Moises Systems, Inc.

98142204Ttab26 de nov. de 2025

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This Opinion is Not a
Precedent of the TTAB
Hearing: August 26, 2025 Mailed: November 26, 2025
UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
_____
Trademark Trial and Appeal Board
_____
In re Moises Systems, Inc.
_____
Serial No. 98142204
_____
David P. Johnson, Shelise Rupp, and Matthew E. Healey of Workman Nydegger
for Moises Systems, Inc.
Cindy Nguyen, Trademark Examining Attorney, Law Office 106,
Mary Sparrow, Managing Attorney.
_____
Before Wellington, Dunn, and Bradley,
Administrative Trademark Judges.
Opinion by Dunn, Administrative Trademark Judge:
Moises Systems, Inc. (Applicant) seeks registration on the Principal Register of
the mark MUSIC.AI (in standard characters) for downloadable computer software
modules in International Class 9 and services providing temporary use of non-
downloadable software modules, in International Class 42.1 Because the
1 Application Serial No. 98142204 filed August 21, 2023 under Section 1(b) of the Trademark
Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1051(b), based upon Applicant’s allegation of a bona fide intention to use the
mark in commerce. References to the application are to the downloadable .pdf version of
documents available from the USPTO’s TSDR (Trademark Status and Document Retrieval)
Serial No. 98142204
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identifications are long and highly similar, we emphasize the slight differences in
wording:
downloadable computer software modules for facilitating communication
and data exchange between computer systems and software applications via
application program interfaces (APIs) for performing audio source separation,
musical instrument separation, percussion separation, drums separation,
keyboard separation, piano separation, strings separation, bass separation,
guitar separation, brass separation, woodwind separation, transcription,
speech transcription, singing transcription, beat detection, beat transcription,
chord transcription, section identification, section definition, mixing,
mastering, metronome generation, spectrogram generation, audio encoding,
subtitle encoding, limiting, dynamic range limiting, normalization, overdrive
control, pitch shifting, reverberation modification, audio reversal, speed
adjustment, tempo adjustment, editing, segment extraction, speech-audio
alignment, singing-audio alignment, voice synthesis, voice tone transfer, voice
style transfer, text to speech, video speech alignment, video singing alignment,
and enhancement on music, songs, sounds, and audio recordings;
downloadable computer software modules for ordering, structuring,
executing, configuring, connecting, and creating workflows, tasks, and jobs for
performing audio source separation, musical instrument separation,
percussion separation, drums separation, keyboard separation, piano
separation, strings separation, bass separation, guitar separation, brass
separation, woodwind separation, transcription, speech transcription, singing
transcription, beat detection, beat transcription, chord transcription, section
identification, section definition, mixing, mastering, metronome generation,
spectrogram generation, audio encoding, subtitle encoding, limiting, dynamic
range limiting, normalization, overdrive control, pitch shifting, reverberation
modification, audio reversal, speed adjustment, tempo adjustment, editing,
segment extraction, speech-audio alignment, singing-audio alignment, voice
synthesis, voice tone transfer, voice style transfer, text to speech, video speech
alignment, video singing alignment, and enhancement on music, songs,
sounds, and audio recordings, in International Class 9;
providing temporary use of non-downloadable software modules for
facilitating communication and data exchange between computer systems and
software applications via application program interfaces (APIs) for performing
audio source separation, musical instrument separation, percussion
separation, drums separation, keyboard separation, piano separation, strings
database. The TTABVUE citations refer to the Board’s electronic docket, with the first
number referring to the docket entry and the second number, if applicable, referring to the
page within the entry.
