Patent War Escalates: DJI Accuses Insta360's New Luna Gimbal Camera of Infringing Multiple Core Patents

Ebrun Exclusive: June 12 - According to foreign media reports, DJI and its Osmo brand have filed patent infringement lawsuits against Insta360 (also known as YingShi ChuangXin) and its affiliated companies with the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas on June 10 and 11 (local time).

DJI alleges that the Luna series handheld gimbal camera, which Insta360 just launched on June 9, infringes upon two of DJI's design patents and four of its invention patents. The patents in question relate to the technology and design of DJI's Osmo Pocket series products, covering core underlying technologies such as gimbal electromechanical control and shooting control.

Public information shows that the Luna series is part of Insta360's handheld gimbal camera product line, comprising two models: the Luna Pro (single lens) and the Luna Ultra (flagship model). Among them, the Luna Ultra is equipped with a 1-inch 8K sensor, a primary Leica Summicron lens, and includes a second telephoto lens, supporting 5-level focal length switching and up to 12x zoom. Its video specifications support 8K 30fps recording, Dolby Vision, and 10-bit Log capture, featuring three-axis stabilization. The screen is detachable and serves multiple functions including remote control, monitoring, and audio reception, and also supports multi-person tracking, making its functionality similar to DJI's Osmo Pocket.

In the complaint, DJI stated that the Luna series, from its product outline to its functional design, is highly similar to the results of DJI's nearly decade-long research, development, and patented innovations. DJI is requesting the court to issue a permanent injunction against sales and other infringing activities, while also demanding that Insta360 return the profits gained from infringement, pay damages, and cover related litigation costs and attorney fees.

As a response, on June 12, Insta360 also filed a patent counterclaim against DJI in the United States, involving five invention patents related to gimbal cameras, panoramic cameras, and other technologies, covering key areas such as gimbal stabilization algorithms, gimbal pointing control, camera smooth anti-shake, motion data overlay, and panoramic video stabilization. Simultaneously, Insta360 filed requests with the China National Intellectual Property Administration to invalidate related family patents.

The patent battle between DJI and Insta360 has a long history. In March of this year, DJI had already filed a lawsuit against Insta360 in the Shenzhen Intermediate People's Court, claiming that six of Insta360's patents should rightfully belong to DJI. The reason cited was that the employees who developed these patents left DJI and joined Insta360 within less than a year of their departure.

Liu Jingkang, founder of Insta360, responded on Weibo, stating, 'As a small company with limited resources, we prioritize innovation over litigation.' However, he also added frankly, 'If in the future, the company faces substantial obstacles in patents that prevent us from continuing to launch new products/innovations in this category (for example, being unable to produce drones), Insta360 will certainly counterattack with the nuclear weapon of patents.'

This patent lawsuit marks the first patent litigation showdown between the two companies in overseas markets, signifying that the competition between DJI and Insta360 has officially extended from the marketplace further into the realm of patents. As Insta360's Luna series directly encroaches upon the core territory of DJI's Osmo Pocket gimbal cameras, the patent game between the two sides is likely to continue escalating.