Patent Suit’s Bot Use Allegations Spur Federal Criminal Probe

Skillz Platform Inc.'s allegations that a rival covertly populated its platform with bots—lodged as part of a patent suit—have apparently drawn interest from the US Justice Department.

Skillz told a California federal court late Monday that a federal grand jury was seeking access to information on AviaGames’ rival Pocket7Games platform, obtained through discovery in Skillz’ patent suit against its Chinese competitor.

Skillz, a Nevada company that hosts tournaments where players compete at mobile games, sued AviaGames Inc. in 2021 alleging patent infringement.

For about two years, the litigation proceeded in the US District Court for the Northern District of California ...