Serial No. 98142204
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separation, bass separation, guitar separation, brass separation, woodwind
separation, transcription, speech transcription, singing transcription, beat
detection, beat transcription, chord transcription, section identification,
section definition, mixing, mastering, metronome generation, spectrogram
generation, audio encoding, subtitle encoding, limiting, dynamic range
limiting, normalization, overdrive control, pitch shifting, reverberation
modification, audio reversal, speed adjustment, tempo adjustment, editing,
segment extraction, speech-audio alignment, singing-audio alignment, voice
synthesis, voice tone transfer, voice style transfer, text to speech, video speech
alignment, video singing alignment, and enhancement on music, songs,
sounds, and audio recordings; software as a service (SaaS) featuring non-
downloadable software modules for ordering, structuring, executing,
configuring, connecting, and creating workflows, tasks, and jobs for performing
audio source separation, musical instrument separation, percussion
separation, drums separation, keyboard separation, piano separation, strings
separation, bass separation, guitar separation, brass separation, woodwind
separation, transcription, speech transcription, singing transcription, beat
detection, beat transcription, chord transcription, section identification,
section definition, mixing, mastering, metronome generation, spectrogram
generation, audio encoding, subtitle encoding, limiting, dynamic range
limiting, normalization, overdrive control, pitch shifting, reverberation
modification, audio reversal, speed adjustment, tempo adjustment, editing,
segment extraction, speech-audio alignment, singing-audio alignment, voice
synthesis, voice tone transfer, voice style transfer, text to speech, video speech
alignment, video singing alignment, and enhancement on music, songs,
sounds, and audio recordings, in International Class 42.
In essence, the application identifies the same software available in two different
forms. See Heil Co. v. Tripleye GmbH, No. 91277359, 2024 TTAB LEXIS 494, at *85-
86 (“Applicant’s Class 42 services cover the design of software that performs the
identical purpose or function of Opposer’s software (i.e., controlling and monitoring
vehicles). Thus, consumers can seek out Applicant’s services, or purchase Opposer’s
software [in Class 9], to accomplish the same purpose.”). Throughout this opinion, we
use “software” to refer to the software listed in the application’s International Class
9 goods and 42 services.
Serial No. 98142204
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The Trademark Examining Attorney refused registration of Applicant’s mark
under Section 2(e)(1) of the Trademark Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1052(e)(1), on the ground that
Applicant’s mark MUSIC.AI is merely descriptive of Applicant’s goods and services.2
When the refusal was made final, Applicant appealed and requested
reconsideration. After the Examining Attorney denied the request for
reconsideration, the appeal was resumed and is fully briefed.3 An oral hearing was
held August 26, 2025.
We affirm the refusal to register.
I. Refusal as Merely Descriptive of the Goods
Section 2(e)(1) of the Trademark Act prohibits registration on the Principal
Register of “a mark which, (1) when used on or in connection with the goods [or
services] of the applicant is merely descriptive . . . of them.” 15 U.S.C. § 1052(e)(1). A
term is “merely descriptive” within the meaning of Section 2(e)(1) if it “immediately
2 In response to the refusal, Applicant argued that .AI functioned as a top-level domain as
well as an initialism for artificial intelligence. June 26, 2024 Response TSDR 12-13. The
Examining Attorney then refused registration on the additional basis that MUSIC.AI was a
merely descriptive domain name. July 5, 2024 Office Action TSDR 4-8. This refusal was not
made final and was subsequently withdrawn. October 23, 2024 Office Action TSDR 3.
Notwithstanding the withdrawal, the final refusal addressed Applicant’s arguments that,
because .AI is a top-level domain, the term MUSIC.AI is not merely descriptive of its
software. Id. at TSDR 7-8. Accordingly, we give no consideration to those parts of the
Examining Attorney’s brief that address a separate domain name refusal, but consider all
evidence regarding public perception of “.AI,” including the evidence of its use as a top-level
domain, in connection with the mere descriptiveness refusal.
3 For the first time in her brief, and without submitting copies of the registrations or seeking
remand to do so, the Examining Attorney made arguments based on Applicant’s purported
ownership of two registrations for the same mark. 8 TTABVUE 10-13. Applicant objected in
its brief to any consideration of the arguments (9 TTABVUE 5-7), and the objection is
sustained. Trademark Rule 2.142(d), 37 CFR 2.142(d) (“The record should be complete prior
to the filing of an appeal.”).
Serial No. 98142204
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conveys knowledge of a quality, feature, function, or characteristic of the goods or
services with which it is used.” In re Chamber of Commerce of the U.S., 675 F.3d 1297,
1300 (Fed. Cir. 2012) (quoting In re Bayer AG, 488 F.3d 960, 963 (Fed. Cir. 2007)). If
the refusal of registration based on mere descriptiveness applies to any of the goods
or services within a class listed in the application, registration is refused as to the
entire class. See In re Stereotaxis Inc., 429 F.3d 1039, 1041 (Fed. Cir. 2005).
