Litigation summary

Updated Litigation Status for U.S. Patent 8,886,536

As of May 1, 2026, a comprehensive search reveals that U.S. Patent 8,886,536 ('536 patent) has been involved in multiple litigation cases and proceedings before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB). The patent owner, VB Assets, LLC, has been actively asserting this patent against various technology companies. This updated status supersedes the previously generated report from April 26, 2026, which indicated no known litigation at the CAFC level.

Below is a list of known district court cases and PTAB proceedings involving the '536 patent.

District Court Litigation:

• VB Assets, LLC v. Google LLC et al.

  • Plaintiff: VB Assets, LLC
  • Defendant: Google LLC
  • Jurisdiction: U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware
  • Case Number: 1:26-cv-00443
  • Filing Date: April 17, 2026
  • Status: Active. This is a recent filing asserting infringement of the '536 patent among others.

• VB Assets, LLC v. Apple Inc.

  • Plaintiff: VB Assets, LLC
  • Defendant: Apple Inc.
  • Jurisdiction: U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware
  • Case Number: 1:24-cv-01368
  • Filing Date: ~December 2024
  • Status: Active. The complaint alleges that devices supporting the Siri virtual assistant, such as iPhones, iPads, and HomePods, infringe on six patents, including the '536 patent.

• VB Assets, LLC v. Soundhound AI, Inc.

  • Plaintiff: VB Assets, LLC
  • Defendant: SoundHound AI, Inc.
  • Jurisdiction: U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware
  • Case Number: 1:24-cv-01279
  • Filing Date: ~November 2024
  • Status: Active. The lawsuit targets the SoundHound Voice AI platform for infringing on several patents, including the '536 patent. The parties are engaged in claim construction proceedings as of March 2026.

• VB Assets, LLC v. Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. et al.

  • Plaintiff: VB Assets, LLC
  • Defendant: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
  • Jurisdiction: U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas
  • Case Number: 2:24-cv-00828
  • Filing Date: ~October 2024
  • Status: Active. This case alleges infringement by the Bixby 2.0 voice assistant and supporting devices. The '536 patent is one of several asserted in this litigation.

• VB Assets, LLC v. Amazon.com, Inc. et al.

  • Plaintiff: VB Assets, LLC
  • Defendants: Amazon.com, Inc., Amazon.com Services LLC, et al.
  • Jurisdiction: U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware
  • Case Number: 1:19-cv-01410
  • Filing Date: July 26, 2019
  • Status: Complex procedural history. While a jury trial concluded in November 2023 on other patents in the case, claims related to the '536 patent were not part of that trial. An appeal to the Federal Circuit (Case No. 25-1142) was dismissed for lack of a final decision from the district court, as the '536 patent claims remained pending.

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC):

• VB Assets, LLC v. Amazon.com Services LLC
  • Appellant/Appellee: Parties from the Delaware case.
  • Jurisdiction: U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
  • Case Number: 25-1142
  • Filing Date: Appeal noticed prior to March 2025.
  • Outcome: Dismissed on March 10, 2025. The CAFC dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction because the District Court had not issued a final judgment on all claims for all parties, specifically noting that claims related to the '536 patent had not been adjudicated.

Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) Proceedings:

VB Assets, LLC has also faced petitions for Inter Partes Review (IPR) seeking to invalidate claims of its patents, including the '536 patent.

• Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. et al. v. VB Assets, LLC

  • Petitioner: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
  • Patent Owner: VB Assets, LLC
  • Case Number: IPR2025-00869
  • Filing Date: April 20, 2025
  • Status: Pending. This IPR challenges the validity of the '536 patent. This proceeding is related to the district court litigation between the same parties.

• IPR2020-01374 & IPR2020-01377

  • Status: Not Instituted - Merits. The PTAB declined to institute a trial for these petitions. Details regarding the petitioner were not immediately available in the search results.