"ChatGPT" is a distinctive brand name for OpenAI's particular chatbot system that is based on GPT technology.
However, "GPT" itself is a type of technology (albeit one that was invented by OpenAI). It involves much more than just ChatGPT...even if we just look at OpenAI's own other offerings (e.g. GPT-1, GPT-2, Dall-E, etc.).
The "GP" (generative pretraining) has been a concept in machine learning for many years. The "T" (transformer architecture) was invented in 2017. Thus, the issue for the USPTO will be whether or not combining the "GP" with the "T" is too descriptive or even inherently generic to be "distinctive" to OpenAI.
Sometimes, general terms can become trademarks, by becoming "distinctive" to one company. Microsoft was able to do it with "Windows" (in the field of software, of course). And "booking.com" was able to trademark the word "booking" (for reservation services) in certain contexts. The issue will be whether OpenAI can successfully make the case that they've achieved something similar for the term "GPT" itself. I really remain doubtful of that, given the term's frequent usage as being a type of LLM and a general framework for generative AI.
All that said, I suppose we'll all know for sure soon enough...when the USPTO decides.
"...the actual phrase GPT, standing for generative pre-trained transformer, is a broad term describing the AI technology. The term was first introduced in 2018 in a research paper published by OpenAI, but has since been used to describe any AI model that meet certain criteria.
This broad use could cause problems for OpenAI as the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office says it can refuse to trademark a term that is 'merely descriptive.'"
"...the actual phrase GPT, standing for generative pre-trained transformer, is a broad term describing the AI technology. The term was first introduced in 2018 in a research paper published by OpenAI, but has since been used to describe any AI model that meet certain criteria.
This broad use could cause problems for OpenAI as the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office says it can refuse to trademark a term that is 'merely descriptive.'"
"...the actual phrase GPT, standing for generative pre-trained transformer, is a broad term describing the AI technology. The term was first introduced in 2018 in a research paper published by OpenAI, but has since been used to describe any AI model that meet certain criteria.
This broad use could cause problems for OpenAI as the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office says it can refuse to trademark a term that is 'merely descriptive.'"
However, "GPT" itself is a type of technology (albeit one that was invented by OpenAI). It involves much more than just ChatGPT...even if we just look at OpenAI's own other offerings (e.g. GPT-1, GPT-2, Dall-E, etc.).
The "GP" (generative pretraining) has been a concept in machine learning for many years. The "T" (transformer architecture) was invented in 2017. Thus, the issue for the USPTO will be whether or not combining the "GP" with the "T" is too descriptive or even inherently generic to be "distinctive" to OpenAI.
Sometimes, general terms can become trademarks, by becoming "distinctive" to one company. Microsoft was able to do it with "Windows" (in the field of software, of course). And "booking.com" was able to trademark the word "booking" (for reservation services) in certain contexts. The issue will be whether OpenAI can successfully make the case that they've achieved something similar for the term "GPT" itself. I really remain doubtful of that, given the term's frequent usage as being a type of LLM and a general framework for generative AI.
All that said, I suppose we'll all know for sure soon enough...when the USPTO decides.