Descriptiveness must be assessed “in relation to the particular goods [and
services] for which registration is sought, the context in which it is being used, and
the possible significance that the term would have to the average purchaser of the
goods [or services] because of the manner of its use or intended use.” In re Bayer AG,
488 F.3d at 963-964. We find that the average purchaser of Applicant’s goods and
services seeks software to create and modify audio recordings, including musical
audio recordings. In re TriVita, Inc., 783 F.3d 872, 875 (Fed. Cir. 2015) (“TriVita is
correct that descriptiveness is determined from the viewpoint of the relevant
purchasing public.”).
A. Descriptiveness of component terms
Evidence that a term is merely descriptive to the relevant purchasing public may
be obtained from any competent source. In re N.C. Lottery, 866 F.3d 1363, 1367 (Fed.
Cir. 2017). For example, dictionaries, newspapers, or surveys may provide evidence
of mere descriptiveness. In re Chamber of Commerce, 675 F.3d at 1300. Competent
sources of the commercial context showing the public’s perception of the mark include
specimens of the mark, websites, publications, and use on labels, packages, or in
Serial No. 98142204
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advertising material directed to the goods and services. In re N.C. Lottery, 866 F.3d
at 1368. Based on the evidence set forth below, we reject Applicant’s argument that
“the words MUSIC and AI, either alone or in combination, are not merely descriptive
of the applied-for goods and services.”4
1. MUSIC
The record indicates that the term MUSIC is defined as “vocal, instrumental or
mechanical sounds having rhythm, melody, or harmony.”5 Where a mark includes or
comprises a dictionary term, the definition generally supplies its connotation. Stratus
Networks, Inc. v. UBTA-UBET Commc’ns Inc., 955 F.3d 994, 998 (Fed. Cir. 2020)
(“The Board relied on dictionary definitions of the terms ‘stratus’ and ‘strata’ to
evaluate similarities in the connotation of each mark.”); Bourns, Inc. v. Gen. Scientific
Corp., 361 F.2d 482, 483 (CCPA 1966) (“The dictionaries which are available to us *
* * do not indicate that the terms ‘quick’ and ‘easy’ are synonyms or even have similar
suggestive connotations.”).
As set forth in the application, Applicant’s software facilitates creation and
modification of “music, songs, sounds, and audio recordings.” The identification of
goods and services therefore serves as evidence of mere descriptiveness. See In re
NextGen Mgmt., LLC, No. 88098031, 2023 TTAB LEXIS 1, at *13 (“With respect to
the term PORTAL, Applicant has identified its services as ‘an Internet website portal
in the healthcare field to provide a patient and caregivers with the patient’s drug
4 6 TTABVUE 8.
5 October 23, 2024 Office Action TSDR 11 (Merriam-Webster.com).
Serial No. 98142204
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prescription information.’ Use of a term in an application’s recitation of services
strongly suggests that the term is merely descriptive.”).
The term MUSIC is merely descriptive, indeed highly so, of Applicant’s software
for creating and modifying music.
2. AI
The record indicates that the term AI is a noun, or the abbreviation, for “artificial
intelligence,” which is defined as “software designed to imitate intelligent human
behavior.”6 Applicant’s software is described broadly enough to encompass software
using AI to perform its functions. As shown by the excerpts set forth below, third-
party websites of record corroborate the descriptiveness of the term “AI” as applied
to software to facilitate creation and modification of “music, songs, sounds, and audio
recordings:”
Remusic
AI Music Creation and Music Learning Platform
Remusic is an Al-driven platform for music creators and learners. Create,
learn, and enhance your skills with Al tools designed for easy music
composition and learning.7
Sounddraw
AI-Powered Song Customization
Shorten intros, rearrange choruses, and personalize your song structure with
ease
…
Make unlimited music with AI
…
See how real artists are using AI music
…
AI music for any moment8
6 Id. at 20 (Merriam-Webster.com).
7 Id. at 183.
8 Id. at 43-46.
Serial No. 98142204
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Make Best Music
Our advanced Al models offer customization options, allowing you to tailor the
generated text to music to fit your specific needs. Choose genres, instruments,
and tempos to create unique tracks that resonate with your vision, making it
perfect for personal projects, marketing, or professional use.9
Loudly
AI Music Generator
Make AI-generated music in seconds and add to your videos, social channels,
advertising media, podcasts, apps and more… 100% royalty-free.
