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French startup eBikeLabs is suing Belgian e-bike manufacturer Cowboy for patent infringement and copying its technology in Cowboy’s latest AdaptivePower feature. Cowboy has denied the allegations and is accusing eBikeLabs of running a smear campaign. has obtained new information about a February 2022 meeting between the two companies, during which they discussed eBikeLabs’ intellectual property strategy and implementation of its field adaptation algorithm. After Cowboy terminated its contract with eBikeLabs, the company released a software update with AdaptivePower, which eBikeLabs claims is reusing some of their technology. Cowboy denies the claims and is suing eBikeLabs for disparagement.
eBikeLabs aimed to build an e-bike hardware controller for multiple manufacturers, but that project failed to take off. The company then focused on software and partnered with controller manufacturers to bring their firmware and software stack to existing hardware. In 2021, Cowboy and eBikeLabs signed a wide-reaching contract, making eBikeLabs a research and development partner for Cowboy with strict exclusivity clauses. However, Cowboy terminated the contract in 2022 and released AdaptivePower in March 2023.
Section One: eBikeLabs’ Partnership with Cowboy
eBikeLabs’ first project aimed to build its own electric bike hardware controller for multiple bike manufacturers, which ultimately failed to take off. In 2021, eBikeLabs decided to focus exclusively on the software part of the e-bike controller and partnered with controller manufacturers to bring their firmware and software stack to existing hardware. This strategy was expected to work particularly well with newcomers in the e-bike industry, such as companies working on control units for the automotive industry and looking for new segments.
Section Two: eBikeLabs’ Breakup with Cowboy
After signing a comprehensive contract with Cowboy, eBikeLabs became an outsourced research and development group, with strict exclusivity clauses. Shortly after that, eBikeLabs laid off its sales and marketing team due to the Cowboy contract. eBikeLabs started working on the controller firmware for the next generation of Cowboy bikes. However, Cowboy terminated the contract with eBikeLabs in 2022, and shortly after that, AdaptivePower was released.
Section Three: Legal Dispute
eBikeLabs claims that Cowboy’s release of AdaptivePower infringes on eBikeLabs’ intellectual property rights. In April 2023, Cowboy sent a letter to eBikeLabs’ lawyers stating that their technology had been developed independently while eBikeLabs filed a patent for the field adaptation algorithm in January 2022. However, Cowboy was aware of eBikeLabs’ patent filing and was given early access to their technology, including their field adaptation algorithm. After terminating its contract with eBikeLabs, Cowboy released AdaptivePower, which eBikeLabs claims is reusing some of their technology.
Conclusion
The legal dispute between eBikeLabs and Cowboy is a messy story about a business relationship that fell apart between a small startup that doesn’t have deep pockets and a popular consumer brand that wants to protect its reputation. The technology in question is eBikeLabs’ implementation of their field adaptation algorithm, which Cowboy released in its latest feature, AdaptivePower. Cowboy denies any patent infringement and instead accuses eBikeLabs of running a smear campaign.
FAQ
Q: What is eBikeLabs?
A: eBikeLabs is a French startup that was working on embedded software for electric bikes.
Q: What is Cowboy?
A: Cowboy is a Belgian electric bike manufacturer.
Q: What is AdaptivePower?
A: AdaptivePower is Cowboy’s latest feature, which automatically adjusts the power of the motor depending on the current slope and weather conditions.
Q: What is the legal dispute between eBikeLabs and Cowboy?
A: eBikeLabs is suing Cowboy for patent infringement and copying their technology in AdaptivePower, while Cowboy denies the allegations and accuses eBikeLabs of running a smear campaign.
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