LeBron James cease and desist Bron AI likeness, Digi Mart USA News: LeBron James sent a cease and desist letter to an AI-powered sports betting app that evokes his name and uses his likeness without authorization, according to a spokesperson for the NBA star, who spoke to Front Office Sports.
Bron AI describes itself as a tool that aggregates data and odds from traditional sportsbooks and prediction markets, allowing users to identify potentially profitable wagers and automatically place bets on other apps. Its promotional video, posted to X/Twitter on Wednesday, features a character who resembles James and wears a basketball jersey with the nickname “Bron” and the number 23.
The character, whose voice also resembles James’s, flips through the app before stopping on a photo of Suns forward Dillon Brooks. “Dillon Brooks?
On Kalshi? Hell nah,” the character says.
The post, made by the company’s CEO, garnered more than 900,000 views in less than 24 hours.
Roughly three hours after Front Office Sports published its story, the ad was removed from X/Twitter. It remained available on Instagram at the time of publication.
James’s camp acted quickly. The letter, from law firm Grubman Shire Meiselas & Sacks PC, objects to the “unauthorized use and illicit exploitation” of James’s “name, nickname, likeness, image, persona, and other identifying attributes.” It describes the use as “especially serious and egregious” because James has an exclusive endorsement deal with Polymarket and because the ad implies he is involved with betting on basketball, which the letter calls a serious violation of NBA rules.
The letter demands that Bron AI permanently stop using James’s likeness in any manner and media, remove the ad, and notify every person who has used the app in writing that James has no involvement with the company. It states that James “intends to take any and all steps to enforce his rights as appropriate.”
The ad also includes images of NBA players Donovan Mitchell and Giannis Antetokounmpo, NFL players Christian McCaffrey and Jayden Daniels, and Lakers star Luka Dončić. A representative for Dončić told Front Office Sports that he has also sent a cease and desist letter to Bron AI.
Adam Mendelsohn, James’s longtime media advisor, told Front Office Sports that the ad is “another example of the decline and lack of originality in sports marketing.” He said, “I’m sure the intent here was for us to send a cease and desist in order to make it a story.”
Bron AI is owned by PlayVision Inc., which was founded in 2025 and is backed by venture-capital firm Y Combinator. The app is free to download, but its “pro” version costs $249.99 for an annual subscription or $29.99 for a monthly subscription.
Bron AI and PlayVision did not respond to requests for comment, and a Y Combinator representative did not respond either.
Jesse Silvertown, whose firm Hesperus advises on integrity diligence for sports and private markets, told Front Office Sports he was “floored” that the ad passed due diligence. Darren Heitner, a sports attorney who handles trademark filings and disputes for athletes, called the ad “shocking,” saying its nickname, number, physical presentation and voice similarity appear designed to evoke James.
Harvard Law School professor Rebecca Tushnet said the ad clearly infringes on publicity rights.
James is not the first athlete to object to unauthorized use of his likeness in betting-related promotions. In May, an attorney for Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander sent a cease and desist to sports prediction market and fantasy-sports company Underdog over a promotional item based on the board game Operation; Underdog refused to comply.
In July 2025, James demanded that the creators of a tool called Interlink AI stop allowing videos using his likeness after users created videos showing a pregnant version of him.
