OpenAI has been sued by software company TradeSun over the Astra name used for its GPT-6 artificial intelligence model, opening a trademark dispute over two AI products carrying the same name.
TradeSun filed the action on October 5 in the US District Court for the Northern District of California. The case, TradeSun Inc. v. OpenAI OpCo LLC, No. 3:26-cv-11360, alleges that OpenAI’s use of Astra infringes TradeSun’s earlier trademark rights. TradeSun is represented by Andrew Tutt and Stanton Jones of Trial Lawyers for Justice and Ana Juneja of Ana Law.
TradeSun’s claim to the name predates OpenAI’s launch by several years. US trademark records show the company filed its ASTRA application on May 28, 2021 and claimed first use in commerce from May 21 that year. Registration No. 6,746,198 was issued on May 31, 2022 for software-as-a-service using artificial intelligence for document classification, data extraction and data processing.
TradeSun continues to market Astra as an agentic AI platform for global commerce. Its current product materials describe Astra as handling document automation, data extraction, transaction verification, sanctions screening and other risk-related functions for businesses including banks and financial institutions.
OpenAI released GPT-6 Astra on September 3, 2026. The company describes it as a general-purpose model for demanding professional work, including software engineering, research, cybersecurity and computer use, with access through ChatGPT, its API, Microsoft Azure and AWS Bedrock.
The dispute raises the issue of what trademark law calls reverse confusion. The Ninth Circuit recognises reverse confusion where customers dealing with an earlier trademark owner may mistakenly believe they are dealing with, or are connected to, a later but commercially stronger user of the same or a similar mark. It is treated as a theory of likelihood of confusion rather than a separate cause of action.
That framework makes the OpenAI Seeks Summary Judgment in xAI Case | Lawyer Monthly rather than automatically favouring the better-known brand. Courts considering likelihood of confusion in the Ninth Circuit can examine factors including the strength of the marks, similarity, relatedness of the products, marketing channels, purchaser sophistication and evidence of actual confusion.
There is also a prior challenge in TradeSun’s trademark history. BizUpUSA Holdings petitioned the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board on April 7, 2026 to cancel TradeSun’s ASTRA registration. The petition was withdrawn in July and the proceeding was terminated on July 13, leaving TradeSun’s registration in place.
OpenAI disputes the infringement allegation. No court has yet determined whether its use of Astra infringes TradeSun’s rights, and the case is at the pleading stage.
For intellectual-property lawyers and in-house legal teams, the dispute illustrates the Apple Hit With Record $5.7bn Patent Verdict | Lawyer Monthly. The fact that both parties operate in AI-related services means the eventual analysis may focus closely on how customers encounter the two Astra brands and whether they are likely to perceive a commercial connection.
The case could also provide a useful modern application of OpenAI, Microsoft Face Copyright Challenge | Lawyer Monthly As model names increasingly become commercial brands in their own right, product-launch teams may need to treat naming decisions with the same level of trademark scrutiny applied to conventional software and consumer products.