Singular, Google resolve AI hardware patent controversy
Singular Computing, a computer hardware and software developer for data centers and edge computing, has settled its legal dispute with Google LLC.
This resolution, marked by a patent license agreement, resolves the case in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts.
Singular filed a lawsuit against Google in December 2019. The legal dispute proceeded to trial in January 2024 but was settled through negotiations.
Singular, founded by Joseph Bates, claimed in court that Google avoided building approximately $10 billion worth of data centers by using Singular’s patented technology without permission. After a two-week trial in January, both parties decided to settle, filing a joint motion to stay the case.
Bates attributed Singular’s 2009 computer architecture development to enabling AI, cloud computing, and other software that requires millions of calculations per request.
Singular notes that Bates’ patented design reorganizes microprocessors to carry out commands significantly faster, enhancing computing power and cutting costs.
When Singular initially filed the lawsuit against Google, the company claimed that Google had copied its patented computer architecture concept. Singular chips, called tensor processing units, are utilized for artificial intelligence.
Singular says Bates shared this patented computer architecture with Google executives in confidential meetings and presentations between 2010 and 2014. Google incorporated this technology into its data centers, fueling products like Translate, Photos, Search, Assistant, Cloud and Gmail, according to Singular.
Singular Computing LLC notes that it specializes in developing and licensing hardware and software technologies tailored for high-performance, energy-efficient computing. Their solutions serve a range of applications, including AI and non-AI uses, spanning from data centers to edge computing environments.
According to the New York Times, Google paid $700 million in December to settle allegations that its Play Store had pressured app developers with high fees and stringent terms. Shortly after, Google paid $350 million to resolve a lawsuit regarding the unauthorized sharing of users’ private data.
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