…
Welcome to the AI music revolution
Explore Loudly’s rapidly evolving AI Music Generator which makes it easier
than ever to create and customize high-quality music.
…
Loudly’s AI generated music comes from a pool of 200,000+ audio sounds which
are beautifully crafted by professional music produces in high-grade studio
environments.10
Jen Music
Meet Jen. Your Co-Producer. Jen is a generative AI music platform that helps
you create music with your mind. She is an AI multi-instrumentalist with
broad taste, she knows many genres and styles to help you craft the sound you
desire with just a few words.
…
Jen’s universal high-fidelity AI model (48KhZ stereo audio outputs) for text-to-
music generation has been built from sophisticated research by our team of
world-class AI PhDs.11
CMU
CMU Masterclass: Music + AI in 2024
This masterclass considers the opportunities created - and threats posed - by
Al in the music industry. You will learn about the latest developments in
generative Al and how the music business can capitalise on these rapidly
evolving technologies. And we provide a very timely review of the debates and
disputes over the legal and ethical obligations of AI companies to human
creators and copyright owners.12
9 Id. at 190-191.
10 Id. at 50-57.
11 Id. at 85-86, 88.
12 Id. at 111.
Serial No. 98142204
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Valerio Velardo
AI Music Consultant
Do you need help with AI music?
***
I build AI (music) products and startups:
I consult in the AI (music) space;
I help companies hire AI music engineers and form AI teams:
***
I share my knowledge about AI (music) through my YouTube channel and
public speaking;
I’m currently writing a book provisionally titled The AI Music Revolution for
UC Press.13
In support of its argument that AI is not merely descriptive of software
incorporating or related to AI, or artificial intelligence, Applicant submitted third-
party registrations of marks incorporating the term “AI” on the Principal Register
with no disclaimer of AI.14 If a unitary mark “create[s] a single and distinct
commercial impression,” and has “no unregistrable components,” it is exempted from
the requirement “to disclaim an unregistrable component of a mark.” In re Slokevage,
441 F.3d 957, 962 (Fed. Cir. 2006) (citation omitted). Because on their face the
registered third-party marks shown below combine AI with either a distinctive term
or a design element the presence of AI in the mark does not establish that the term
AI is distinctive:15
13 Id. at 115-117.
14 6 TTABVUE 9, 23.
15 October 2, 2024 Response TSDR 57-86. We do not include third-party Registration
No. 291932 for AI NETWORK and design because the registration includes a
disclaimer of AI NETWORK.
Serial No. 98142204
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Reg. Mark Pertinent Goods/Services
Reg. No.
7124864
issued
08/01/23
Educational services, namely, providing
online training in the field of mathematics
featuring instructional materials
comprised of online, non-downloadable
educational math games and analysis of
student skills and performances through
the games
Reg. No.
7087467
issued
06/20/23
Application service provider featuring
application programming interface (API)
software
Reg. No.
6909949
issued
11/29/22
Platform as a service (PAAS) featuring
computer software platforms for custom
artificial intelligence (AI) voices;
Reg. No.
6406197
issued
07/06/21
Providing temporary use of a web-based
software application for user support and
infrastructure management of end-point
devices
Reg. No.
5324963
issued
10/31/17 (HEALTH disclaimed)
computer software for use in healthcare
administration and management
Of the remaining registered third-party marks shown below,16 we note that three
of the registrations issued fourteen years ago or longer. While there is no evidence
that the term “artificial intelligence” is new, the record indicates that the use of AI in
software available to the general public is a more recent occurrence. In addition, we
16 Id. at 57-86.
Serial No. 98142204
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note the owner of the mark AI STORE is “Appraisal Institute.” Finally, while we have
included it in the list, there is no evidence that the “A.I.” in the mark A.I. FORMULA
is descriptive as applied to “nutritional and dietary supplements.”
Reg. Mark Pertinent Goods/Services
Reg. No.
7279804
issued
1/16/24
Downloadable medical software for
processing and displaying images on
ultrasound medical imaging machines
Reg. No.
7171166
issued
09/19/23
Electric drives for vehicles
Reg. No.
6937991
issued
01/03/23
AI-MEDIA media apparatus for the reproduction of
audio, images, data and/or text
Reg. No.
