Shortly after Ocado Group, the U.K-based developer of software and robotics platforms aimed at the online groceries business, paired with The Kroger Co. in 2020 to build automated warehouses across the U.S., the company’s rival AutoStore went on the patent offensive. AutoStore struck first at the U.S. International Trade Commission attempting to keep Ocado’s products out of the U.S. 

The press dubbed the volley of lawsuits that ensued between the two companies on either side of the Atlantic “the Robot Wars.”