Corgi Denies Stealing Open Source Software, Blames ‘Vibe Coding’

Y Combinator-backed insurance tech startup Corgi found itself in another controversy this week after Papermark, an open source data room software maker, accused it of stealing its software. Papermark co-founder Marc Seitz posted screenshots on X showing that Corgi's new product, Dataroom, used identical language and features as Papermark’s. Seitz called Corgi’s product copyright- and license-infringing, and “fraud.”

Corgi CEO Nico Laqua responded, promising to investigate. He later posted a full denial with evidence showing that the code between the two products differed. While Laqua strongly pushed back on the license violation claim, he admitted that relying on a “vibe coding” design led to the replica features. “Looking back, we should’ve leaned more into our own language and visual choices,” he wrote.

A Corgi spokesperson confirmed that the issues were isolated to visual elements on two peripheral settings pages and were immediately updated. The spokesperson also accused Papermark of making the allegations because Corgi offers a less expensive product, with Laqua adding that it must “sting” since Corgi is offering a mostly free product that competes with Papermark’s SaaS.

Corgi is now trying to mitigate reputational damage. It has issued a cease and desist letter to Seitz demanding he take down the tweet, and also sent a similar letter to the founder of Hello World Cafe for a joking tweet about the controversy. Corgi has a growing reputation for being litigious, having already sued various former employees. Laqua also recently went viral for comments on a podcast where he said he expects employees to work seven days a week.

The startup has raised significant funding: last month it secured a $106 million Series B1 at a $2.6 billion valuation, just three weeks after a $160 million Series B and four months after a $108 million Series A.