‘Robotaxi’ trademarks declined in blow to Tesla

Tesla has had its trademark applications for the term 'Robotaxi' for its vehicles turned down by the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), who said the term is too generic. The USPTO is still examining an application by Tesla to use 'Robotaxi' for its ride-hailing service that's set to launch in June.

The USPTO said that while there were no conflicting trademarks currently out there, ‘Robotaxi’ is ‘merely descriptive’ when it comes to a vehicle and “is used to describe similar goods and services by other companies”. It added: “Such wording appears to be generic in the context of applicant’s goods and / or services.”

Tesla’s application was met with a ‘nonfinal office action’ by the USPTO, which gives it three months to submit a response. The company will have to submit evidence and arguments to support its case, including “fact sheets, instruction manuals, brochures, advertisements, and pertinent screenshots of applicant’s website as it relates to the goods and / or services in the application.” If it fails to provide compelling evidence in this time, Tesla’s trademark application will be denied.

However, Tesla does have a separate trademark application for ‘Robotaxi’ which covers the ride hailing service itself. This will cover the company as it offers transportation services including “arranging time-based ridesharing services” and “coordinating travel arrangements for individuals and groups”. This application was filed on April 14, but is still pending a decision.

Additionally, Tesla’s attempts to trademark the term ‘Cybercab’ have also been turned down due to other companies pursuing similar trademarks. The firm first submitted the applications in October 2024 on the day it first revealed the Cybercab, the vehicle it hopes to use in its autonomous ride-hailing service.

techcrunch.com