Yuga Labs to replace Bored Ape Kennel Club logo after plagiarism allegations

Yuga Labs will replace the logo of its non-fungible token (NFT) collection Bored Ape Kennel Club (BAKC) after accusations of copying an image from Easy Drawing Guides.

Saw the claims today about the BAKC logo. This was news to us and we’re still investigating the situation. Have reached out to the freelancer we hired for that design and Easy Drawing Guides. We’ll be changing the logo and updating it on our site / ask marketplaces to change as… https://t.co/OwtflDXehz

— Garga.eth (Greg Solano) (@CryptoGarga) February 18, 2023

We will replace the logo, update it on our site and ask marketplaces to replace it. This collection was designed from the outset to raise funds for charity, and I’m proud that BAKC has raised more than $1 million for animals,” wrote Yuga Labs co-founder Greg Solano.

According to him, a freelancer worked on the BAKC logo. The studio approached him and Easy Drawing Guides to resolve the intellectual property infringement issue. The investigation into the incident continues.

Earlier, digital artist Jdotcolombo noted that the logo resembled a step-by-step drawing of a wolf skull by Easy Drawing Guides. The latter published the image in April 2021, while BAKC launched in June of that year.

Thanks for bringing this up @Jdotcolombo. @yugalabs doesn’t have a license to the wolf skull drawing. The intellectual property rights for the drawing belong to Easy Drawing Guides as it’s our original drawing and protected by our Terms and Conditions.

— Easy Drawing Guides (@easydrawinguide) February 17, 2023

Easy Drawing Guides thanked Jdotcolombo for attentiveness and stated that Yuga Labs has no rights to use this image.

Earlier in February, Yuga Labs won the lawsuit over the infringement of its trademark rights in the Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT collection by Thomas Lehman.