Audeze CEO Claims Brands Copying Each Other Is “How Innovation Progresses”

Sharing is caring even in the audio industry.

It’s no secret that the headphone industry is full of fierce competition. So, you may think that each brand is guarding every little secret with all its might.

But Audeze CEO Sankar Thiagasamudram has a different view.

He believes that a bit of mutual “inspiration” between brands isn’t just inevitable. It actually helps push the industry forward. That is, as long as it still respects intellectual property limits.

Audeze CEO’s Stance on Imitation and Innovation

In a recent interview, Thiagasamudram didn’t hold back about the reality of headphone brands ‘taking inspiration’ from others.

In fact, Thiagasamudram admitted that Audeze has borrowed ideas from other companies themselves.

For example, he openly shared that some of their earlier designs drew inspiration from Sennheiser. And, he even shared this fact with former Sennheiser executive Axel Grell.

This kind of honesty makes you wonder where the line between inspiration and imitation really lies in the tech world. But Thiagasamudram argues that it’s all good for the industry, as long as you’re not stepping on patented toes.

And, it’s not just Audeze borrowing ideas. The Audeze CEO reveals that it’s very much a two-way street

The company has also teamed up with other brands, such as Nagra and HyperX, on some projects. These collaborations often lead to sharing of tech and design ideas, making it harder to say who came up with what in the progress game.

Going further, Audeze actually gives away their head-tracking SDK for free.

This open-door policy has led to some wild applications of their tech—like using it to study the Earth’s magnetic field.

Industry Practices

Let’s be honest: the headphone industry, like most tech areas, has a long history of companies “borrowing” ideas from each other.

This isn’t just about audio gear. Big names like Spotify, Instagram, and even Apple with its famous iPod have all done well by taking existing ideas and making them better.

Mark Levinson, another big name in audio, has once also pointed out how common shared tech is in the field.

This lines up with research suggesting that a bit of imitation can actually spark innovation and create new markets.

It’s all about “recombination“—taking existing bits and pieces and mashing them up in new ways. And, that’s often the secret sauce of technological breakthroughs.

Ethical Considerations

While Thiagasamudram and others might see this as driving progress, it does raise some tricky questions about ownership and fair play.

Take reverse engineering, for instance. Its legality can be a bit of a gray area, depending on where you are and what exactly you’re doing.

Generally speaking, it’s kosher to study a product you’ve legally purchased. But things get dicey when you start treading on trade secrets, copyrights, or patents. That’s why companies often slap on those lengthy End User License Agreements (EULAs) and Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs)—to keep their secrets, well, secret.

The ethics of product design imitation is also a hot topic.

Some may say it drives progress by letting companies build on and improve existing ideas. Others may say it holds back creativity and gives an unfair edge to those who just copy successful products.

But, Thiagasamudram’s stance appears to fall somewhere in the middle. He advocates a form of “creative imitation” that makes existing designs better without directly copying patented tech.

This approach, he suggests, is key to pushing the limits of what’s possible in headphone design and audio tech.

However, the real challenge is finding the right balance between creative copying and respecting ownership rights.

While reverse engineering can be useful for testing, research, and new ideas, it needs to be done ethically and legally. The goal should be to use existing knowledge to spark new ideas, not as a shortcut to market without adding anything new.