6337951
issued
05/04/21
(WELLNESS disclaimed)
Personal training services, namely, strength
and conditioning training and counseling
Reg. No.
3907503
issued
01/18/11
AI MEDIA GROUP
(MEDIA GROUP
disclaimed)
Advertising via electronic media and
specifically the internet; Promoting the
goods and services of others by means of
distributing advertising on the Internet
Reg. No.
3035111
issued
12/27/05
AI STORE
(STORE disclaimed)
Retail store services and on-line
computerized retail store services both
featuring clothing, office supplies and
general consumer merchandise
Serial No. 98142204
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Reg. Mark Pertinent Goods/Services
Reg. No.
2396919
issued
10/24/00
A.I. FORMULA
(FORMULA disclaimed)
nutritional and dietary supplements
In short, we find the evidence of seven third-party registrations on the Principal
Register for AI combined with presumptively descriptive matter does not rebut the
evidence that the term AI is descriptive as applied to Applicant’s software. As
explained in In re ActiveVideo Network, Inc., No. 77967395, 2014 TTAB LEXIS 283,
at *27-28:
As seen in related fields involving high-technology goods and services
characterized by rapid innovation and remarkable transformation, we are
witnessing a dizzying proliferation of myriad forms of online video streaming,
interactive television and video on demand. Not surprisingly, the quickness
with which changing nomenclature is introduced into the marketplace by
manufacturers and merchants, and then adopted by customers, is equally
brisk. Accordingly, the location of a new term on the spectrum of
distinctiveness is anything but static. The USPTO has, and must have, the
freedom, over a period of decades — or increasingly, just years — to consider
such questions anew whenever the evidence compiled in a new, unique record
reflects such dynamic changes.
The term AI is merely descriptive of Applicant’s software.
B. Descriptiveness of combined terms
The terms will be found merely descriptive if the individual components retain
their descriptive meaning in relation to the goods and services, and the combination
does not form a mark which has a distinct nondescriptive meaning of its own as a
whole. See In re Oppedahl & Larson LLP, 373 F.3d 1171, 1174-75 (Fed. Cir. 2004)
(“However, if those two portions individually are merely descriptive of an aspect of
Serial No. 98142204
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appellant’s goods, the PTO must also determine whether the mark as a whole, i.e.,
the combination of the individual parts, conveys any distinctive source-identifying
impression contrary to the descriptiveness of the individual parts.”). The term
MUSIC.AI does not appear in the dictionary.17 However, the record shows third party
use of the term MUSIC AI to describe a type of software using artificial intelligence
for music applications:
ResearchGate
How Music AI Is Useful: Engagements with Composers, Performers and
Audiences
Critical but often overlooked research questions in artificial intelligence (AI)
applied to music involve the impact of the results for music. How and to what
extent does such research contribute to the domain of music? How are the
resulting models useful for music practitioners? In this article, we describe how
we are addressing such questions by engaging composers, musicians, and
audiences with our research.18
New Interfaces for Musical Expression (NIME)
A survey on the uptake of Music AI Software (2020)
Abstract
The recent proliferation of commercial software claiming ground in the field of
music AI has provided opportunity to engage with AI in music making without
the need to use libraries aimed at those with programming skills. Pre-packaged
music AI software has the potential to broaden access to machine learning
tools but it is unclear how widely these softwares are used by music
technologists or how engagement affects attitudes towards AI in music
making. To interrogate these questions we undertook a survey in October 2019,
gaining 117 responses. The survey collected statistical information on the use
of pre-packaged and self-written music AI software. Respondents reported a
range of musical outputs including producing recordings, live performance and
generative work across many genres of music making. The survey also gauged
general attitudes towards AI in music and provided an open field for general
comments. The responses to the survey suggested a forward-looking attitude
to music AI with participants often pointing to the future potential of AI tools,
