Camel QA is a Houston, TX startup whose founder had a public reaction to the acquisition cost of the domain Camel.ai.
After being told that her $200 dollar offer was a tiny fraction of the domain’s out of pocket expenses ($40,000 dollars) Isabella Reed called out the practice of domain investing, referring to the seller as a “squatter” and a “scammer.” Her co-founder partner also stated that they do not “negotiate with squatters.”
Naming your startup “Camel” and expecting a generic keyword in a hot TLD to cost $200 bucks is outlandish and definitely not an act of cybersquatting. Dozens of domain investors called out Ms. Reed’s use of derogatory epithets but also offered advice on her situation.
During the long exchange via Twitter/X, Ms. Reed was advised on the availability of other domains, some of which were more affordable than Camel.ai. One of these domains was CamelAI.com which was listed for sale on Afternic for the sum of $7,899 dollars.
It appears that the Camel QA founder pulled the trigger, shelling out that amount to acquire the domain that now forwards to her company’s content. The sale can be confirmed by visiting the Twitter/X account of CamelQA.
This is a great lesson that startup founders need to consider before branding a company or a product: Find the best possible domain for a price within your budget or else rebrand to ensure the matching domain’s availability.
Perhaps in the future, once the company takes off and receives VC funding they will be able to acquire Camel.ai as well—that price will most likely be in the six figures now that the startup is no longer in stealth mode.
Hat tip: @BrightOrigin
