Sky Mavis alleges Seed Go infringes on Axie Infinity IP
Sui Foundation told Blockworks it’s not currently supporting Seed, and Mysten Labs only helped Seed with its smart contracts.
Sky Mavis and Axie Infinity/Adobe modified by Blockworks
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Axie Infinity and Sky Mavis cofounder Alexander Larsen is calling out Sui-powered game Seed, also known as Seed Go, alleging copyright infringement.
“This infringes on our Axie Infinity IP, and it’s not okay,” Larsen said in response to a tweet about the project.
He also tagged two Mysten Labs cofounders, plus Sui and Mysten Labs, asking them to address the issue “so we can all save money and time.”
A spokesperson for Sky Mavis separately confirmed to me that the company has informed the Sui team of the alleged infringement and is looking to resolve the issue outside of court.
Seed Go is tied to the “Seed Combinator” gaming platform and uses pastel blob-like “Seedmon” NFT characters that players can “breed.” It also has a token, SLOVE, and the SEED token. Seed Go is a Telegram mini-app.
Axie Infinity, which was launched back in 2018, made a name for itself as one of the earliest players in crypto gaming with its blob-like pastel “Axies,” NFT creatures that players can “breed” and use to battle each other. It has had a token called Smooth Love Potion token (SLP) since 2019, as well as the Axie Infinity (AXS) token.
Larsen recently shared that Axie Infinity has made over $1.3 billion in total revenue since its launch.
Seed versus Axie Infinity
Jeffrey “Jiho” Zirlin, another Ronin and Sky Mavis cofounder, called Seed Go “Axie at home,” referencing the “food at home” memes. Such memes refer to an experience where a child asks their parents for takeout or to go to a restaurant. But the parents say there’s food at home — and that food is bland, gross, or just not as good as the preferred option. (The “at home” memes have spawned loads of spinoff references for years now, sometimes about movies or other forms of entertainment).
Seed Combinator, which appears to be run by SeedDAO, has the support of Sui developer Mysten Labs, according to a press release from the game project. Another press release states that Seed was “inspired” by Pokemon Go and Axie Infinity, and notes that the Sui Foundation invested in its project.
A quick look at Seed Go via Telegram
Reached for comment, the Sui Foundation distanced itself and Mysten Labs from the Seed project. A Sui Foundation spokesperson confirmed to me that a small investment was made in Seed, but did not specify an amount.
They noted that Mysten Labs was not involved in Seed’s game development, but it did help the game set up Sui smart contracts to connect the Telegram game to Sui.
The spokesperson emphasized that the Sui Foundation has very high standards for the projects it endorses, and it does not currently support Seed.
SeedDAO did not respond to my request for comment.
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