rather than present utility. Optimism was partially related to programming
17 January 10, 2025 Request for Reconsideration TSDR 14-17.
18 October 23, 2024 Office Action TSDR 119.
Serial No. 98142204
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skill with those with more experience showing higher skepticism towards the
current state and future potential of AI.19
MT Technology Review
The Download: the future of music AI, and climate tech funding (June 27,
2024)
Training music AI models is about to get very expensive. music AI is
suddenly in a make-or-break moment. On June 24, Suno and Udio, two
startups that let you generate complete songs from a prompt in seconds, were
sued by major record labels. The labels alleged the startups had used
copyrighted music as training data “at an almost unimaginable scale”. Just
two days later, the Financial Times reported that YouTube is pursuing a
comparatively above-board approach. Rather than training music AI models
on secret data sets, the company is reportedly offering unspecified lump sums
to top record labels in exchange for licenses to use their catalogs for training
data.20
AIMC 2024
The Conference on AI and Music Creativity is an annual conference bringing
together a community working on the application of AI in music practice. The
AI and music community is a highly interdisciplinary community with a
background in diverse fields of research and practice. This makes the AIMC
exciting with topics ranging from performance systems, computational
creativity, machine listening, robotics, sonification, and more.
***
For the 2024 conference we will explore the links between music AI and
adjacent domains. What can we learn from research in other domains? What
can we offer people outside of the music AI community?21
Universitat Pompeu Fabra
Generative Music AI Workshop.
…
The workshop is designed as a collaborative space for music technologists and
musicians. The goals of the workshop are to:
• explore software tools of relevance for music AI;
***
Musicians should:
Be familiar with prevalent music AI tools available, like Magenta
***
19 Id. at 70.
20 Id. at 72-73.
21 Id. at 83.
Serial No. 98142204
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10h. Presentation of MTG tools of relevance to generative music AI (Frederic
Font)
***
10h. Open discussion: the ethics of music AI (Roser Battle) 22
EVENTBRITE (July 10, 2024)
NYC AI Users - AI Tech Talks, Demo & Social: Music AI and Autonomous
LLMs23
Council of Music Makers
Five fundamentals for music and AI
The Council of Music Makers recognizes that Al presents opportunities for the
music business. However, the rights of music-makers - including artists,
musicians, songwriters and studio producers - must be respected by technology
companies and rights-holders as music AI models are trained and new Al-
powered products and services are developed.
***
Where permission is granted, music-makers must share fairly in the financial
rewards of music AI, including from music generated by Al models trained on
their work.24
Amazon
Mathematical Music: From Antiquity to Music AI
In addition to discussing the history and the present state of mathematical
music, Braguinski also takes a look at what possibilities the near future of
music Al might hold for listeners, musicians, and the society.
Grounded in research findings from musicology and the history of technology,
and written for the non-specialist general audience, this book helps both
student and professional readers to make sense of today’s music AI by
situating it in a continuous historical context.25
David Kant Portfolio
Music AI Tutorial
The Music AI Tutorial is a collection of cloud-based, interactive tutorials that
teach topics in Music, Artificial Intelligence, and Computer Science. The
22 Id. at 91-93.
23 Id. at 95.
24 Id. at 102.
25 Id. at 105.
Serial No. 98142204
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tutorial takes a historical approach. My intention is to give cultural, technical,
and aesthetic context to contemporary approaches to Music AI.26
Lalals
Created with Music AI
Songs created by Lalals’ Music AI without any modification.
***
Within just minutes, Music Al creates two songs from one prompt so you can
pick the one you like most.
***
Lalals is the world’s leading AI music creation platform and community.27
Notwithstanding the intent-to-use filing basis for the subject application, the
record includes excerpts from Applicant’s website, and those excerpts show use of
both MUSIC.AI and MUSIC AI (no period) for software to facilitate creation and
modification of “music, songs, sounds, and audio recordings:”
28
29
26 Id. at 113.
27 Id. at 179-182.
28 October 23, 2024 Office Action TSDR 58.
29 Id.
Serial No. 98142204
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30
31
32
33
30 Id. at 59.
31 Id. at 60. With respect to Applicant’s argument (6 TTABVUE 15) that its proposed mark
MUSIC.AI is a unitary mark which would not be perceived as the descriptive term MUSIC
AI, we disagree. In addition to the evidence of third-party use of MUSIC AI which affects
consumer perception (described below), we note Applicant’s own use of the term without a
period on its website.
32 Id. at 62.
33 Id.
Serial No. 98142204
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34
35
Applicant’s LinkedIn page also uses makes clear the descriptiveness of the term
MUSIC AI.
