Anthropic’s expansion into India collides with a local company that already owns the name

As Anthropic expands in India, a local software company filed a lawsuit over the use of the “Anthropic” name, showing how the global rush of AI companies can affect their stakeholders.

This writing comes in the middle of the Anthropic deep in India, announcing the Indian office October is past and soon appointing the former CEO of Microsoft India Irina Ghose to lead its operations in the country, confirming the growing importance of the South Asian market to international AI companies that are expanding beyond the US and Europe.

In a complaint filed with the commercial court in Karnataka in January, reviewed by TechCrunch, the Indian company Anthropic Software has used the name since 2017 and claims that Anthropic’s recent entry into India has caused confusion among customers. The company is seeking recognition of previous use and relief to avoid further damages, as well as ₹ 10 million (about $110,000) in damages.

The founder and director of Anthropic Software Mohammad Ayyaz Mulla told TechCrunch that the Indian company does not want to argue, but to be clear and aware of how it has already been used in India, adding that lawsuits are returned if disagreements do not happen.

“From now on, I’m exercising my legal rights because it’s causing a lot of confusion for my clients,” he said.

India, the world’s most populous country and one of the fastest growing internet markets, has become a battleground for AI companies such as Anthropic and its partner OpenAI. The country is also expected to host a conference AI Impact Conference in New Delhi next week, where Anthropic co-founder and CEO Dario Amodei will appear alongside other industry leaders such as Sam Altman, Jensen Huang, and Sundar Photosi.

A court order dated January 20 and seen by TechCrunch shows that the court has issued notices and summons to Anthropic. However, it refused to grant a temporary injunction and posted the matter back on February 16.

Anthropic did not respond to a request for comment.