A potential rivalry is emerging within the tech sector, as Figma has reportedly issued a cease-and-desist letter to Lovable, a burgeoning no-code AI startup.

The letter instructs Lovable to discontinue the use of the term "Dev Mode" for a recent product enhancement, as Figma, which possesses a feature with the identical designation, successfully registered that trademark with the U.S. Patent and Trademark office last year.

It's interesting that "dev mode" is a common phrase used in many products for software programmers. It's similar to an edit mode. Big companies like Apple (with iOS), Google (with Chrome), and Microsoft (with Xbox) have features officially called "developer mode," which people then call "dev mode" in their documents.

The term "dev mode" is widely recognised and its application predates Figma's existence, having been employed by companies such as Atlassian in earlier products and featuring prominently as a standard function in numerous open-source software initiatives.

Figma has clarified to TechCrunch that their trademark specifically protects the shortcut "Dev Mode," rather than the complete phrase "developer mode," which is akin to trademarking the term "bug" while leaving "debugging" unprotected.

Because Figma wants to keep the term as its own, it has to send cease-and-desist letters. If Figma doesn't protect the term, it could become a general word, and the trademark would no longer be valid.

Proponents online contend that this term is already generic, should never have been eligible for trademark protection, and suggest Lovable should challenge the situation.

Anton Osika, co-founder and CEO of Lovable, informed TechCrunch that his company presently has no intention of complying with Figma's demand to rename the feature.

The potential for Figma to escalate remains to be seen, particularly as the company is preoccupied with other matters, notably the confidential IPO filing announced on Tuesday. Should Figma opt to pursue legal action, however, engaging in an international legal dispute could prove financially burdensome for the nascent Swedish startup, Lovable, which secured a $15 million seed funding round in February.

What's also interesting is that Lovable is becoming a well-known name in "vibe coding." This is when users describe what they want using text, and the product creates it, including the code. Its "dev mode" feature started a few weeks ago so users can change that code.

Lovable positions itself as a rival to Figma, proclaiming on its homepage that designers can utilise Lovable "without the burdensome prototyping tasks associated with software such as Figma." And a number of recently established startups are indeed doing precisely that.

Beyond a mere trademark disagreement, this situation also signifies a more established rival preparing to challenge a troublesome newcomer. Figma was valued at $12.5 billion approximately twelve months prior.

A spokesperson for Figma seems to agree with this, telling TechCrunch that they haven't sent legal letters to other tech companies using the term, like Microsoft, because their products are in a different type of goods and services.

Lovable's Osika, prepared to counter, asserted to TechCrunch that Figma ought to concentrate on refining their offering rather than engaging in trademark promotion, further claiming that Lovable is effectively attracting users from Figma and comparable pre-LLM design applications.

When asked about the danger of vibe coding products, Figma's CEO Dylan Field, who started the company with someone else, easily said it wasn't a problem during a talk with Garry Tan from Y Combinator last month.

Field noted that while people appreciate vibe coding's speed, "you also need to offer users a means to not only initiate projects and prototype swiftly but also successfully complete them. This is the point of divergence, affecting not only design but also coding."

Osika also appears poised for competition, evidenced by his use of a grinning emoji when disseminating Figma's letter on X.