34 Id. at 63.
35 Id.
Serial No. 98142204
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36
Other of Applicant’s LinkedIn posts state:
Moises is powered by the Music.AI technology which enables processing of 2.1
million minutes of audio per day, revolutionizing music creation. We are proud
to be part of the global music community who continue to show us the
transformative powers of AI in unlocking new levels of creativity every day.37
The combined term MUSIC AI describes Applicant’s software that may employ
artificial intelligence to manipulate, enhance, and generate music.
We turn to Applicant’s argument that the presence of the period between MUSIC
and AI makes the term distinctive.38 A period is defined as:39
36 Id. at 166.
37 Id. at 171. The posts do not bear specific dates but have references such as “4w,”
presumably referring to the post having been published on the site four weeks from the date
of access, which appears at the beginning of the screenshots from LinkedIn (October 23,
2024).
38 6 TTABVUE 23-26.
39 Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dot.
Accessed 21 Nov. 2025. The Board may take judicial notice of dictionary definitions, including
Serial No. 98142204
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• a small round mark used in orthography or punctuation
• a point used to separate components of an address on the Internet
In general, the presence of punctuation does not alter the commercial impression of
a literal term. Peterson v. Awshucks SC, LLC, No. 92066957, 2020 TTAB LEXIS 520,
at *18 (“Punctuation, such as quotation marks, hyphens, periods, commas, and
exclamation marks, generally does not significantly alter the commercial impression
of the mark.”). Accord In re St. Helena Hosp., 774 F.3d 747, 752 (Fed. Cir. 2014)
(TAKE 10! found similar to TAKETEN despite exclamation point). In view of the
considerable evidence of third-party use of MUSIC AI for music software, we find that
this case is no exception, and the addition of the dot does not alter the mere
descriptiveness of MUSIC.AI as a whole.
Applicant argues that the record does not show that any third party is using
MUSIC.AI with a period between the terms.40 The fact that an applicant may be the
first and only user of a merely descriptive designation does not justify registration if
the only significance conveyed by the term is merely descriptive. See In re Fat Boys
Water Sports LLC, No. 86490930, 2016 TTAB LEXIS 150, at *10 (TTAB 2016)
(“Under the current standard [for assessing mere descriptiveness], there is no
requirement that the Examining Attorney prove that others have used the mark at
issue or that they need to use it, although such proof would be highly relevant to an
analysis under Section 2(e)(1). The correct test is whether the phrase forthwith
online dictionaries that exist in printed format or have regular fixed editions. In re Cordua
Rests. LP, No. 85214191, 2014 TTAB LEXIS 94, at *6 n.4, aff’d, 823 F.3d 594 (Fed. Cir. 2016).
40 6 TTABVUE 17.
Serial No. 98142204
- 21 -
conveys an immediate idea of an ingredient, quality, characteristic, feature, function,
purpose or use of the goods.”). See also KP Permanent Make-Up, Inc. v. Lasting
Impression I, Inc., 543 U.S. 111, 122 (2004) (acknowledging “the undesirability of
allowing anyone to obtain a complete monopoly on use of a descriptive term simply
by grabbing it first.”).
Applicant also argues that because .AI is a top-level domain, or part of an internet
address, and (as shown above) MUSIC.AI is Applicant’s domain name, MUSIC.AI is
a double entendre.41 However, having a top-level domain as part of the mark does not
preclude the mark being merely descriptive. We find probative the sixteen third-party
registrations with the suffix .AI that issued in the last six years on the Supplemental
Register:42 Registration on the Supplemental Register indicates that the mark is not
inherently distinctive, e.g., because it is merely descriptive. See Quaker State Oil
Refining Corp. v. Quaker Oil Corp., 453 F.2d 1296, 1299 (CCPA 1972 )(“We also agree
with the observation of the board that, when appellant sought registration of SUPER
BLEND on the Supplemental Register, it admitted that the term was merely
descriptive of its goods and that when it disclaimed said term in applications for
registrations of compound marks, it again admitted the merely descriptive nature of
41 6 TTABVUE 23-26. Applicant also argues that MUSIC.AI is a double entendre because the
term may have multiple meanings. 6 TTABVUE 18. We find that all of Applicant’s examples
of alternate meanings are also descriptive of its software, and so there is no “double” meaning.
