It feels like there's got to be more to this story than is actually included in this post with regards to the mentor suddenly opposing the startup.
> He laid claims to a number of our designs such as our website utilizing a top navigation bar, our photo of the designer operating a sewing machine, etc.
> In short, the claims are as outlandish as we perceived
If the claims are so ridiculous why haven't they posted the claim? Why are we supposed to trust what they have to say?
Also this line reads very curiously:
> the mentor gave them words of blessing for future success.
it's as if they're trying to say "he said it was okay to take the work we did there and use it in the future"? I don't get that sentence.
Something about the way this is written feels weird.
"Sure thing kids, go crazy. Do whatever you want! Good luck! You'll need it!"
[Kids post to kickstarter and get tons of funding. Mentor decides that maybe he wants some of that action.]
How much funding had been pledged before Kickstarter pulled the plug?
"Thanks for all your help help, Mentor. We'll be off! [And we're taking your designs with us!]"
"Sure thing kids, go crazy. Do whatever you want! [I don't know that you're taking any of my designs to create competing products.] Good luck! You'll need it [because you don't have any designs and it will take you a while to come up with good ones]!"
Kids post to kickstarter using their mentor's proprietary designs, and get tons of funding to make products based on their mentor's designs.
Mentor sees them stealing the designs he spent months/years working on and sues.
"Mentor" was training (grooming) these interns so that they would eventually work at his company.
Interns decided to move out on their own (nothing wrong there),
Interns signed some kind of overly general internship / employment contract that included some form of non-compete which he's leveraging to strengthen his lawsuit.
If I'm mistaken and the mentor's lawsuit really is as weak as the founders exclaim - this should be thrown out fairly quickly - the increase in PR will probably lead to a larger Kickstarter round - all will end well.
That doesn't seem to be the case here, from TFA. It seems that it's more of a general IP infringement claim.
I will agree though, we have heard only one side of the story.
To go off on a moralistic tangent; if the "Mentor" didn't want to create competitors he should have paid the people doing work for him.
If the suit relates to the misappropriation of their mentor's designs, they are in hot water. If the suit is merely about them copying the website, then it may blow over fairly quickly.
If it turns out that these interns copy/pasted a few lines of CSS, then they will be righteously raked over the coals.