Gemini is definitely 'friendly' competition- we co-operate with them and vice-versa, BUT the longer we have the monopoly on the laser, the happier we will be... Gemini's laser is far more advanced than ours but has just become operational- they have some work to do before they can use it for regular science.

As for the Keck I laser, that is not competition at all- In fact, it is part of my job... I was responsible for getting the Keck II laser fixed up and operational, and I will be responsible for overseeing the Keck I laser...

Keck I and II will always have the distinction of being the largest telescopes with a laser- at least until the thirty meter telescope is built... and the 30 meter will use many lasers.

In the next few years the following observatories will be using lasers... Keck I and II, Gemini North and south, the VLT, Palomar, Lick, subaru, and CFHT (There are probably others I am forgetting)- The laser allows a telescope to use adaptive optics on ~100 times the area of the sky than was possible without the laser....