A double entendre is registrable only if the second, non-descriptive meaning would be readily
apparent to the consumer from the mark itself. In re Colonial Stores Inc., 394 F.2d 549, 1053
(CCPA 1968) (holding SUGAR & SPICE not merely descriptive for bakery products because
it readily conjures a familiar phrase in a well-known nursery rhyme). 6 TTABVUE 18.
42 October 23, 2024 Office Action TSDR 133-165.
Serial No. 98142204
- 22 -
the mark and acknowledged that it did not have an exclusive right therein at that
time.”).
Supplemental
Registration
Mark Pertinent Goods
Reg. No.
6311080
issued
03/30/2021
TOOL.AI Software as a service (SAAS) services
featuring software using artificial
intelligence for tools for analyzing business,
commercial and general data.
Reg. No.
7064116
issued
05/23/2023
BASE64.AI Software as a service (SAAS) services
featuring software using artificial
intelligence for extracting OCR text, data,
handwriting, photos, and signatures from
all document types.
Reg. No.
5928940
issued
12/03/2019
XNOR.AI Computer hardware and software
development; computer programming.
Reg. No.
5494303
issued
03/30/2021
TEST.AI Computer software for uploading, running,
scanning, analyzing, collecting data,
troubleshooting, and performance and
quality testing of computer programs and
electronic files.
Reg. No.
5823721
issued
07/30/2019
BDR.AI Software as a service (SAAS) services
featuring software for business
communications for the purpose of social
outreach and customer acquisition.
Reg. No.
7382998
issued
05/07/2024
DATA.AI Downloadable software for collecting,
analyzing, storing, sharing, and reporting
data and information about the usage,
performance, promotion, and monetization
of mobile applications, websites, video
games, and other software applications and
digital media.
Serial No. 98142204
- 23 -
Supplemental
Registration
Mark Pertinent Goods
Reg. No.
7444850
issued
07/09/2024
BEAUTY.AI Downloadable computer software for data
and file management in the field of beauty
industry.
Reg. No.
7444917
issued
07/09/2024
ZEROTRUSTED
.AI
Application service provider (ASP)
featuring software using artificial
intelligence for identity management.
Reg. No.
5998966
issued
02/25/2020
COMMERCE.AI Software as a service (SAAS) services
featuring software for using artificial
intelligence to analyze business and
commercial data.
Reg. No.
7483540
issued
08/20/2024
CUSTOMGPT.AI Platform as a service (PAAS) featuring
computer software platforms for use in
software development for artificial
intelligence.
Reg. No.
7311995
issued
02/20/2024
DENTI.AI Downloadable software in the nature of a
mobile application for use in the field of
dental diagnoses and dental treatment.
Reg. No.
5859067
issued
09/10/2019
DRAW.AI Downloadable software in the nature of a
mobile application for drawing graphics.
Reg. No.
6337163
issued
04/27/2021
EXPOSURE
.AI
Software as a service (SAAS) services
featuring software for use in detecting,
analyzing, and prioritizing cyber computer
threats and vulnerabilities.
Reg. No.
5934317
issued
12/10/2019
INTEGRATE.AI Software as a service (SAAS) provider
featuring software for providing customer
relations management by means of
artificial intelligence (AI) to connect
business to customers (B2C).
Serial No. 98142204
- 24 -
Supplemental
Registration
Mark Pertinent Goods
Reg. No.
6155480
issued
09/15/2020
INTERPRETATION
.AI
Providing a website featuring on-line non-
downloadable software tools utilizing
machine learning for geophysical modeling
and analysis.
Reg. No.
7444877
issued
07/09/2024
MAKEPOST.AI Downloadable computer software designed
to be deployed on web servers for creating
AI content on social media platforms,
replying to users on social media platforms
with AI, playing games with AI, and
creating social media listings with AI.
The terms MUSIC and AI do not lose their merely descriptive significance when
joined together by a period, nor does the composite itself result in a unique or
distinctive meaning which differs from the meanings of the terms considered
separately. In re Finisar Corp., 2006 TTAB LEXIS 57, at *3-4 (“We are persuaded by
the evidence of record that the separate terms SMART and SFP are merely
descriptive of applicant’s identified goods and that when combined do not present a
unique or incongruous meaning.”), aff’d per curiam, 223 Fed. App’x 984 (Fed. Cir.
2007).
II. Decision
The refusal to register Applicant’s mark MUSIC.AI under Section 2(e)(1) is
affirmed.

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