In 2014, Elon Musk pledged not to file patent lawsuits against anyone using his technology
On Friday, Tesla filed a lawsuit in Texas federal court against the Australian company Cap-XX, claiming that the latter's supercapacitors violate two US patents held by a Tesla subsidiary and are used to store energy in the batteries of electric vehicles.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk promised not to "file patent lawsuits against anyone who, in good faith, wants to use our technology" in 2014. The firm claims that the legal action is in response to a claim of patent infringement brought by Cap-XX against Tesla subsidiary Maxwell Technologies in 2019.
"Maxwell has a history of innovation that has resulted in its own patents, now assigned to Tesla, and thus Tesla brings this suit against Cap-XX to protect its intellectual property rights," the lawsuit said.
Requests for comments regarding the lawsuit, which was filed in US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, were not immediately answered by representatives for Tesla and Cap-XX, US News reported.
In 2019, Tesla purchased Maxwell. Maxwell produces capacitors for electric vehicles that boost their capacity for energy storage, similar to Cap-XX.
The supercapacitor electrodes, which Tesla referred to as the "primary source of the device's power capabilities," are the subject of the patents that Cap-XX is accused of violating.
According to Tesla, the electrodes in Cap-XX's supercapacitors function similarly to Maxwell's patented technology. It requested unspecified monetary damages from the court.
Meanwhile, Maxwell is being sued by Cap-XX in Delaware federal court for allegedly violating the company's own supercapacitor patents.
Tesla recently unveiled its latest futuristic pickup truck, the Cybertruck, which has been long-awaited and marks a major milestone for the electric car company. The truck, which was two years behind schedule, was constructed at Tesla's Gigafactory near Austin, Texas.
Elon Musk announced the first Cybertruck on Twitter, which was previously introduced as a prototype in 2019. Despite a window failure during a durability demonstration, the vehicle received 150,000 advance orders in just two days, putting Tesla in competition with other major players in the industry, including Rivian, Ford, and GMC.