Google faces a trademark lawsuit from Autodesk over competing AI-powered movie-making software. The complaint filed February 9 in San Francisco federal court alleges Google infringed Autodesk's "Flow" trademark.
Autodesk began using Flow in September 2022 for visual effects and production management. Google launched its own Flow software in May 2025 targeting the same entertainment industry customers.
According to the complaint, Google assured Autodesk it wouldn't commercialize Flow, then applied to trademark the term in Tonga. Applications in the South Pacific kingdom are not generally available to public scrutiny.
"Google's false representation was intended to buy time to allow it to swamp Autodesk's place in the market," the complaint states.
Google used the Tonga application to seek U.S. trademark protection and has marketed Flow at industry events including Sundance Film Festival.
The market value disparity is stark. San Francisco-based Autodesk stands at $51 billion, while Google parent Alphabet commands $3.9 trillion.
"Despite the success of Autodesk's Flow products, the much larger Google will likely overwhelm the Autodesk Flow products and Flow marks," the complaint warns.
Autodesk seeks unspecified compensatory and punitive damages for consumer confusion and alleged irreparable harm.
"We remain committed to protecting our innovations and ensuring fair competition in the global marketplace," Autodesk said in a statement.
Google had no immediate comment on the lawsuit filed February 9.
The lawsuit comes as Autodesk shifts spending to cloud and artificial intelligence following 1,000 job cuts representing 7% of its workforce announced last month.
