A potential conflict is brewing in the tech industry, as evidenced by a cease-and-desist letter sent by Figma to Lovable, a prominent AI startup, a fact confirmed by Figma to TechCrunch.

The correspondence instructs Lovable to cease employing the designation "Dev Mode" for a recent product enhancement. Figma, possessing a feature similarly termed "Dev Mode," successfully secured a trademark for this term last year, as confirmed by the U.S. Patent and Trademark office.

Interestingly, "dev mode" is a common phrase used in many products made 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" that people then informally call "dev mode" in their materials.

The term "dev mode" is frequently employed, predating Figma's copyright; for example, Atlassian incorporated it into products years earlier, and it remains a common feature designation across numerous open-source software projects.

Figma informed TechCrunch that their trademark solely pertains to the abbreviation "Dev Mode", not the complete phrase "developer mode", which is somewhat akin to trademarking "bug" when it refers to the process of "debugging".

To keep the term as its own, Figma has to send cease-and-desist letters. If Figma doesn't protect the term, it could become a general word, and the trademark might not be valid anymore.

Proponents on the internet contend that this term is already generic, should never have been eligible for trademark protection, and assert Lovable should challenge the status quo.

Anton Osika, co-founder and CEO of Lovable, informed TechCrunch that, at present, his company intends to disregard Figma's demand and retain the current name for the feature.

Whether Figma will take further action remains uncertain, especially as the company is reportedly preoccupied with other matters, including its confidential IPO filing on Tuesday. Nevertheless, pursuing international legal action could prove costly for the fledgling Swedish startup, Lovable, which secured $15 million in seed funding in February.

Also, Lovable is seen as a promising new company in something called "vibe coding." This is when users type what they want, and the product creates it, including the code. A new feature called "dev mode" came out recently, letting users change the code it makes.

Lovable says it competes with Figma, stating on its website that designers can use Lovable "without difficult prototyping work in programs like Figma." Many new startups are starting to do this.

Consequently, this situation transcends a mere trademark disagreement; it signifies a larger competitor preparing to challenge a troublesome newcomer. Figma's valuation stood at $12.5 billion roughly a year prior.

A Figma representative implicitly acknowledges this point, stating to TechCrunch that Figma has refrained from issuing cease-and-desist notices to other technology firms, such as Microsoft, regarding the use of the term, given that their offerings belong to "a distinct category of goods and services."

And Lovable's Osika is prepared to counter, informing TechCrunch that he believes "Figma should prioritise enhancing their product" rather than concentrating on trademark promotion. He further states to TechCrunch that Lovable is effectively attracting clients away from Figma and comparable design tools developed before the advent of LLMs.

Regarding the broader danger posed by vibe coding products, during a discussion last month with Y Combinator's Garry Tan, Figma co-founder and CEO Dylan Field predictably dismissed the concept.

Field observed that while users appreciate the efficiency of vibe coding, there remains a need to facilitate not only rapid prototyping but also successful project completion; this disparity represents a significant gap, impacting both design and development processes.

Nonetheless, Osika appears equally prepared to contend, having accompanied his disclosure of Figma's correspondence on X with a grinning emoji.