competitive edge in the market. Despite the limitations on legal safeguards, OpenAI’s pioneering role in popularizing the GPT model positions them as the frontrunner in the domain, reinforcing their status as the original innovator in this space.

In light of this development, OpenAI may choose to reinforce their GPT branding strategy, circumventing trademark constraints to underscore their pioneering contributions. While new variations like “TalkGPT” may emerge in the market, OpenAI remains at the forefront due to their strong brand recognition and initial market penetration with the GPT model.