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Autodesk has filed a trademark infringement lawsuit against Google in California court, alleging that the tech giant’s Flow AI video generator confuses customers with its proprietary Flow filmmaking platform.
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Autodesk launched its Flow brand as a cloud-based platform for filmmakers in 2022, and Google announced a competing AI video tool in May 2025.
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The case highlights growing tensions in the AI video generation market as established enterprise software companies clash with Big Tech’s AI ambitions.
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Legal experts will be watching to see whether Google rebrands, fights a lawsuit, or reaches a settlement – any outcome could set a precedent for AI product naming disputes.
3D design software giant Autodesk has just launched a legal challenge against Google for apparent trademark infringement. The company filed a lawsuit in California last week, alleging that Google’s AI video generator, also known as Flow, would confuse customers with Autodesk’s own AI-powered filmmaking platform, which has been on the market since 2022. It’s a high-stakes clash that shows just how competitive the AI video space has become, with legacy software companies poised to battle tech giants for brand space.
Autodesk isn’t backing down from the fight against one of the biggest companies in the technology industry. The company, best known for AutoCAD and other professional 3D design tools, just filed a trademark infringement lawsuit against Google over the name of its AI video generator, according to court documents seen by Reuters.
The lawsuit, filed in California federal court, gets straight to the point. Google’s Flow AI tool is likely to confuse customers with Autodesk’s Flow brand of AI-enabled filmmaking products. For a company like Autodesk, which has spent years building its Flow platform, Google’s entry with a product of the same name seems like a direct challenge to its market position.
This is where timelines become important. In 2022, Autodesk introduced Flow, a cloud-based collaboration platform aimed at filmmakers and creative professionals. Since then, the company has added Flow Studio under the Flow umbrella. Flow Studio uses AI to transform live-action footage into 3D scenes. This is a rather special feature that is at the core of modern film production workflows. The company is investing heavily in this space, positioning itself at the intersection of traditional 3D design expertise and emerging AI capabilities.
Google then launched its own Flow tool in May 2025. In addition to sharing a name, Google’s AI video generators operate in overlapping market areas and create AI-powered video content for creative professionals, according to the complaint. This is what Autodesk calls likelihood of confusion, and it is a cornerstone of trademark law.
