AI “Concierge” and Gleissner firm is battling it over the trademark — Expensify names

EBB Development Limited happened to file for a Pakistani trademark for concierge on the same day Expensify filed an application in the U.S. Hmm.

Business expense note firm Expensify has named its artificial intelligence system Concierge. Unfortunately for the popular startup, one of Michael Gleissner’s firms has this trademark in its crosshairs.

If you haven’t been following this saga, a number of firms that list Michael Gleissner as director have filed very questionable trademark applications, dead-on-arrival UDRPs and lots of trademark objections in various jurisdictions.

The case over Concierge might shed some light on Gleissner’s strategy.

Expensify filed two intent-to-use trademark applications with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on February 12, 2016 for ‘Concierge’. On the exact same date, a Gleissner-run firm called EBB Development Limited filed a trademark application in Pakistan for ‘Concierge’.

On August 9, 2016, EBB filed a trademark application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for ‘Concierge’ as a 44(d) application, claiming priority to the Pakistan filing.

Suspicious?