Just two days after launching its first gimbal camera in the United States, Insta360 has responded to DJI’s launch-day lawsuits with two countersuits of its own, claiming five utility patents covering gimbal stabilization, directional control, telemetry overlays, and panoramic video. This escalation turns the most watched rivalry in consumer imaging into a two-front legal battle fought on American soil, with Luna Ultra’s continued availability in its most important market now dependent on the outcome.
The sequence of events is unusually rapid, even by the standards of a feud that has been going on for more than a year. Insta360 launched the Luna Ultra in the US on June 10, 2026, its first true handheld gimbal camera and a direct challenge to DJI’s long-dominant Osmo Pocket line. The same day, DJI filed two patent infringement lawsuits in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, targeting both the Luna Ultra and the upcoming Luna Pro, and seeking a permanent injunction that would ban the cameras from the US market altogether. On June 12, Insta360 retaliated with two countersuits.
What is Insta360 claiming
Insta360’s countersuit claims five utility patents covering the technology used in the gimbal and 360-degree cameras. The company says that DJI has infringed patents related to gimbal stabilization, gimbal directional control, camera smooth stabilization, telemetry overlay and panoramic video stabilization. According to Insta360, these technologies are incorporated into several major DJI products, including the Osmo Pocket series, the Ronin and RS gimbal series, the Osmo Mobile series, and the Osmo 360.
That final product is worth flagging. The Osmo 360 was DJI’s first entry into the panoramic camera segment, a category the Insta 360 has historically dominated, so seeing it named in the stabilization and panoramic-video patent claim is telling. Insta360 viewed the move as protecting its core business rather than an opportunistic strike.
“At Insta360, we like to let our products do the talking. But we’re not afraid of a legal fight when challenged,” said JK Liu, founder of Insta360. “We are fully committed to protecting our innovations and will take decisive action to protect our intellectual property from infringement.”
DJI’s launch-day move
DJI’s two lawsuits, also filed in the Eastern District of Texas, directly target the Luna Pro and Luna Ultra. In its filing, DJI argues that the Luna line includes handheld gimbal cameras with integrated optics, built on the same product architecture it pioneered with the Osmo Pocket, and that the Insta360 clearly markets the cameras as competitors to that line. The company points to specific design elements that it claims as patents, including the long handheld body, rotating display, control area with scroll wheel, and gimbal arm connection, language that closely mirrors the Osmo Pocket 3.
DJI is seeking a permanent injunction, which it describes as damages not less than reasonable royalties, lost profits, and enhanced damages for what it describes as willful infringement in both cases. The timing suggests that DJI had been preparing its complaints since at least the 2026 NAB show, where Insta360 publicly demonstrated Luna cameras, and was waiting for products to go on sale in the US before filing.
Why is the US market the real battlefield?
The stakes here are sharpened by a fact we covered in our Luna Ultra launch coverage: DJI’s new pocket cameras, including the upcoming dual-lens Osmo Pocket 4P (not yet released), which the Luna Ultra is actually competing against, are not sold in the United States. This gives Insta360 clear competition in one of the most important markets in the world, while DJI’s own competing hardware remains in limbo, available only through gray imports. A US injunction against the Luna line would neutralize that advantage in one fell swoop, which helps explain both the aggressiveness of DJI’s filing and the speed of Insta360’s response.
Insta360 categorically rejects DJI’s infringement claims, and emphasizes what it calls Luna Ultra’s unique engineering footprint. The company says development of the camera began in 2020, before there was any immediate reaction to the Osmo Pocket, with past products including the One R, Link Series webcams and Flow Series gimbals helping shape its technology and design direction.
“Luna Ultra is the result of years of independent R&D, not a response to a competitor’s product,” Liu said. “DJI filed the lawsuit the same day we launched the Luna Ultra Speaks, which highlights their fear of competition from a highly competitive product.”
A rivalry that keeps growing
This is not the first court clash between the two companies in 2026. As we reported in March, DJI sued Insta360 in China over six patents covering drone flight controls, structural design and image processing, alleging that the technology was developed by former DJI employees. The action comes just days after DJI launched its first 360-degree FPV drone, the Avata 360, preceded by Insta360’s AntiGravity A1. Competitive dynamics have intensified in every category the two companies touch: DJI entered the 360-degree market with the Osmo 360 against Insta360’s X5, then released the Osmo Nano against the Insta360 GO Ultra, while Insta360 entered drones with AntiGravity. We highlight the broader aspects of the controversy over the Focus Check EP110.
Patent litigation has become a structural feature of this corner of the market. Earlier this year, GoPro lost its patent case against Insta360 at the ITC, with the exclusion order only applying to older, discontinued Ace series models, while Insta360’s current lineup remained on sale. The pattern shows that despite all the legal noise, US courts have so far been reluctant to remove popular cameras from shelves, which could reduce expectations around DJI’s injunction request.
Initial sales and what’s next
Insta360 reports that early consumer response to the Luna Ultra has been strong, with it being in high demand in North America and ranking as a top seller in Amazon’s US Camcorder category in its first 24 hours of availability. The company says it is committed to protecting its IP portfolio while ensuring continued product availability for creators around the world.
For working filmmakers, the immediate practical impact is limited. The Luna Ultra remains on sale in the US, and a permanent injunction, if it ever comes, would only come after a lengthy legal process. The more consequential question is strategic: whether Insta360’s counterclaims, many of which touch on DJI’s flagship Ronin and Osmo mobile lines, give it enough leverage to push the entire conflict toward a cross-licensing settlement rather than a court decision. This is the outcome that has historically ended such disputes, and would allow the two companies to compete on product rather than legal strategy. We will continue to monitor cases as they develop.
Now both companies have sued each other in the same Texas court, turning it into a de facto patent standoff. Do you see this ending in a US sales ban, a cross-licensing deal or something else? Don’t hesitate to let us know in the comments below!
